Touchdown! (Intro & Chapter 1): Growing Up

by Kevin Elko

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Read the following excerpt from Touchdown!, Introduction.

I was finishing my internship with the United States Olympic Committee when I got a phone call from Tom Donahoe, the head of player personnel for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He wanted me to meet with Dick Haley, Tom Modrak, and him, all three of whom were working in personnel for the Steelers–and would go on to have fabulous careers in the NFL. I flew into Pittsburgh and we met on Christmas Eve. The occasion marked the end of head coach Chuck Noll's distinguished career with the Steelers, which had resulted in four Super Bowl championships. This also marked the beginning of NFL free agency, which would alter football and the way things were done.

In the discussion that day, the decision was made that the Steelers would start to draft and select free agents by strongly considering their attitude as part of the process. Don't get me wrong–you cannot win without great athletes, but you surely can also lose with them. If you look at the team that wins the Super Bowl, you will see athletes with big arms, built-up chests, and supernatural speed; but if you take a good look at a team that did not qualify for the playoffs, you will see exactly the same characteristics!

Furthermore, teams have a collective attitude that eventually becomes clear and then becomes that team's culture. Once the culture has formed, inherent strengths and challenges will show up in a pattern of wins and losses. To continue reading, purchase and download now.

192 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 10, 2009