04/26/24
December 13, 2004
Too Much Punting: The NYT glances over a really intense paper discussing the ideal marriage of sabermetrics and football.
posted by DrJohnEvans to football at 09:58 AM - 8 comments
DrJohn, this is cool, but I'm waiting for Sammy to come in here with his I-Told-You-So. He's in favor of waiving the punter, as he would never use one. That said, the stats prove him wrong on his go-for-two after every TD idea.
posted by 86 at 01:08 PM on December 13, 2004
It is interesting, DrJohn, but I guess I don't have a lot to say beyond that. Looks like they're setting up Belichick as football's Billy Beane, except he and his team don't have the same loveable-loser- winning-in-spite-of-it-all dimension to them.
posted by rocketman at 01:21 PM on December 13, 2004
Also, Belichick's strategies seem to be working. I guess one of my continuing problems with football (as a fairly recent convert) is its overly formulaic nature. You have an offensive playbook battling a defensive playbook. You run on second-and-short. You pass on third-and-long. You punt on fourth. The players executing at the NFL level just perform so well that the result seems to depend on the strength of the set play more so than the players. The playing field is so level that the teams seem to play very conservatively, always avoiding the mistake with complete certainty. I'm interested in anything that makes the sport a little more unpredictable. And I guess there's not much more to say beyond that. :)
posted by DrJohnEvans at 01:34 PM on December 13, 2004
Glad these guys are getting more press.
posted by catfish at 02:38 PM on December 13, 2004
You run on second-and-short. Ahhh! Don't run on second-and-short... Max protect and throw long. I scream this at my TV every Sunday... The thinking being that you can pick up two yards on third down anyway, so it's a good chance to take a shot.
posted by 86 at 03:16 PM on December 13, 2004
Belichick is known for his unorthodox strategies Doc, it is interesting, and I have to tell you these Patriots are a very electrifying team to watch not only for how unpredictable they are, but also their defense is rock solid. It is true the way Football coaches devote themselves to studying the game all the time including long nights watching videos, in contrast much of the baseball coaches take the night off after each game.
posted by LROD at 03:24 PM on December 13, 2004
If Belichick and the Red Sox play their games via statistics, more power to 'em. They both seem to have done pretty well recently.
posted by roberts at 05:25 PM on December 13, 2004
Well, I thought it was interesting. But then again, I'm the one screaming "GO FOR IT!" every time there's a 4th and 8 (or 3rd and 8 in the summer) situation on television.