Organizations need to be led by a strong, structured leadership team. The Giants have a GM (Sabean), a CEO (Baer), and an ownership group president (Neukom), while the 9ers have a 28 year old owner they call president and a head scout they don't even bother calling GM.
Winning organizations are run with class. The Giants flew a second jet to Texas for the world series games so that everyone's families could be there with them. The Yorks, on the other hand, have been scaling back family functions and other player related expenses since they took over the team. These things matter. People will be loyal to an organization that treats them well. That was the cornerstone of "The Walsh Way" and was a big part of why he succeeded.
Don't ruin the relationship between the team and the city of San Francisco. I know a lot of people here blame the city for the souring of this relationship, and I don't want to get into a debate about whether it's Newsome's or York's fault. But the relationship is souring and the Yorks need to do more to maintain it. Hundreds of thousands of people came to city hall to see the team and the city celebrate. If the 9ers win another superbowl I want to see them parade down market street also. That doesn't mean they have to build a new stadium in the city, but it does mean they have to maintain a positive relationship with the city; both its people and its leaders. The Yorks have been so willing to burn their bridge with the city leaders they haven't even thought about the fact that their lease with the city runs out 3 years before their most optimistic date for a new stadium opening.
Team chemistry IS important. Everyone knows that the 2010 Giants did not have the most star players. But they also didn't have any star egos. And they played harder for each other and their fans than I've seen any team play in a LONG time. Now this is one area where I think the 9ers are doing reasonably well. There's a lot of great guys in their locker room. But we also have been pretty cold with some players recently. Players who gave a lot to the team and were well respected. And I worry that will change the chemistry among the players who are left.
Sorry if this sounds negative. But I think there are a lot of little things that are very important in how successful teams conduct themselves. Little things I haven't seen the 9ers doing, but see the Giants being rewarded for doing well. I hope the 9ers are watching the Giants closely.
(Mods: If this should be in Other Sports please move it. Thanks)
[ Edited by TheFunkyChicken on Nov 3, 2010 at 3:01 PM ]
