The Why Is Everything: A Story of Football, Rivalry, and Revolution

by Michael Silver

The story of the brilliant, hypercompetitive young coaches who threw out decades of received wisdom to fundamentally remake America’s most popular sport.

The why is everything. That’s the ethos of Kyle Shanahan, son of a coaching legend and now the leading figure in a revolution that is sweeping the league. Shanahan and the branches of his coaching “tree”—including Sean McVay, Mike McDaniel, Raheem Morris, and Matt LaFleur—came up in a martial sport where coaches and players did things a certain way for the simple reason that coaches and players had always done them that way. In the early 2010s, while working for the Washington Redskins, Shanahan and the others began to ask why, and in the process threw out decades of accumulated tradition in favor of unorthodox—and wildly successful—new schemes. Today, these innovative coaches have helped propel the NFL to new heights of viewership and drama. With extensive access, acclaimed reporter Michael Silver presents a story of close friendship and intense rivalry—a story that happens to be the story of modern football.

Genres: Sports, Football, Nonfiction, Biography

448 pages, Hardcover

Published October 1, 2024

Reviews

[Chris Capone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alright, I know y’all have been waiting for my thoughts on this football book with bated breath… and the review is finally here. I enjoyed this, especially the first half. The anecdotes are priceless, and I didn’t think a marriage of good writing + football analysis of this quality existed. It does help when you’re writing about a revolutionary schematic genius who is also a Macbeth-tier tragic figure in Kyle Shanahan.

The second half is not as strong though, as it becomes more of a recounting of events than a story. Too much play-by-play, not enough color (sports joke hahahaha). Also, the author has a tendency to portray both himself and these coaches, who he is clearly buddies with, a bit charitably.

Anywho! There is no way anyone is still reading this. Think of all of the insane things I could say. Haha. Buy this for, like, the football lover in your life or something, I don’t know. And drop your football book recommendations down below!!! 🤪🤪🤪

[Matt Woodward · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the most well-researched book I’ve read. It follows young coaches in the NFL and makes you wonder how he has a quote from a player about a certain topic. Silver must have the most trust as a journalist in the NFL to get some of the quotes he has in this read.

[Jarrod S · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author is very close to the subjects, which helps and hurts the book. I enjoyed the earlier parts of the book, which dealt with events farther in the past, lending to more historical insight and focus on scheme. As the book progressed, it became more and more like an insider-y article on ESPN.com, focusing on the zoomed in tick-tock of recent events, losing the zoomed out focus it had earlier. This was disappointing to me. If you’re reading for gossip, this might be a good thing.

The closeness to the subject in terms of relationship and time harmed the last half of the book. It was reticent to criticize and already dated in parts (Sam Darnold!). If this book came out in another decade or two, it would be measurably better.

[Matt Bredin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for all football fans

[Ben Meyerson · Rating 5 out of 5]

what an excellent read, might be my favorite book (non sports and sports)

Long live great journalism

[John Schorg · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you are a fan of football plays and systems being described in exacting technical terminology, here is a book to geek out on. If you are not, I suspect you will find these sections incomprehensible. That aside, what we have here is an extended effort to grant genius status on a group of NFL coaches who have risen to prominence over the last decade or so. More specifically, we are asked to understand the author's case for Kyle Shanahan to be taken as a football savant. This is a laborious effort that does not work because Shanahan comes across as a particularly unlikable person, ready to lord it over players, coaches, and friends, and eager to deflect blame when things go wrong. You tend to gravitate toward others in the book who seem like normal human beings, particularly Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel. But the author's goal is to put over Shanahan, and the constant fawning increases the irritability factor considerably.

[Isiah · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a football fan I found this book very insightful and enjoyable. The amount of adversity these coaches have had to go through has made me feel even more appreciation for the hard work and Game planning they do week in and week out

[Eric Del Rosso · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed the hell out of it, not much else to say.

Non-Fiction Rating: 8.3/10

[Longfellow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review
Silver’s book traces a lineage of modern day NFL offense, specifically the growth and evolution of Bill Walsh’s West Coast scheme under the influence of Kyle Shanahan and his assistants. Prominent characters include Mike & Kyle Shanahan, Mike McDaniel, Raheem Morris, Matt LeFleur, and Sean McVay, with numerous others playing significant roles throughout the book.

