Lessons from the Super Bowl

Most of us watched the Super Bowl between the New England Patriots and the Atlanta Falcons. If you didn’t watch it, you most likely heard about the largest comeback in Super Bowl history (25 points) and that it was the first Super Bowl overtime game ever.

I am not writing this letter because I am a Tom Brady or Patriots fan.  In fact, I am a die-hard Giants fan and will let you know that Tom Brady and the Patriots are now 5-2 in Super Bowls, both loses inflicted by my Giants (but I digress).

I believe there is a great lesson to be learned by the Super Bowl outcome. Tom Brady was suspended the first 4 games of the season due to the controversy now known as “Deflate Gate.”  After serving the suspension he came back and had a spectacular year and led his team into the playoffs and the number 1 seed in the AFC.

Tom Brady had previously won 4 Super Bowls with the Patriots and was named league and Super Bowl MVP several times, prompting the debate as to whether he is the best NFL quarterback of all time!

The Falcons got off to an early lead and, as late as the 3rd quarter, were up by a score of 28-3.  That is when many people turned the game off, as the conclusion was not very much in doubt.

Then Tom Brady mounted an amazing comeback and the Patriots scored 31 unanswered points!  Tom Brady won his 5th  Super Bowl and was the game MVP.  It can now be argued without much debate that he is the best quarterback ever, being the only one to win 5 times.

But the lesson I gather from Tom Brady is that he persevered adversity in the suspension and the large deficit and overcame them.  That to me is what makes him Great.

Many times in our own lives we face challenges and adversity, and our ability to persevere and overcome shapes our character and who we are and may I dare say…………it’s what makes us Great!

Hope you win your own personal Super Bowl this year and come out an MVP!

Written by Attorney Eddie A. Pantiliat, eap@hgplaw.com