Leadership

Everyone knows the Baltimore Ravens by their defense and by default by that guy screaming across the field known as Ray Lewis. I'm not going to lie, Lewis is probably the most intense player in the NFL, and he is an incredible leader. And the great thing about Lewis is that even though his individual ability has suffered a bit, the team has still remained dominant under his leadership.

Last night I watched tidbits of the Jets-Ravens preseason game, and just happened to catch most of Bart Scott's interview with Suzy Kolber. Immediately I was struck by Scott's ability to be the face of the new Jets defense. In the few minutes of the game I had watched earlier I remembered that Scott was all over the place for several plays, behind the offensive line and at Joe Flacco's throat every down. This included a perfect form wallop that just missed getting credit for a sack on a deep throw. I'm pretty sure I cringed at that hit, it was that good.

The funny thing is when we see a player who is that intense, we almost expect that all those hits have taken their toll on the brain cells scrambled around in that player's head. And yet both Ray Lewis and Bart Scott are great in interviews. Probably the most underrated part about being the leader of a team is being respectful and informative to the media. Scott handled the interview perfectly: it was the best sideline interview I can ever recall seeing. And as much as people say that any press is good press, a great interview goes a long way toward winning the support of fans.

I suppose there may be better leaders in the league than Lewis and Scott, but I will say that I left extremely impressed by the professionalism of Scott. And amazing as it sounds, I am confident that Scott's leadership will lead to at least 1 or 2 extra wins this season. In a tough division with a rookie quarterback lined up to start, Scott being the face of the Jets will be imperative, but so far he has proven to be very game to that challenge.