Written in three parts, Part 1 introduces the main characters with a chapter apiece of biographical overview, which is well done. Parts 2 and 3 trace the life events of these characters, both on and off the field. Silver depicts their distinct personalities, their dominant character traits, their problem-solving strengths, the conflicts between various coaches, and the collective competitiveness of the group as a whole, from the initial gathering of some of these characters in Washington under the Mike Shanahan led Redskins, through stints in Houston, Atlanta, Cleveland, and other teams through the end of the 2024 NFL season.

I’m new to this genre–Michael Lewis’s The Blind Side being the only other football book I’ve read–but I’ll keep my eyes and ears open for other reads about the NFL and its players that could add to my football knowledge or offer a compelling narrative.


Personal commentary
After a lifetime of following only my hometown team, I’ve been following the NFL closely for three or four years.

After my hometown franchise drafted a good QB, suddenly the team was being covered in nearly every segment on every national NFL show. The upshot: I began to have more interest in the league in general, and following the reality show that is the NFL led to collateral surface-learning about roster building, offensive and defensive schemes, salary cap challenges, and etc.

In a similar way, over a decade ago I transitioned from a lifelong hometown-team-only baseball fan to a fan of the whole MLB when I joined a fantasy baseball league. I began to learn more about players across the league, the ins and outs of player development, and the usefulness of analytics. Now, like many other baseball fans, I have favorite players who have never played for my hometown Royals, but of course the Royals, favorites since I was about five–several years before I followed any other major sports franchise–still dominate my heart when it comes to fandom.

My following of the NFL has born a different fruit: for starters, I quickly had to discard my preconceptions of NFL players and of football players in general. As a casual fan I had even developed prejudice against professional football players as a group. The mainstream media primarily catches only the perceived headline-worthy stories, whether it’s on or off-the-field related, and some of those headlines exist because poor decisions have been made, decisions that can ultimately damage a reputation or reveal the need for character growth.

When I began to consume NFL media beyond the mainstream–players’ and coaches’ pressers, analytical podcasts, etc.–I quickly realized my preconceptions should be thrown out whole hog. I misunderstood the work ethic–both physical and mental–that is required even to be in the NFL, much less to have success in the league and also as a team.

The players in the NFL are much more than athletic freaks, and some of the players who succeed aren’t even freaks from an athletic standpoint. But they all have committed themselves to a demanding schedule, high personal expectations, and brutal wear and tear on their bodies for seventeen weeks–if they’re lucky–every season. Oh, and the players have to be smart too. Work ethic can go a long way but it can’t do everything; depending on one’s position, studying for hours per week at home is part of the job. Mental preparedness, coping methods for different situations, dealing with the media: these things are all part of the job too. Are ee ess pee ee see tee.

And since Silver’s book is specifically about coaches, I’ll close by mentioning that success as a head coach seems to require something close to clinical workaholism.

[Chris Harvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

There can't be many more stressful jobs than that of an NFL coach. The amount of work put in designing plays, coaching the players so that they understand their place within the system, making in game decisions and having to immediately answer to the media when things go wrong. Then there's the regular stresses of being a manager such as dealing with different personality types. All of this done with tens of millions of people thinking that they know better than you how to do your job. Getting fired at some point is almost guaranteed. This is the world that Kyle Shanahan was born into, and the world he's been altering for the last decade.

The Why is Everything is long for a sports book, at around 450 pages. To be honest, I'm not sure I would have read it if I'd known how long it is (I got an ebook copy). And yet I'm glad I did. It starts a bit slow, introducing all the characters, but it has a propulsive narrative that once it got going I knew I'd finish the book. The book follows Kyle Shanahan, from his origins working for his father with the Broncos, right up to the end of the 2023 season. It branches off to include the stories of other members of his coaching tree including Sean McVey, Matt LaFleur and Mike McDaniel among others. I found it very interesting how different the personalities were between these coaches, even amongst similar football minds. Kyle Shanahan is almost a tyrant. Loud, cocky, abrasive, demanding. Sean McVey, who had the success of a Superbowl win early in his career uses more inspirational tactics, except for one period dealing with the QB Jared Goff, a time which he came to regret. Mike McDaniel is the strange chill guy who seems most like a normal human. These guys are more interesting than I would have expected from the stereotypes I had about NFL coaches, mainly that they're all basically Bill Belichick in spirit.

