The Way of Strategy (#21b): Assessing the Grand Settings and Other Matters

The Raiders understood the compass of their circumstances. Not only were their past performance was flat, the team unity, the leadership and their execution game plan were in disorder. Economically, the Raiders have repeatedly been unable to sell out their seats. A team that does not win, is a failing team that is in chaos. The team is professionally considered to be the laughing stock in the NFL's terrain.

After last week's slaughter against the NY Giants, the Raiders needed to change their grand modus operandi in order to regain their respect and retain fan interests.

The Raiders defense coordinator somehow regained the control of his defense and properly decided on a different approach and set of plays that gave them a competitive advantage. The Eagles were not prepared for this change of scheme.

Conclusively, the Raiders defeated the Eagles.

Given the right situation, the true professionals will adjust their circumstance in order to survive. The classic professional sports adage is proven true again. "Any team can be beaten at any day, at any time. ..."

Whether the Raiders are able to maintain this new Compass view and the momentum is questionable, we will presume the Raiders are playing with the mindset of "... one game at a time".


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RAIDERS 13, EAGLES 9
Say hello to defense
Oakland blitz-fest yields 6 sacks, holds Philly to 3 FGs
David White, Chronicle Staff Writer
Monday, October 19, 2009
The Eagles didn't see it coming, and, frankly, who did outside the Raiders' inner workings?

Philadelphia came into the Coliseum with three wins going on four. The Raiders crawled in with four losses going on their usual 11 or 12.

If the Giants could hang 44 points on Oakland the previous Sunday, imagine the potential numbers with the second-ranked scoring offense coming to bat. "They saw the Giants did what they did last week, so they're coming in thinking they'd really have a day," Raiders cornerback Stanford Routt said. "That's just human nature." Here's what wasn't natural Sunday: the Raiders' defense blitzing and blitzing more, then playing zone coverage and more zone coverage, not letting up until a 13-9 victory was won Sunday.

The defense kept the Eagles out of the end zone and thoroughly confused, just in time to keep the season from being irretrievably lost. "They were able to come up with a scheme we haven't seen," Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb said after a 22-for-46 showing. "They dropped back in more zone than we've seen in the early games. They came up with more of a blitz package." In short, the Raiders threw in their entire kitchen-sink package, and they needed every bit of it.

The no-octane offense scored but 13 points. That was enough to beat the lousy Chiefs in Week 2. It shouldn't have been enough to beat the high-flying Eagles. But, it did. The Raiders' defense saw to that. "I'm sure they thought we were sorry and didn't want to play," defensive end Trevor Scott said. They would have been wrong, on every count. The Raiders blitzed the linebackers and safeties from the first series to the last. They sacked McNabb six times for 53 yards, then hit him another eight times for good measure.

Defensive end Richard Seymour had two sacks and three hits. Backup defensive end Trevor Scott had two sacks and two hits. Outside linebacker Thomas Howard got his first sack of the season, but it just as easily could have gone to middle linebacker Kirk Morrison on the double blitz. To a man, members of the Eagles' offense said they had no idea the Raiders had this in them. The Raiders' defense got off the field with five three-and-outs. It stopped the Eagles short on 14 of 16 third downs. It allowed but six plays inside the red zone. "If you sit back there and let the quarterback look over the defense for about three to four seconds, he's gonna kill you," defensive tackle Tommy Kelly said. "We knew we had to pressure him."

The Raiders always say that, though. Only now have they gone to drastic measures. Why they haven't tried this blitzing-zone stuff sooner, no one knows, but it worked wonderfully against the Eagles - if only for the element of surprise.

"It was a shock," Eagles right tackle Winston Justice said, "They caught us by surprise." Right guard Max Jean-Gilles said they weren't "prepared." Eagles coach Andy Reid said they were "outcoached." Eagles defensive end Chris Clemons, a former Raider, said nothing at all. He declined comment. "I don't know what to say," Eagles cornerback Asante Samuel said. "They gave it to us." That, they did, and they didn't even need much help from the lowest-scoring teammates in the NFL.

