Numbers Game: The Rise of Analytics in the NFL and the Resistance to Embrace It
NFL teams are more aggressive than ever on fourth down, yet spectators of the game seem to be yearning for the more conservative approach of the past
If you asked most people what their least favorite subject in school was, the answer would likely be the same across the board: math. It can be complex, confusing, and frustrating. On the flip side, many people enjoy sports. It is the thrill of competition and the ability that athletes exhibit, especially at the professional level, that people are enamored by. But there has been a trend in the last few years that has married the two entities together, and it is called analytics. Sports analytics is defined as a collection of relevant, historical, statistics that can provide a competitive advantage to a team or individual. One of the last sports to fully embrace analytics has been football. And what we have seen is a distaste for the numbers and a revelation of the true nature of football fans in the way they want the game to be played.
