brady defends running up the score, or as i call it, playing the game

in an interview a couple days ago, tom brady (qb for the patriots and reigning golden boy of the nfl) made the following comments:
"We're still trying to make improvements and we're trying to play extremely well. We're not trying to win 42-28, we're trying to kill teams, we're trying to blow them out if we can. You want to build momentum for each week, you don't want to be up, 42-7 or 35-7, and all of a sudden you look up and it's 35-21. We don't want to be part of that, you don't want to go into next week realizing that for the last 18 minutes of the game your team didn't play well, or didn't play up to its capabilities. You gave other teams momentum for the next time they play you, or you gave another team a reason not to be intimidated."

it's about time an athlete addressed this. i commend him for his comments. they're the words of a winner, someone who doesn't lay down and take it easy when the road ahead looks smooth and easy. does that sound like i want to blow him? i hope not. i just think this is exactly the right attitude athletes should have. hell, anyone should have. why should you let up?

but there is no such thing as running up the score. not in any sport. if you are playing alone, then maybe. but you're always competing against someone and they have a role to play in how well you do. running up the score has less to do with a team's actual ability as it does the opposition's inability. the team allegedly running up the score is just continuing to compete at a high level. that should make the other team be more inclined to compete, not roll over.

there's no logical reason for a team to ever stop competing. i make this point for both the team supposedly running up the score and the team being trounced. the team who is running away with the game has no reason to stop playing as hard as they can. you never know when dropping your guard will let the other team back in and turn the tables. and the same goes for the team on the losing end, you never know what's going to happen and you could crawl back into contention.