Cardinal Rule: The ultra class professionals are always prepared to have contingencies of what the opposition could do. (One should never underestimate the opposition).

Cardinal Rule: If the opposition's offense is not scoring, the team has a chance to win. Offense thrills. But it is the defense that wins the game.

The offense chipped in one play of note: tight end Zach Miller's 86-yard touchdown catch with two downfield blocks from receiver Louis Murphy. Everything else simply was killing the clock. Quarterback JaMarcus Russell managed the game with 17-for-28 passing for 224 yards. Running back Justin Fargas kept drives alive with 23 carries for 87 yards.

For a day, it was all the defense needed. "We looked at the film last week and knew that we didn't show up to play," Seymour said. "We got embarrassed. We just said, 'Hey, let's come out this week.' If we all put it together, then we could do something good."

E-mail David White at dwhite@sfchronicle.com.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/10/19/SPKJ1A7GSG.DTL
This article appeared on page B - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle

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Raiders overpower Eagles 13-9
By JOSH DUBOW, AP Sports Writer Sunday, October 18, 2009
(10-18) 18:23 PDT Oakland, Calif. (AP) --

Louis Murphy sprinted upfield and laid out a defender with a punishing block. Not satisfied, he caught up to the play again and delivered a second block that allowed Zach Miller to cruise into the end zone on an 86-yard catch-and-run.

For an offense criticized for lacking big plays, intensity and leadership, a rookie receiver gave the Oakland Raiders all three in one play that answered the skeptics. Miller scored the only touchdown of the game, Justin Fargas helped control the clock by rushing for 87 physical yards and Oakland's defense harassed Donovan McNabb all day in a 13-9 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.

"We went out and threw a fight on somebody and said, 'Enough. Let's play,'" coach Tom Cable said. "That's all you can say. There's no magic words or anything like that." It was a major turnaround from the last three weeks when the Raiders (2-4) lost by at least 20 points for the first time in franchise history, capped by a 44-7 loss to the Giants last week. After that game, New York linebacker Antonio Pierce said it felt like playing a scrimmage.

Those comments were posted in the Raiders' locker room this week and the team responded to the critics in impressive fashion. "That gave me extra fuel," Murphy said. "You have to look yourself in the mirror and man up. His comments were true. We played flat. We didn't play with any emotion. This game was totally different. We took those comments to heart."

The key Sunday was the Oakland defense. Coordinator John Marshall mixed in more zone coverages and blitzes than usual to combat a high-powered Philadelphia offense that was averaging the second-most points in the league. The Eagles abandoned the run early, only had Michael Vick on the field for two plays, allowed six sacks and were the first team in three years to fail to score a touchdown against the Raiders. "They were able to get home and hit our quarterback," coach Andy Reid said. "When we did have opportunities we didn't take advantage of opportunities."

Philadelphia's last chance ended when McNabb underthrew DeSean Jackson on fourth-and-4 from the Oakland 44 with 2:14 remaining. "I'm sure they watched the Giants game and thought we were sorry," Scott said. "But all week coach Cable talked about persevering and forget the past and move forward so we can get to where we want to go."

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/10/18/sports/s161606D22.DTL

The Way of Strategy (#21): Assessing the Grand Settings and Other Matters

Compass Team Strategy Rules

• A team that masters the fundamentals first, has the option to implement great strategic moves with ease. (A top Taiji player used to remind me that one who masters the small moves, will be able to make the big moves.)
  

• A team that operates together, must have the same access to all relevant information.
  

[ The day after ]
So what are we left to think after the 49ers' 45-10 head slap by the Falcons? The loss seemed most stunning to the 49ers themselves and particularly to head coach Mike Singletary. In his postgame news conference, Singletary said he never expected the blowout and he believed his team had established a standard that would have made such shattering losses no longer possible.