I think it's important to note that this book is about NFL coaching and not about NFL football. What football there is in this book is almost incidental, like how the word carburetor might come up if watching an F1 race. In this book, the players are just cogs to fit into the coaches system, and they often fail to play in the way the coaches demand. A large part of the Kyle Shanahan style of coaching is hammering out individualism from players and just getting them to follow the damn playbook. It works though, it's unique compared to other football books.

I come to the NFL as a fan of the chaos of the action, of seeing grown men smashing into each other. Reading this book that really gets into the details of play design gives me a deeper appreciation of the game. There is some more technical football terms in here when describing plays, so I wouldn't recommend this book to a football beginner, but anyone who has been watching for more than a season or two should follow along just fine.

[Zach Koenig · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is quite possible that The Why Is The Everything might just be the best book about NFL football that I've ever read. Anyone who wants to understand why the NFL looks how it does from a schematic perspective will find a treasure trove of extremely interesting information here from author Michael Silver.

For a very basic overview, Silver looks at the current state of the NFL (circa 2024) through the lens of, oddly enough, 1990s coaching legend Mike Shanahan. Why start there? Because Mike's son, Kyle, begat a football revolution. While coaching for his father in Washington, Kyle took Mike's thoughtful schemes and put more emphasis on the "why" of it all--ready and willing to engage with players rather than the tried-and-true "because I said so" method of NFL coaching old. Along with Sean McVay, Mike McDaniel, Matt LeFleur, Raheem Morris and others, Kyle Shanahan started a coaching revolution that has now nearly taken over the NFL.

This book follows each of those figures (sort of spiraling outward from that legendary WASH mid-2010s staff) towards their eventually ascent into head coaching positions. Via interviews from the coaches themselves, friends, family, and players, Silver comprehensively shows exactly why modern-day NFL is as much about getting players to "buy in" to the reasons behind a scheme and motivating them to grind week-in and week-out. In terms of the things I've seen play out every Sunday for the past 10+ years and why certain players/coaches made certain decisions, this book helped me understand a lot of that.

If you are at all interested in understanding the current philosophies behind NFL coaching, this is an absolute must-read. Even at 400+ pages, Silver renders The Why Is Everything eminently readable by not getting bogged down in times-and-dates and instead focusing on the interweaving narratives around the coaches that now prowl NFL sidelines.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coaching is fascinating because unlike playing, where it takes little time to notice otherworldly skill, size, or athleticism, the mark of a great leader is primarily made behind the scenes. This book examines the rise of the "new age" gurus in professional football -- often known as the "McShanny" tree, and does so in a way that provides historical context and insight into the successes, adversities, and rivalries that followed a group of visionaries in their rise together and subsequent race to the top.

More aptly, however, this is a story about people, which is what made it very enjoyable to read. Michael Silver's access to the main characters is rather obvious, and their blunt (and often hilarious) remarks highlight a close relationship to the reporter, who weaves it together nicely. Each of these guys has their own story to tell, with accompanying anxieties and tribulations that at times derail their road to glory, and it was cool to see how vulnerable they were in sharing. In the world of high level athletics being vulnerable is often mistaken for softness, and this crew of savants proves that couldn't be further from the truth.

The book is a bit too heavy on football scheme for me (some people love this, I'm sure), which keeps it from five stars. Regardless, it is a fun and enjoyable read for any coach -- tons of good lessons about conviction, X's and O's vs Jimmy's and Joe's, challenging your own thinking, importance of a strong staff that aren't yes men, etc. would enjoy. Furthermore, it is a fun human interest story on the pursuit of greatness and all that comes with it.

[Jake · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a sports fan, I often lament at the dearth of quality books on the subject. While there are gems like Ball Four, many sports books are corny, half-baked “tales of the locker room,” anodyne autobiographies, and team recaps that don’t reveal anything new. A truly good sports book is a pearl-in-the-oyster. And when you find it, you don’t want to let it go.

This is one such book.

