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AI Isn’t the Coverage. Change Is.
Posted on Sep 29, 2026
I don't speak on AI. Some very good speakers specialize in the subject, including Wade Younger.
But recently, while I was interviewed on the RunnIT Back podcast, someone asked me a question about AI. Somewhere in my answer, I blurted out:
“AI is not the coverage. Change is.”
I hadn't planned the line. It just came out.
Then, while speaking at the Texas Association of Business Brokers Conference, I said it again. That got me thinking.
AI may not be my area of expertise, but change is something I've spent my entire career learning how to deal with.
And the more I thought about it, the more I realized how naturally my Beat the Coverage™ framework applies to what leaders and organizations are experiencing with AI.
The Coverage Is Always Changing
During my nine years in the NFL, defenses didn't stand still and let us run whatever we wanted. They adjusted. They disguised coverages. They took away things we did well. Sometimes we'd prepare all week for one look and see something completely different on game day. We had two choices: get frustrated because the defense changed or recognize what was happening, adjust, and execute.
Business leaders face the same choice today. You don't have to chase every new AI tool. But you can't ignore what's changing around you either.
So how can the six steps in Beat the Coverage™ help?
1. Know the Field
Before reacting to AI, understand it. What can it actually do? Where is it affecting your industry, your customers, your competitors, and your team?
There's plenty of excitement around AI. There's also plenty of fear. Neither is a strategy.
You can't make a good adjustment if you don't understand the coverage.
2. Find the Holes
Instead of only asking, “What could AI take away?” ask:
“What opportunities is AI creating?”
Where can it save time, eliminate repetitive work, improve preparation, or allow your people to focus on higher-value work? Change creates challenges, but it also creates openings.
Find them.
3. Play to Strengths. Cover Weak Spots.
At 5'10" and 157 pounds, I wasn't going to become the biggest receiver on the field. I had to maximize what I did well while minimizing my weaknesses. Take the same approach with AI.
Don't start with, “What can AI replace?”
Ask, “What do our people do exceptionally well, and how can AI help them do more of it?”
Use technology to amplify your strengths and support your weak spots, not replace human judgment and thinking.
4. Draw Up the Game Plan
Simply using AI isn't a strategy. What problem are you trying to solve? What outcome are you trying to improve? Where does AI make sense, and where doesn't it?
You don't need every new AI tool. You need a plan for using the right tools with purpose.
5. Put in the Reps
You don't learn AI from the sidelines. Experiment. Ask questions. Try different prompts. Give it real tasks. Learn what it does well and where it gets things wrong.
During my NFL career, I caught hundreds of footballs every week because I didn't want to figure things out when the pressure came on Sunday. The reps came first.
Repetition builds familiarity. Familiarity builds confidence.
6. Execute & Adjust
AI is going to keep changing. So implement. Measure. Learn. Adjust. Then do it again.
In football, preparation gave us a game plan, but once the ball was snapped, we still had to respond to what was actually happening. Leadership works the same way.
The Coverage Will Keep Changing
AI isn't the first disruption businesses have faced, and it won't be the last. Technology will change. Markets will change. Customer expectations will change. Competition will change. That's the bigger lesson.
The goal isn't to predict every change that's coming.
It's to become better at responding when change happens.
AI isn't the coverage. Change is.
Today we're talking about AI. Tomorrow, the coverage will be something else. The question is whether you'll be ready to recognize it, find the opening, and adjust.