The Steel Curtain
Today the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the New England Patriots in what was the Patriots’ first loss in 399 days and 21 games respectively. I think this says a lot about the Pittsburgh Steelers’ team this year, but I think it says even more about my theory that streaks and records do not matter in professional sports.
My theory, about streaks and records in professional sports is that overall they can not predict the outcome of any game no matter how good or bad the numbers look. A lot of times, people base their “game winners” on past performances, current health status and various other variables. I suppose that this is common because that is all that you can really go by, the past. However, it is my belief that the athletes that play professional sports are not only good at what they do, but are incredibly driven, which can result in upsets. To put it simply, at any given time a team or player can excel and surpass expectations, especially when the expectations are based on a winning or losing streak.
You can see this fact from games that happen near the end of the season, when a team no longer has the chance to make the post-season playoffs, and yet they play their best game of the year. Or, even at a game level, when a team is down and out - and yet still give it their best effort. This can be seen with the recent Boston Red Sox win over the Yankees and then their subsequent World Series victory. I don’t believe in curses and I certainly don’t believe in the power of a streak. Streaks inevitably end.
There are so many factors that go into a “win” in professional sports; momentum (which may come from a streak or perhaps even from something as simple as a good practice), team health, play calling, crowd involvement and the way the ball drops. Typically, a football won’t bounce the same way twice - one flip of a ball can change the result of a game.
A single key play can result in a win for a team. Meaning that if a team finds themselves in a 4th down and 26 and they pass to “First down Freddie”, that it can change the outcome of a game. Penalty calls, more than almost anything in the game of professional football, can change the outcome of a game. It can put a quick stop to momentum that is building on 1 team’s drive and can bring down the overall morale of the team.
I’m glad Pittsburgh won, don’t get me wrong. And I believe that they had the skills needed, even prior to the game today, to oust the Patriots from their lofty throne. Yet, at the end of the day, there is something to be said about streaks in professional sports and them not meaning much.
This loss, for the Patriots, might do more harm than just having a 6-1 record. The simple fact that they are not used to answering questions like: “What happened during today’s game that caused your loss?”. The correct answer would be “Well, at the end of the game, when the clock read 0 - we were behind on the scoreboard.”. But I am sure that they will attribute it to any number of factors. Losing can really effect a team that hasn’t lost in a while, so I guess we’ll just wait and see what effect this loss has on the Patriots.
On the reverse side of the coin, you have a team like the Green Bay Packers, whose had problems this year putting numbers in the win column. However, recently they started putting that “losing streak” behind them, and started winning. Will they be able to keep their momentum going long enough to get deep into the Playoffs? Who knows? But it proves, even more, that winning or losing streaks don’t really play a factor in game-to-game analysis. Teams that under estimate their opponents based on their record will look up, from the flat of their back, and find themselves wanting.
Next week, the Steelers face another undefeated (so far this year) team, the Philadelphia Eagles. Does the winning streak matter for this team? Absolutely not. And they are even willing to say that for themselves. Donovan McNabb in a post-game interview said no matter how many times they win, they play each game 1 at a time not worrying about the last game they played. And, as we all know Chris is a big fan of the Eagles, and he says that he’s been concerned over the course of their last few games and is anxious for the next. Nothing is ever a sure thing, and he knows that. All good fans know that.
Lets hope we have an entertaining, fair and injury-free game next week.
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