No it doesn’t stand there with the greats but it’s a fascinating look at Kyle Shanahan’s story and his assistants who branched out. It delves into their lives in terms of what makes them good coaches, touches on their various intersections, and shows how these men changed football in a most unlikely way. It gives the insider access look at the maneuvering and manipulations that comprise the profession; access the lay sports fan rarely gets anymore. And it’s wrapped in a tight, readable narrative.

But what’s best about this book is it’s neither hagiographic nor overly-critical. It’s definitely favorable to each of these guys; it could probably go deeper on how they do or do not build relationships in the locker room with the players they respectively coach. But I do get the sense of how they became what they are, especially considering some of the Game of Thrones-esque maneuvering that went on behind the scenes. No one is innocent but it’s a fascinating story all the same.

We’re not going to get many more books like this in the modern age so I’ll cherish it for what it is and what it does.

[Isaiah Atkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

really great read recommended from my brother. like reading an insightful 400 page Athletic article. Really well done with lots of insight. A must read for football fans.

However, I think the premise of the book is a bit misleading. While I agree that the Shanahan tree has revamped football and changed it forever, this book hypes up a 15 year run of great coaches that have won one combined super bowl. Additionally, the book completely ignores the Andy Reid tree of offenses, which has concurrently dominated the NFL. I expected the Reid strategies and tree to be explained as the narrative turned to the first Chiefs-49ers super bowl, but Reid is only mentioned by name once in the book, despite being the pre-eminent offensive mind of the past two decades, or at least co-kings with Shanahan. From Reid's tree came Todd Haley, who's 2013-2018 Steelers were consistently the best offense in the NFL, while running more vertical concepts and a completely different system than Shanahan. But Silver doesn't mention these teams even for a second, painting a picture that Shanahan was the offensive mastermind that the rest of the NFL had to adapt to or die. It's just a little close-minded, but understandable for the purpose of the book and considering Silver's Bay Area credentials.

all in all, a good read, incredibly insightful. Just perhaps a more local story than it's framed as.

[Scott Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This work looks at a series of coaches in the NFL (Kyle Shanahan, Sean McVay, Matt LeFlur, Rahim Morris, Robert Salah, Mike McDaniel), who went from assistant coaches to being among the top head coaches in the NFL today. Their stories start with Shanahan, who worked under his father, Mike. In particular, these men were primarily offensive minded coaches (Morris on the defensive side), and many of them worked together on the staffs of the Texans and the Washington DC NFL franchise. All eventually got their head coaching jobs, with varying degrees of success. Yet, among their discussions of X’s and O’s, we come to learn about the personal struggles. Their relationships got tested over on-field and off-field results. However, these men did much and are still doing much to define the current NFL landscape. McVay in particular, as it seems like at one point, every owner wanted the next McVay to lead their team. There are plenty of discussions of the Belichick Coaching Tree, but this work sets the stage for the Shanahan coaching tree…one that will have many branches in the years ahead. This is mostly for the football fan, but it can be of some interest to the causal person who hears about all of these names and wonders what the fuss is about.

[Marc · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this. Aside from the broader picture showing a group of coaches who were acutely antithetical to historical coaching trends, Silver excelled in making each coach’s personal journey interesting. His clear affinity for the group was exacerbated by being personally connected to most of them - which probably led to a bit of bias in how he framed some anecdotes - but I’m fine with that. Silver quoted Mike Shannahan in the second half of the book essentially explaining that he always wants to know what players do well and how that can be accentuated. I think that applies here in respect to the bias Silver may or may not have.

Aside from the clear narrative lean towards favoring the Shannahans, the book’s pacing got a bit wonky in its second half. That’s all I can really say to detract from the book. I don’t think the football terminology was as dense as some other reviewers alluded to - I’d actually have preferred more specifics into the nuances of what made Shannahan’s, McVay’s, etc. systems so novel and effective. Still would recommend it to anyone wanting to know more about today’s crop of younger coaches came to be.

[Kendall Kaut · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-chronicled expose of the trajectory of the old Washington Football Team Staff.

Michael Silver has unprecedented access. In this era, absent covering a niche team, a reporter like Silver with established credentials ensures that access. He covered Mike Shanahan, so it’s no surprise his tree talks to Silver.

