Written by A former Pittsburgh Steelers coach made a comment during a recent interview with Ed Bouchette of The Athletic: “It’s only cheating if you get caught”. This coach, Bill Cowher, was discussing taking competitive advantages into the grey area, or worse into illegal territory. It is an interesting topic to think about as a coach, athlete, parent, general manager, owner, or fan.
Gaining a competitive edge is one thing. Adjusting to the other team’s defense, double teaming an athlete to shut them down, and watching how a team comes out of a timeout when they setup on the court are all good examples of trying to gain competitive advantage. An athlete or team must adjust to what is happening within the competition to truly gain the advantage because many times being the fastest, strongest, and smartest is not enough.
However, how far is too far when it comes to trying to gain competitive advantage? Is recording an opposing team’s workout taking competitive advantage too far or what about purposefully injuring another player during a game? Is cheating too far? These are things that a coach, general manager, and other staff must consider. How do their morals, values, and ethics fit into the desire to gain a competitive edge or win? This is where an organization must look at themselves and sincerely answer those questions.
If a team or organization is willing to blatantly cheat, or if they are focused on being the best team possible but not forgetting their morals and principles, it will be clear which route the organization took with their positive or negative cultures. Leaders of teams must decide how much of their own selves they are willing to give up to win or find success. Are they willing to win at all costs? Only each coach, manager, and support staff can answer this themselves.