Tag: Culture

Saints’ cultural problems are a direct reflection on Dennis Allen

The Saints feel they have cultural problems in the locker room, but they must acknowledge Dennis Allen’s role in this decay. He isn’t a leader players believe in:

There’s no secret that the New Orleans Saints had some problems in 2023; the product on the field spoke for itself, as did head coach Dennis Allen’s sometimes-awkward press conferences. For a team that pledged continuity to the success of Sean Payton’s regime and the furtherance of a winning culture, the Saints sure don’t look like themselves.

And here’s a good look into why that is. The Times-Picayune | Advocate’s Jeff Duncan explored the various cultural problems the Saints experienced this season for Nola.com, but there’s an alarming through-line for all of this: Allen’s role in this decay.

It isn’t that Allen has had an influence in players showing up late for meetings or parking in handicapped spots, which Duncan reported. It’s that his lack of influence has let all of this slide. He is not a leader who inspires his players to be better. As his former coworker and Raiders CEO Amy Trask observed earlier this week, Allen is a coach that players do the minimum for, not someone they’d run through a wall for.

That extends to dedicating time at home watching tape on their Microsoft tablets instead of spending time with friends and family, which Duncan reports was something dozens of players slacked off on midway through the season. Now, to be clear, professional football players should be making time to study game film and improve on their own. They deserve some blame for not doing that. But this still goes back to Allen. A better coach would compel his players into being responsible and putting in the extra effort to prevent this from happening in the first place. That Saints players were comfortable checking out when away from the facility speaks volumes about how little respect Allen commands from them.

To his credit, Allen acknowledged that he and the rest of the coaching staff needs to be better, just like the players and everyone else in the organization during his end-of-year press conference: “Everyone in the building is part of the culpability. All of us, coaches, players, everybody. And so we have to look at, ‘What do we need to change?'”

That calls for changes in their behavior and teaching practices. It also means changes are needed for the coaching staff and the depth chart. There is going to be personnel turnover in New Orleans, but it isn’t starting at the top. All of this decay and erosion of the winning culture and self-accountability that Payton and Drew Brees cultivated starts with Allen. It accelerates when, Duncan reported, other players voiced complaints about Allen coddling Derek Carr and ignoring his on-field mistakes.

He might be able to call a good defense, but Allen doesn’t have the magnetic presence to get players to buy in and put forth extra effort. He doesn’t have the emotional intelligence to see why scoring one more touchdown on a hated rival for a popular teammate matters. He doesn’t have the connection with the community and with Saints fans to earn their loyalty. It’s possible that Allen could cultivate those skills and grow into this leadership role, but if he hasn’t done it by his fifth year as a head coach how likely is it he’ll figure it out in his sixth season?

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Ron Rivera proud of Commanders’ ‘rugged’ culture

Ron Rivera proud of ‘rugged’ Commanders culture

At his weekly press conference Tuesday, Washington Commanders coach Ron Rivera was asked: “Four years ago today, you were introduced as the head coach. As you look back over the four years, what are you most proud of?”

Rivera instantly responded, “What we’ve done with the culture.”

Rivera elaborated: “I think that was one of the things when somebody asked me the same question. One of the biggest things, more than anything else, is, I think, where we are. Obviously, it’s not where we want to be. But you know, that’s just the nature of this game sometimes.”

“The way the guys have played these last few weeks, they’ve been very gritty. They’ve fought. They’ve played to the end. I think that’s one of those things that’s gratifying as far as being a coach is concerned. You know, having guys that just fight. They’re rugged; they don’t back down from anybody.”

“You know, sure, we had expectations, higher expectations than where we are. But heck, there’s not much more you can do than just keep showing up and playing hard.”

In each of Rivera’s first three seasons with Washington, his team won the last game of the regular season. On Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys, in what could be his finale as Washington head coach, Rivera hopes his guys will fight hard enough that he can make it all four seasons.

How does Ron Rivera define a good team culture?

Fans are tired of hearing the word “culture.” Ron Rivera explained what he believed to be a good culture.

Washington fans are probably tired of hearing the word “culture.” It all started back in 2019 when former team president Bruce Allen was asked about Washington’s culture.