The 49ers firmly believed they were the better team going into Sunday's game. That's why Singletary showed his players a clip of the American relay team from the Beijing Olympics. Viewed as far more talented than the rest of the field, the relay team faltered because they dropped the baton. Singletary's message was to remember to execute the small details.

Mike Singletary's coaching powers will now be tested.

The 49ers never got to the small details because they were overwhelmed by the big details of the Falcons superior offense, defense and special teams.

So instead of getting a new standard established as a solidly good team in the NFL, what Singletary might have done in his first four games is lift the team up by his Herculean acts of motivation, discipline and hard work. It's possible that the immensely rigorous training camp made the players believe they had been forged into a better team.

That might be true, but what's also true is that they're the same group that went 7-9 last season and they are still adjusting to another new offensive coordinator.

The Falcons proved to be far more agile in the preparation. Over their bye week, the Falcons ditched their defensive identity as a zone team and installed a blitzing, man coverage scheme. Even though they were unfamiliar with such a style they pulled it off magnificently and flummoxed the 49ers as a result. That's quite a feat for a team in only their second year under head coach Mike Smith and with five new starters on defense.

Part of the switch in tactics included playing a five-man, two-linebacker, four-linemen defense against the 49ers predominate use of their twin tight-end offense. The 49ers never seemed to get comfortable with that adjustment, particularly tight end Vernon Davis, who reverted back to his old ways of tentative route running.

The one not startled by the switch was quarterback Shaun Hill. Like a couple of research nerds in white lab coats, Hill and fellow quarterback Alex Smith scoured video from the 2008 Falcons searching for changes the Falcons might adopt during their bye week. They discovered that Atlanta at times blitzed and played man coverage last season, and Hill and Smith figured they would try it again.

The problem is Hill knew it, but the rest of his offense didn't and a quarterback can only do so much if the rest of his offense was unprepared.

From that standpoint the 49ers were clearly and thoroughly out-coached.

So what the 49ers may have discovered is that there are limits to the Singletary philosophy of just playing basic football and allowing the other team to make a mistake. If the other team is talented and if they throw something completely different at the 49ers, they can knock San Francisco out of their comfort zone and the stunning results were all there, exposed in the soft autumnal light of a glaring 45-10 loss.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/ninerinsider/detail?&entry_id=49389

Lesson: A team that focuses on mastering the basics, will always lose to a team who mastered the basics many months ago.

Lesson: In a high risk and high reward scenario, one cannot continuously live off the same set of plays. The world class competitor must always be prepared for that day where he or she must adjust to a scenario where the opposition knows their modus operandi (i.e., the strategic approach, the plays, the adjustments, etc.) In a life and death scenario, the competitor must either evolve or perish.

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If a certain fan base is paying their professional sport team many millions of dollars per year for the privilege of watching their team perform professionally and efficiently, should that team have spend more time and effort, properly preparing for the game? ... Is that how a professional should operate?

A world class professional is the expert who knows the compass of their grand settings by having a comprehensive understanding of the basics, the technicalities and the cycles. He or she also knows how their competitive arena is being affected by the other parts of the globe.

The world class professional is someone who is always focusing on the now, while being mindfully aware what could happen next.


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Tuesday, October 13, 2009 (SF Chronicle)
Singletary says 49ers must prepare better
John Crumpacker, Chronicle Staff Writer

(10-12) 18:37 PDT -- If the 49ers looked unprepared in Sunday's didn't-see-it-coming blowout loss to Atlanta, it's because they were. So said coach Mike Singletary.

"We learned that preparation is everything," Singletary said after absorbing the worst defeat of his nascent coaching career. "Yesterday ... on the defensive side of the ball, I felt they (the Falcons) had a good game plan and we had a difficult time getting on track. The preparation on
our behalf, starting with me, was not good. Just did not do a good job overall."

