Tackle What's Next

13Control What You Can Control

Champions do not become champions when they win the event, but in the hours, weeks, months, and years they spend preparing for it. The victorious performance itself is merely the demonstration of their championship character.

—Alan Armstrong

When I was just coming out of college and preparing for the NFL draft, the sports pundits‐that‐be gave me a label that I wasn't sure how to feel about. The consensus was that I was the most “prepared” player in the draft. Not the strongest, or the fastest, although God did not slight me on my physical gifts. Nor was I the toughest or even the most experienced. Simply the most prepared. But the way they said “the most prepared” sounded like a compliment. So, at first, why did it not feel like it?

Maybe the most straightforward answer is that preparation isn't glamorous. It isn't flashy, nor is it immediately visible. Out there on the field, you measure the quality of the performance on each play, but you can't see the hundreds and thousands of hours that went into it. Of course, the fans see the game, but that's only 3% of our work as players. The rest of it is all in preparation. As legendary college coach Dabo Swinney says, “All the great players love the preparation.”

As an offensive lineman, if the defense is moving in and blitzing and you can stay under control, you generally anticipate what they're doing. So it's not all reactionary. A lot of it is anticipation, and that comes from film study and being ...