Our family roots for the New England Patriots, an American football team who won six Super Bowls from 2002-2019.
But after quarterback Tom Brady left, the Patriots have been mostly mediocre, and this season, terrible.
In a recent game the fans and analysts even wondered if instead of doing everything he could to win, coach Bill Belichick was making decisions in the hope of not being embarrassed. In other words, he was playing uncharacteristically conservative. Daryl Johnson, a TV analyst, for example, was perplexed, when the Patriots punted on 4th and 3 from their 42 early in the fourth quarter when the game was still within reach.
Then Johnson made this observation regarding the Patriots: he said, “If you lose, you lose. It doesn’t matter by how many points you lose. You lose. Nobody gives you a lose-plus.”
We have all likely felt at times a desire to not lose badly, instead of playing to win. We become conservative in our approach and strategy, instead of taking risks that might lead to a big success or victory. The Patriots had always been known for attempting to beat the odds, instead of trying to keep the game close.
But in the game of football, and in many endeavors, it is good to remember, there really is no category of “lose plus.”
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