Do Everything Right

MEXICO CITY — Before this season began, the Raiders, coming off a 12-win season and loaded on offense, were a trendy pick to possibly unseat New England atop the AFC.

In the wake of his team’s 33-8 loss to the Patriots on Sunday, Raiders quarterback Derek Carr stood at a podium in the shadow of Azteca Stadium and acknowledged the standard still being set by the defending Super Bowl champions.

“They don’t do anything special, they just do everything right,” Carr said. “You sit there in the first half and they don’t have any turnovers, I don’t think they had a penalty. They do the little things right. And it starts in the offseason; it starts with the culture in their room and their building and all those kinds of things.

“It’s something that we’re building. It’s something that we’re striving toward, that efficiency and all those kinds of things. But obviously, we have a long way to go.”

As a swimmer and/or a swimming coach Carr’s comments hit the nail squarely on the head. “Do everything right” is a very demanding, tough task. But if you want to be the very best at whatever you do then this is what you must do.

So many people, regardless of their chosen path, are willing to do some things right. A smaller percentage are willing to do many things right. A very few are willing to “do everything right”; those that choose that difficult, demanding and at times daunting path are rewarded greatly.

As Ken says, there are three groups of people (swimmers on your team): 1 – those on the bus; 2 – those standing at the bus stop deciding if they want to take the ride; 3 – those who don’t even know there is a bus…

David Carr + Ken DeMont = 2 smart guys

Thanks to Matt Kawahara of SF Chronicle for the coverage of Derrick Carr