NFL leper and former Washington Redskins quarterback Jeff George once declared, “That leadership stuff is overrated.” Maybe he was right.
Sometimes it is manufactured.
Sometimes it is a myth
Where does the leadership of Capitals star Alex Ovechkin fall in these descriptions?
Do leaders get benched, as Ovechkin — the team captain — did with his team desperately seeking the game-tying goal Tuesday night against the Anaheim Ducks?
Ovechkin was clearly upset about the move. He was shown on the bench spewing what has been interpreted as some kind of venom toward coach Bruce Boudreau.
At practice Wednesday, Ovechkin spoke about leadership.
“I was pissed off. Of course, I wanted to be in this situation on the ice,” Ovechkin told reporters. “It doesn’t matter who I said it [to] or what I said. It looked funny on [television] and right now is big story. But again, just a little bit frustrating because I’m a leader on the team and I want that kind of responsibility.”
If there was a message behind Boudreau’s move, Ovechkin said he understood it.
“It’s one team, and it doesn’t matter how good you are or who you are,” he said. “If we want to win, we have to be on the same page — everybody.”
But leaders are the ones who usually deliver those messages — not receive them.
We’ve been fed the image of Ovechkin as the leader by the organization. Owner Ted Leonsis spoke of how Ovechkin was the first one to call Mike Knuble when the free agent was signed in 2009. He spoke of how Ovechkin would tell Boudreau to use him as an example if he wanted to make a point in practice.
Your best player, your highest-paid player, just sets that tone,” Leonsis said.
Not on the bench, he doesn’t.
Leadership is a virtue that often turns into a sales pitch. There were questions raised about Ovechkin’s conditioning, then we were treated to stories about how he rededicated himself and was in the best shape of his career.
It’s the pitch we were all given when the Redskins traded for Donovan McNabb.
We heard the stories about McNabb working out at the weight room at Redskins Park the day he was introduced following the trade. There was the “Hell Week” he had for his receivers in Arizona.
The sales pitch was that he was providing leadership and a culture change.
A few months later, the stories surfaced questioning McNabb’s work ethic and practice habits. And we are hearing the same stories from his new home in Minnesota
Leadership may not be overrated, as George said. But it can be illusionary.
“Having the capacity to lead is not enough,” Vince Lombardi said. “The leader must be willing to use it. His leadership is then based on truth and character. There must be truth in the purpose and will power in the character.”
Examiner columnist Thom Loverro is the co-host of “The Sports Fix” from noon to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday on ESPN980 and espn980.com. Contact him at [email protected].
