Losing

This crossed my mind as my Texans got dominated 34-10. Some sports fans think that no team should ever lose to anybody. That's the heart of a true fan of a team. Reality, however, shows that teams DO lose games and that you can't win them all. There are two schools of thought in regards to losing games- losing games you know you could have won, and losing games simply because a team played better than you in every phase of the game. My Texans were simply beaten by a good Giants team. Also, we just simply played a sloppy game.

Losing: Losing Games You Could/Should/Would Have Won.

For many sports fans, any game can be won with no excuses. An example in regards to my Texans was a few years ago when we were supposed to beat the Colts by 17 here in Houston... until Sage Rosenfels (who was the kick holder for the Giants today) became too much of a hero and basically GAVE the win to the Colts. You have to be able to close out games when you know you are leading.

Losing: Losing Games to a Better Team.

A team sometimes plays better than the other. My Texans lost badly to the Giants just now, and the Giants were simply much better in every phase of the game. It wasn't like we were a three-touchdown favorite against the Giants. The Giants were the better team on this day. The Houston Texans have been around since 2002, but we haven't developed any serious and consistent character that makes us stand out. Think about it- you have powerhouse NFL programs like Pittsburgh, Baltimore, San Diego, and teams like that. The Texans are finding their way in the 2010 season. We aren't, however, anything established and fearful. At least... not yet. You can be a talented team and still lose. The questions to answer simply relate to how to get better for the next season. It's not time to panic unless there's just no hope of making the playoffs or at least having a winning season.


I think a lot of people feel that any team can beat any team. This is especially true in pro sports since the level of competition is about equal (good and bad teams notwithstanding) and that every game is a foregone conclusion as to who will win and that anything short of that team winning is a disappointment. Depending on the fan, a loss can be taken either like it shouldn't have happened, or that a team simply played better than the other.





The moral of this story... sometimes to deliver punishing knockouts to others, you have to take some knockouts yourself. Even Mike Tyson got knocked on his rear even as he's been making others kiss the canvas. You can't win them all. You CAN win the ones you play hardest for. Play hard all the time, but sometimes, your hardest doesn't always equate to your best.

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