The Football Player And The Mind Of An Athlete

What is the thought pattern of an athlete? Is there anything special or unique that goes on in the mind of an athlete, that doesn’t happen in the average person’s mind? These are questions that are very difficult to answer. Every athlete thinks differently, learns differently, and is motivated in different ways. But maybe there is something dealing with the mind of an athlete that separates them from the rest of civilization.

The athlete and really the sport overall I chose to focus on throughout the course of this paper is the football player and the mindset in which he operates, while in what seems to become his natural environment and other factors which may alter that mindset in a positive or negative way. Having experience as a football player from my youth until present day helps to really analyze the mindset and thinking of this specific athlete and express through experiences my thoughts and feelings concerning my research found. Paul Bear Bryant a very well-known and respected coach for many years in the college football world once said, “When you make a mistake, there are only three things you should ever do about it: admit it, learn from it, and don’t repeat it.” This quote is an excellent example of football psychology and the type of thinking a football player must have, which is also helpful to have off the field. Mistakes are going to happen, learn from them and get better. Football is all about training the mind, which alters the behavior on the field.

So what exactly is football psychology? It is the study of a person’s behavior in football or sports-related activity. It is a specialization that seeks to understand psychological or mental factors that affect performance in sports, physical activity, and exercise. ...

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...ns got off to a hot start in the 2013 season, but after these events were reported in week 8 of the season; the team’s confidence went downhill as they finished with an 8-8 record. As we have seen the effects of how the locker room and team chemistry can play a big part in a player’s performance, let’s take a look at some other factors that can affect the mindset and performance of a player. Injuries are a part of the game and how a player deals with it mentally can be the difference in the course of his career. Mental toughness is taught in the game football, but it’s always up to the player to retain that information and use it to his benefit, especially when recovery from an injury.

Robert Griffin III known as RG3 did exactly that. After suffering an ACL tear in the 2012 playoffs which left him lying helplessly on the turf, he began the road to recovery mentally.