We quickly learn about the personalities that drive these men. While Sean McVay, Kyle Shanahan and the LaFleur brothers could be accused of benefiting from familial ties, the book covers why they’re in the position they’re in.

I doubt we get many more books like this. Everyone can control their own narrative through podcasts and leaks to “access journalists” who trade the former for any respectability attached to the latter.

The book gets technical, at times, about the game. But the value in the book isn’t schematic. Instead, Silver has a valuable journey across the success, personalities and failures of the established men leading franchises in America’s sole monocultural product: the NFL.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read a lot of football books, but this was one of the most enjoyable I've ever read.

Michael Silver obviously has the reporting chops, and over his long career, including stints with Sports Illustrated and Yahoo!, has developed deep, personal relationships with many inside the NFL.

It's that depth and knowledge that allows him to write such a fascinating book the delves into the history and coaching tree of Mike Shanahan, his son, Kyle, and many of today's best coaches, including Sean McVay, Mike McDaniel, Matt LaFleur, Raheem Morris and Kevin O'Connell, just to name a few.

Coaching and the personalities of the coaches, and what makes some winners, and others losers, has always intrigued me, and this book is full of keen insights and behind-the-scenes stories involving some of the most noted players in the last 10-15 years, including Brock Purdy, Robert Griffin III, Johnny Manziel, Jared Goff, and Jimmy Garoppolo.

[John Jaramillo · Rating 4 out of 5]

The early chapters were fascinating. I enjoyed learning more about Mike Shanahan’s life, career, and philosophy, and Michael Silver does a fantastic job weaving in detailed background on Kyle and the rest of “the Fun Bunch” to tell a compelling story about their paths to the NFL and how they became interconnected, particularly on Mike’s staff in Washington. The last half of the book covered more recent events and became heavy on game recaps than the type of storytelling that Silver started with. It felt disjointed at times with the switching around to each coach and their teams. There was interesting stuff about the pursuit of Matthew Stafford. Mike McDaniel should have his own book. I can see why Kyle was not aligned with the author on this project. I loved the last paragraph of the epilogue as an inspiring connection to the beginning of the book and a way to keep believing that Kyle might one day achieve his ultimate goal.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I requested an ARC from Goodreads giveaway for this books based on my husband's interests.
Thanks also to W.W. Norton & Company.
He gives this book a 5 star rating.

The quality of writing was excellent.
The author gave in-depth information regarding the personalities of the coaches and players, and how, eventually, they were able to work together.
The concept of Shanahan and Ryan going to "marriage counseling" reflects how invested each was in the success of their partnership.

The book is filled with interesting facts about how intentional coaches are with each other.
Silver does an exemplary job of explaining the interplay between the offense and defense.

This book will appeal to anyone who is a fan of football, or has even the slightest interest in being the best, in their chosen profession.

Michael Silver needs to compile a selection of his columns from Sports Illustrated and the San Fransisco Chronicle!

[Dax Lovett · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a 49ers fan, I already appreciated Kyle Shanahan’s offensive mind going into this book. He’s not perfect. Maybe he struggles to hold a lead late in games. Maybe he’s taken some tough losses (gulp). But his ability to design an offense is undeniable. Getting a deeper look at his personality, coaching philosophy, and path to becoming a head coach made for a great behind-the-scenes experience.

The sections on Sean McVay were just as compelling. The guy is a genius, and watching his evolution throughout the book was a highlight. Mike McDaniel’s story was another standout, offering an insightful look at one of the more unconventional minds in football.

Without a doubt this group of coaches revolutionized the game of football (albeit with varying degrees of success). Michael Silver provides an inside look at how it all came together, with access that makes this feel like more than just your standard football book.

Good book. Solid read. Worth picking up for any football fan.

[Chris Jaffe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good book about the rise of the most prominent offensive minds in the offensive-heavy modern NFL. A bunch were on the same staff together in Washington and later in Atlanta in the 2010s. The biggest names are Sean McVay, and Kyle Shanahan, but there's also Mike McDonald, Matt LaFleur, and Raheem Morris with plenty of other coordinators on the sides showing up repeatedly.

