Jon Gruden, the Humbler
As the head coach, keeping the team’s attention on the task at hand is Jon Gruden’s responsibility. Typically when the team’s success increases, so does the difficulty of this responsibility. Players become satisfied with their performance and don’t feel the pressing need to put the extra time in, so the team becomes stagnate and potentially has a letdown.
For a head coach, avoiding the situation above is one of the most challenging tasks of the job. Any coach wants his or her players to play with confidence, but there is a delicate balance and that’s why you see some outlandish tactics by NFL coaches. For example, Sean Payton has made headlines in recent years for placing rat traps in his player’s lockers and bringing $200k cash into the locker room.
Gruden needs to find his own quirk that will send a message to the team and break up the monotony of the long NFL season. Are these actions ridiculous and easy to poke fun at? Sure, but it’s a creative way to combat the complacency mentioned above and certainly a method that sticks in player’s minds.