Schultz: A painful process for Grossman
 Rex Grossman Chris Schultz
9/26/2007 12:48:42 PM
Faith, by its most basic definition, "is a belief, without physical evidence."
Going into Week Four in the National Football League, the Chicago Bears have lost faith in quarterback Rex Grossman.
How does this happen? Because giving up on a player is a serious negative evaluation of a player's ability and, in many respects, it can be the beginning of the end for that player in that city.
I have a high degree of empathy for him, playing in a city like Chicago, which adores its sports teams. You know there is never a day when his name is not in the paper and there is never a day when his name is not associated in a negative light. It is very tough to live with, but losing faith is a process, not an event. It happened to me in 1986, and I remember the systematic procedures with surprising clarity.
The first indication that your team is losing faith in you comes from the media -- print, radio and TV. You wake up one day, turn on the TV, and someone is giving a summation on the problems with the Chicago Bears and they end the summation with your name in a conclusive moment.
Then, in your car, someone else begins his assessment on radio and your name is repeated constantly.
Finally, you get to the facility and you're terrified to look at the paper. Out of the corner of your eye, you see the name Rex Grossman in big block letters, so you don't even bother too look any further.
The next are the fans, and it happens in very direct ways. It's game day, and you're walking onto the field and someone leans over the railing and tells you what they think of you.
The problem is that it is personalized. There is no football vocabulary involved, just an attack on you as a person. You don't know the guy, he doesn't know you, but he rips you from top to bottom and you take it.
After the media and the fans, the next indication comes from the players. It's never direct, always subtle. It comes in the form of silence first and exclusion second.
As a quarterback, it will appear from defensive personnel, then special teams players before finally it's your own guys on offence.
When others on your team have the vibe of non-confidence, it influences everyone in the organization and when the vibe transcends into reality, whether it's truthful or not, the trainers, ball boys and equipment managers are the next to lose faith.
When the trainers, ball boys and equipment managers cut off conversations, respond to questions with one word and give you a feeling that you have never experienced before, it's over.
Trainers, ball boys and equipment managers are the heartbeat of the team. They know everything that is going on; not based on rumours, but based in reality.
Finally, it's the coaches -- in the same rotation of defence, special teams then offence. The comment made by Ron Rivera, Chicago's former defensive coordinator and current defensive assistant with San Diego, when he called Grossman a "mental midget" was as damaging as any interception No. 8 has thrown in his entire career.
That is the environment in which Lovie Smith has to deal with the media, fans, players, trainers, ball boys, equipment managers and, finally, the owner. Always remember, whether it's a conscious thought process or not, the owner is the boss, he signs the cheques.
Grossman has had moments of brilliance, followed by moments of disaster. In the modern NFL, it is more important to avoid the moments of disaster than to look forward to the brilliance.
Who knows what will happen? One injury and he will be back and, after a break, may be better. I hope so, because it's tough not to like Grossman. He answers all the questions and I'm sure he gives 100% on Game Day, but maybe giving him a break is the right thing to do.
For me, his moments of disaster are painful to watch because, with every interception, I hear the typewriters start, the silent treatment begins and the decision is pending.
A process, a painful process, I remember is an experience Rex Grossman is now a part of.
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