You get a decent sense of the inner-connections of these coaches as they've all sought to make their mark. That said, the book some times has difficulty juggling these different guys back and forth. (McVay largely disappears in the final chapters, for instance). Also, for all the talk of how these guys are revolutionizing the NFL, I didn't get that clear a sense of what they were doing. The book is better on the overall narrative than on the nuts'n'bolts.

[Connor Nye · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an avid NFL fan, this is most definitely a must read for football readers. Silver surely has the necessary background and experience to author the story of the foundations of the Shanahan coaching tree. The reason for only 3 stars though: I felt as an avid NFL fan, while I did learn many interesting things particularly the various coaching connections and beginnings of careers, there were many recent happenings like game & season outcomes that are so fresh in my head that it was difficult for me to be fully engaged at all times. Over time as the stories and all what happened during this recent era of football are less front of mind, I don’t doubt this book will only get better as it ages. I also couldn’t stand the constant “he wanted to know the why“. It just became a cliche to me at some point. Nonetheless, I do think it’s a solid book.

[William Schram · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I was younger I was more of a sports fan. I don't know what happened to me. It may be the impossibly large salaries, but it may be something at my core. I took this book out of the library despite my trepidation. I thought the book would be about mindset and psychology more than anything else.

Although the book is brilliant, I can't care enough about American Football to finish it. Michael Silver does a great job recounting the events leading to Kyle Shanahan's appointment as head coach and the rivalries in the NFL. I mean, wow. I didn't know you could get hit hard enough to pop a person's kidney.

I didn't enjoy the book, but that is only because it wasn't my cup of metaphorical tea. Thanks for reading my review, and see you next time.

[Eric Carey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Agree with many other reviewers, the earlier parts of the book were much more enjoyable as the author seemed less emotionally tied to the events/coaches and offered much more schematical and football insight on the “why” - the portions about Steve Young and RGIII especially were incredible!
The latter portions, while still a good read, definitely read more as a retelling of events with much less insight on the “why”, or lesser known insights on how things came to be or the schematics guys like McVay used to win that super bowl. Maybe it’s because they’re still coaching and these are trade secrets.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

A modern history of a few NFL coaches that are related as branches from the Mike Shanahan coaching tree. If there is a driving thesis, it's an examination of the offensive ingenuity and changes these coaches have brought to the modern game. That is not the strength and not nearly detailed enough to be compelling. Instead, the book does a great job of the behind the scenes pressures, camaraderie, and drive that these subject coaches experience season to season. Their career arcs—how they develop, thrive, or sometimes struggle with a waning sense of purpose—were by far the most engaging parts.

[Johanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was recommended by my husband and it is super entertaining and informative. With all things sports, the writer is a bit biased. This book follows the careers of Mike Shanahan’s “disciples” - his son, Kyle, Sean McVay, Mike McDaniels, Matt LaFleur, and Raheem Morris. The writer explorers their approach of coaching with the following mantras “the why is everything” and “players over plays” and their fresh approach to coaching in the NFL. I appreciate the multiple references to the NFL being racist and would be interested in reading a book that explores this more.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Won a paperback copy of this book via a Goodreads giveaway!

Thoroughly enjoyed this deep-dive into football coaching. I learned way more than I had anticipated and particularly liked the historical context provided in the beginning as a way to ground us before pivoting to discuss the various approaches the coaches took and how they were innovative and pushed the sport to new heights. Now when I’m watching a game and chatting with people, I feel informed and can actually follow along and contribute to conversations around strategy!

[Nancy Jurss · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started watching football with my dad when I was growing up. As I began to understand what was happening in the game, I became aware of the different coaches and their strategies to win games. This book discusses a number of current coaches who grew up in the trenches together, often starting as assistants together before they got their head coaching jobs. It gives an extra twist to what I see as I watch a game, knowing their relationship to the other coach and understanding how each approaches the game.

[Chris Mclaughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love football. I love just about everything about it. The stories of the coaches, especially their lives, families, background etc. were really interesting and while I enjoyed a lot of the game breakdowns I found the minutiae of X’s and O’s, play making and defining, a bit of a slog. It was a little too technical for my liking. But a good read all in all and one I’d recommend. Especially to folks who enjoy or have a background in coaching the intricacies.