Singletary suggested changes in the lineup might be in the offing, probably at right guard where second-year player Chilo Rachal has struggled in pass protection. The 49ers have this week to tinker before returning to play at Houston on Oct. 25, when running back Frank Gore
should be back and wide receiver Michael Crabtree likely will be active for his first NFL game.

The coach said deficiencies on the offensive line contributed to Shaun Hill having his worst game as a starting quarterback. Hill completed 15 of 38 passes for 198 yards, was sacked three times and had one pass intercepted for a passer rating of 45.7.

"Overall, the inconsistency in terms of the blitz pickups caused him to get rid of the ball prematurely," Singletary said. "It was more a case of some of the offensive-line breakdowns in pass protection. We will address that this week, next week. We may have to make some changes there."

Asked if one of those changes could be at right guard, the coach said, "Quite possibly."

The 49ers would have several options if that's the case. They could install versatile backup Tony Wragge at right guard and leave Adam Snyder and Tony Pashos alternating at right tackle. Or they could start Pashos at right tackle and move Snyder to right guard, where he has started six games in his career.

During this bye week, Singletary said his task is to evaluate the 53-man roster to determine "whatever changes we need to make, we make them now. That's the most important thing."
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The Way of Strategy (#20): Always Assess Your Opposition

Compass 1st Rule of Competition: Assess, Position and Influence

Cardinal Rule of Competition: Stay focused on your grand objective during the competition.

One who loses their emotional balance, usually become so engaged to the micro-event, that he/she surrenders their focus of the grand objective.

A leader should never lose their cool especially in the field of competition. There is no excuse.




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49ers Post game


/// A competitor who does not stay focused on the grand picture, is usually the one who is being pawned.

This game had everything, including a nice shouting match between Mike Singletary and the acknowledged dirtiest player in the league, Falcons guard and former 49er, Harvey Dahl. Dahl completely got into everyone's head including the head coach.

"I wish I had better coaching ediquette," Singletary said. "I have to get better at that. ... It was the heat of the moment."

Dahl also drew a personal foul from Takeo Spikes at the end of the game. He was living rent free in the 49ers' heads.

/// Once the opposition has misdirected you from the game, you are being pawned.

"I expected a little bit of it," said 49ers linebacker Manny Lawson, who knew Dahl when Dahl was a practice squad player. "But nothing like that."

Others downplayed the Dahl factor, with a very somber Shaun Hill saying, "That's part of the game."

Spikes attributed the loss to this. "Whatever could have gone wrong, went wrong, times two," Spikes said. That included a Michael Turner fumble in the first half that was kicked right to a Falcon.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/ninerinsider/detail?&entry_id=49354
http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2009/10/11/fiery-mike-singletary-shouts-at-falcons-harvey-dahl-apologizes/


If the San Francisco Niners coaching staff properly assessed their opposition, they would have realized that a specific element of the opposition was going to play dirty. They should have been prepared for this worst case scenario. Click here for a news item on the mindgamer who got into Singletary's head.

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Compass View

Point #1: Assess your opposition properly and carefully.

Point #2: Plan your gameplan to exploit their strengths and weaknesses

Point #3: Plan and prepare for best and worst case scenarios.
* Ensure your contingency plays are in your script. (We presuming that you have one. Do you?)

Point #4: Consciously know what you are planning for.

Point #5: Prepare your team on your contingency moves for all best and worst case scenarios.

Point #6: Never ever let a negative event stay in your head for more than a micro moment. Remember to keep your eye on the current event while being mindfully aware of the rest of the game. Avoid the emotional negativity.

Point #7: It takes a coolhead to win a hot game.

The Way of Strategy (#19): Intelligence Gathering

To succeed in an information-driven society, companies are constantly gathering and analyzing intelligence on the consumer every cyber second.

Why is it important?

