Lord willing, I will complete my current series next week, but today there is not enough time to make a thoughtful post. I ask the question above because I heard Rex Ryan yet again on Sportscenter say, “It’s playoff time, aren’t your opponents supposed to be your enemies?”

The reason this question bothers me is not simply because he clearly doesn’t know the right answer, but because this notion of our competitors as our enemies is so widespread that Ryan can ask the question as if the answer were obviously in the affirmative. As if everyone watching should nod their heads in agreement that an opponent in sport is rightly considered an enemy.

But if we really think about this, could anything be more ridiculous. Enemies in war I understand. At least in most wars. For in war, something very significant is (supposed) to be on the line. But in sports? Is a championship (or at least a spot in the semifinals of a championship) really enough to consider someone my enemy? That is absurd.

And it is absurd because it doesn’t do justice to the true nature of sport. For sport and competition at their best are engaged in with the understanding that life and death are not on the line, that contrary to being enemies, we as opponents want to genuinely see who is best within the confines of the rules. We want to test ourselves in order to see how great we can be together in hopes that our quest will not only be a blessing to us, but also to others.

But this is where the difficulty of professional sports comes in. For though the game between the Jets and the Patriots is really just a game in and of itself, what really matters is what we make the game out to be. Or what we bring to the game. And if our primary concern is winning in order to obtain this or accomplish that or to be exalted, well, then if considering our opponents as enemies helps us win, then we should go ahead and do it.

In the end, however, I find this to be pretty sad. Not only because it most importantly, distorts the entire game itself and lessons the joy of those involved (on all sides), but because 1) If you cannot get your team motivated to play without all the trash talk and enemy talk, then you are severely lacking as a Coach. And 2) I genuinely believe that such a perspective will inevitably backfire in the end. And I must confess that I am not-so-secretly hoping that it backfires in this instance for the Jets.

We’ll only find that out when the game is played, but for now, we can at least recognize such nonsense for what it is and respond accordingly. No matter who wins, let’s hope that both the winner and loser can win or lose with integrity, rightfully recognizing sport for what it really is. No doubt, we don’t see such integrity enough. But we can at least have hope.