It’s a head-to-head league with 10 teams, with 8 showing up for the Live Draft.

Here’s my starting roster:

QB Tony Romo (Dal – QB)
WR Wes Welker (NE – WR)
WR Bernard Berrian (Min – WR)
RB LaDainian Tomlinson (SD – RB)
RB Jamal Lewis (Cle – RB)
TE Kellen Winslow (SD – RB)
W/T Jerricho Cotchery (NYJ – WR)
W/R Thomas Jones (NYJ – RB)
K Adam Vinatieri (Ind – WR)
D Terrence McGee (Buf – DB)
DB Nate Clements (SF – DB)
DB Leigh Bodden (Det – DB)
DL James Harrison (Pit – DL)
DL E.J. Henderson (Min – DL)

On the bench:

Donald Driver (GB – WR)
Brett Favre (NYJ – QB)
Chester Taylor (Min – RB)
Joey Galloway (TB – WR)
Jon Kitna (Det – QB)
Devin Hester (Chi – WR)

And here’s my draft order (in brackets is the overall pick #):

1. (2) LaDainian Tomlinson
2. (19) Jamal Lewis
3. (22) Tony Romo
4. (39) Thomas Jones
5. (42) Wes Welker
6. (59) Kellen Winslow
7. (62) Bernard Berrian
8. (79) Jerricho Cotchery
9. (82) Adam Vinatieri
10. (99) Terrence McGee
11. (102) Donald Driver
12. (119) James Harrison
13. (122) Nate Clements
14. (139) Brett Favre
15. (142) Will Witherspoon
16. (159) Chester Taylor
17. (162) Leigh Bodden
18. (179) Joey Galloway
19. (182) Jon Kitna
20. (199) E.J. Henderson
21. (202) Ernie Sims
22. (219) Devin Hester
23. (222) Mason Crosby

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In case you didn’t know, I’m a HUGE football fan (GO PACKERS!). But the game has given me more than just entertainment; I’ve also come away with some important lessons. Lessons that prove useful to the professionals of the game, but also useful for the entrepreneur / startup as well as the established company seeking to stay innovative and keep growing.

1. Huddle up.

Communicate company strategies to all team members to help motivate and give them purpose. Develop a culture that aligns with your company’s values and mission and encourage the development of passion, it’s contagious. Make sure outside stakeholders get their information from you and not anyone else to prevent the spread of rumours and misinformation.

2. Go deep.

Take your “shots down the field”. Don’t be afraid to aim high — Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAGs) will motivate you and your team to achieve great things. Even if you don’t get all the way there, the venture will be a lesson learned for the future.

3. The game is won in the trenches (the line of scrimmage).

The grind work pays off! Always be attentive to details and maintain high quality standards — your final product will be a step above the competition. Start and finish strong, don’t get slack and let complacency slip in.

4. Run hard on every play.

You never know when your chance to shine will come so give it your all no matter what the task is. When that client or investor starts looking at your company, you’ll be ready and in fine form.

5. Run trick plays.

Keep the competition guessing. Have a secret project in your back pocket or form an unexpected alliance, even run guerrilla marketing campaigns to keep everyone on their toes and generate buzz.

6. Go for it on 4th and 1.

Take calculated risks. The rewards from taking manageable risks far outweigh the penalties in the long run. Assess the situation and have confidence in your ability to lead your team to success.

7. Keep your eyes on the play clock.

Time-management is key, especially when resources are scarce. Prioritize tasks and use good project management techniques to get the job done on time, on budget, and according to specification. Know when your window of opportunity is ending and get ready to pounce when you get your turn.

8. Kick the field goal first, then go for the touchdown.

Don’t panic. You may be way off schedule but give yourself the opportunity to pull off a comeback. Take it one step at at time — a rushed task will often end up having to be redone and revised repeatedly.

9. Know when to go for 2.

Awesome, you got it done! Look for opportunities to squeeze in something extra for added value. If no one is going to appreciate the extra point; don’t waste your time, move on.

10. Don’t duck out of bounds.

Develop an appetite for challenges and take them head on with wise planning and execution.

11. The game is only over when the clock says 00:00

Don’t lose hope. Opportunities can come out of nowhere, stay optimistic and play hard till the bitter end. And if you’re on top, don’t lose focus — keep on doing what you’ve been doing and finish off strong and in control.

12. Shake hands and embrace after the game.

Never burn bridges, instead build relationships and respect for the other team. Learn to play well with others, things may be different the next time around.

Feel free to comment below with your tips for startups (they don’t have to be football related but that would be pretty cool!):

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It was a great discussion, we really got into it and came up with 5 necessary distinctions of a sport. However, upon further thought, I’ve added one of my own. In my view, all 6 of these rules must be met in order for that activity to be called a sport. The International Olympic Committee has a list of sports they recognize, but I’ll explain my 6 criteria for defining a sport:

1. Must have competing opposing forces.

This one is pretty obvious — you gotta be playing against someone.
What fails this test: Solitaire.

2. Players must exert a considerable amount of energy or force.

I believe that players of sports should be athletes. This doesn’t necessarily mean they all should be Terrell Owens ripped, but they shouldn’t be able to drink beer and eat pizza all off-season and dominate during the regular season.
What fails this test: Billiards.

3. Winning must be determined by clear and non-subjective scoring.

In other words, winning cannot be determined by judges giving scores. Real sports aren’t determined by human subjection — that’s too floozy. A win should be a win based on accruing clearly defined goals (baskets, touchdowns, runs, fastest time etc.). The idea is, it shouldn’t matter how you get there, just that you do. If the scoring is based on the how, it restricts the amount of creativity and flexibility a sport can have — we’ll just end up seeing the same things over and over again.
What fails this test: Figure Skating.

4. There must be rules of play that are enforced.

Again, pretty straight forward here — rules of play are necessary so that each side has an equal opportunity to use their skills to score or prevent the other team from scoring.
What fails this test: ??? Let me know if you have one.

5. Players must possess some recognizable skill (i.e. not just luck).

Skill is a very important part of sport. Of course, luck will always be a factor but for the most part, skill determines the bulk of sport event outcomes. It’s the combination of different skill levels that allow for great competition and a diverse field of players.
What fails this test: BlackJack

6. Must be organized beyond local/regional geographic areas.

Sport is something that transcends geographic boundaries. It communicates without language, though it may vary from location to location, on the whole it remains fairly unchanged (basketball in Canada is understood as basketball in Spain). I think this is a key definition of sport — it unifies across ethnicities, it doesn’t care what colour you are or where you live.

Other sports that don’t qualify under my rules:

• Chess
• Video Gaming
• Synchronized Swimming

Sports that do qualify:

• Weight Lifting
• Car Racing
• Golf

What do you think of my criteria, does it work? What games/activities do you think are/aren’t sports?

Oh and BTW, Football is the greatest sport on Earth!

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