"Those who do not know the positive and the negative conditions of their marketing terrains, cannot properly conduct their marketing and sales operations efficiently; ...Those who do not possess the latest customer data, are unable to obtain the advantages of the terrain." --- Paraphrased from the Art of War 7

Q: How do you secure this type of intelligence?
A: Start by understanding the grand picture. One assesses the grand picture by understanding the obvious and non-obvious factors.


Our questions to you:

• Do you know what is your grand picture?
• Do you know how to assess the business intelligence of your grand picture?

Until you answer those questions, you will be struggling in the middle of the pack. If you want to talk about about a better alternative, please contact us at service [aatt] collaboration360 [dott]com

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As Google and Microsoft vie, Twitter could turn tweets into dollars
Sharon Gaudin, Computerworld
Thursday, October 8, 2009 (10-08) 14:57 PDT --

With Google and Microsoft both looking to ink a deal with Twitter for its real-time data, the microblogging company could have finally found a way to turn tweets into dollars. At the same time, the titans of tech may have found a way to boost their real-time search efforts in the midst of their raging search war .

The intense rivals are in separate talks with the new online darling Twitter to set up their own data-mining deals , says a report from The Wall Street Journal 's AllThingsD Web site.

The "advanced talks" are said to be over licensing deals that would allow them to integrate real-time Twitter feeds with their search engines, Google's search and Microsoft's Bing.

None of the three companies would respond to requests for information about the reported negotiations. AllThingsD reported today that the individual deals could mean upfront payments worth several million dollars, or involve revenue-sharing plans.

"Ah, this could be a way for Twitter to make some money , and maybe more than just a little money," said Dan Olds, an analyst with The Gabriel Consulting Co.

"It finally means a business model for Twitter, or at least the beginnings of one. And, of course, it means real revenue, which is very important. Not just in licensing revenue from Google or Microsoft, but also in potentially getting a piece of the action on an ongoing basis. So there could be considerable upside here for Twitter,"

Olds said. Industry watchers have been waiting not so patiently for Twitter to come up with a business plan and actually start making some real money. Twitter co-founder Biz Stone has said for months that the company has wanted to focus on building features into the site before worrying about the business end of things. If either, or both, of these deals go ahead, they would solve some big income issues for Twitter.

"The data is valuable," said Ezra Gottheil, an analyst at Technology Business Research Inc. "It allows the search engines to front-end Twitter. And it also clues them in to what people on the Web are talking about." "What people are now twittering about is what people are now interested in...," Gottheil said.

"So the engines could include tweets as indexed content, either through an option, a separate search page, or a search window." Gottheil said he doubts that either Google or Microsoft would allow the other to have the only license with Twitter.

If one deal goes through, the other would most likely follow, he said. In the ongoing battle for supremacy , neither company would want the other to gain a real-time search advantage . "

For Microsoft and Google, it's more ammunition they can use to beat the hell out of each other," said Olds.

"It's probably more important for Microsoft to secure a deal than Google, but I would expect that there will be deals with both of them..." "The hype around Twitter currently has it being considered to be one of the very best ways to gauge what people are talking about and what they're interested in.

This is a direct benefit from Twitter becoming so large. It's the value of a huge user-footprint," Olds said.

Original story - www.computerworld.com/s/article/9139168/As_Google_and_Microsoft_vie_Twitter_could_turn_tweets_into_dollars
Copyright (c) 2009, IDG News Service.
All rights reserved. IDG News Service is a trademark of International Data Group, Inc.

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The Way of Strategy (#18): How to Be An Expert

From A Book of Five Rings (Go Rin No Sho)
Written by Miyamoto Musashi Translated by Victor Harris

• Do not think dishonestly.
• The Way is in training.
• Become acquainted with every art.
• Know the Ways of all professions.
• Distinguish between gain and loss in worldly matters.
• Develop intuitive judgment and understanding for everything.
• Perceive those things which cannot be seen.
• Pay attention even to trifles.
• Do nothing which is of no use.

You can find more information on the Five Rings at Samurai.com.