His answer would become a meme, one of many things fans and the media would relentlessly — and deservedly mock him for.

Here’s Allen’s answer from 2019.

When Allen was fired at the end of 2019, then-owner Daniel Snyder brought up the word culture when hiring Ron Rivera to oversee all football operations as well as coach the team.

Four years later — with Snyder long gone — Rivera still talks about the culture. Fans, of course, are more concerned with wins, something the Commanders haven’t done enough of in Rivera’s four seasons.

After Sunday’s loss to the Giants, Rivera was asked about coaches being judged by wins and losses. He clearly was uncomfortable with the question but remained professional with his answer.

On Monday, in his day-after press conference with the local media, Scott Abraham of ABC 7 in Washington, D.C., asked Rivera what defines a good culture since there appears to be a disconnect between what Rivera believes and what fans see.

Here’s Rivera’s response:

“OK, again, this is how I look at it,” Rivera began. “Guys learn to do things the right way, and then they go out and do it. Now, that’s what we’re trying to work on, that’s what we’re trying to get across, that’s what we’re trying to do. We’re trying to go ahead and get it to the point where we can be consistent with everything we do. Are there some things that are missing right now? Yes. But we’re working to get those things corrected; we’re working to get those things right. At the end of the day, it’s about what happens each day and then forward.”

There’s nothing wrong with that answer. The problem is Washington continues to lose. A good culture is a winning culture. At least, that’s how it’s defined in professional sports.

Rivera is a good man with the best of intentions. He came to Washington with the right ideas. He was the exact leader the franchise needed during some dark days. He improved many areas of the franchise. But the most important thing — winning — he’s fallen short.

8 things to know before visiting a Japanese onsen

Relax into the hot springs.

You might have seen the famous photos of snow monkeys relaxing in a Japanese hot spring. Indeed, onsens, or hot spring baths, are extremely popular in Japan. But when you visit an onsen, no, you won’t be bathing with monkeys.

Bathing in hot springs is a sacred tradition in Japan. The volcanic archipelago has approximately 25,000 hot springs sources and about 3,000 onsen establishments. It’s a way of purifying the body and the soul. So approach an onsen visit respectfully; don’t expect a hot tub party.

On a recent trip to Hokkaido, I bumbled through my first onsen experiences, looking to locals for clues. While avoiding staring, of course. Here are some tips to make your onsen visits a little smoother.

Chiefs WR Justin Watson says he always wanted to stay in Kansas City

Justin Watson told reporters about his desire to stay with the #Chiefs and his disinterest in signing anywhere else as a free agent. | from: @EdEastonJr

The Kansas City Chiefs’ offensive depth chart features many wide receivers that have yet to play many, if any, games in the NFL. The limited experience concerns some critics, but the Chiefs are confident in their game plan and the veterans on their roster to help educate the younger crowd that is still learning Andy Reid’s offensive system.

One such veteran is Justin Watson, who told reporters on Sunday that he had no interest in exploring free agency during the off-season. Watson, who re-signed for a second season in Kansas City back in April, spoke to the media Sunday’s practice, sharing his reasoning for not wanting to leave the Chiefs after buying into their culture.

“You know, secretly, I always knew that I was coming back here,” Watson explained. “You know, we [were] going back and forth on the numbers. But that’s why when you get into year six, and you’ve played in big-time football games and, once you experience Arrowhead and Chiefs Kingdom, you want to be a part of it.”

Watson finished last season with 15 catches for 315 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns. He played a significant role on special teams and built solid chemistry with Patrick Mahomes on deep pass plays. He made it clear later in his comments that other franchises were interested in procuring his services for the upcoming year, but he had no intention of leaving.

“There [were] probably six or seven teams that were making real offers,” Watson said, “[I was] telling my agent, it was always ‘Well, let’s go back to the Chiefs. Let’s go back to the Chiefs.’ Because this is where I really wanted to be the whole time.”

Watson is a veteran alongside Marquez Valdes-Scantling and injured pass-catcher Kadarius Toney in the Chiefs’ receiving corps, a group that has been praised by head coach Andy Reid for their mentorship of younger players in training camp.

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