Tennessee Titans, Jeff Fisher, and Sports "Journalists": Stupidity on Display

Yes, this blog is even right on football. I told you in something like week 5 that the Dallas Cowboys might not make the playoffs, because they were not playing like a playoff team (including bad decisions by Tony Romo, which continued to the end--with the moratorium caused by ACORN--oops, I mean the injured pinky). I also did an entry explaining how football coaches get so involved in doing the conventional thing (such as the "prevent defense") that they routinely lose games, or fail to take the percentage actions to win games.Jeff Fisher and the Tennessee Titans are cases in point. Yes, I have also told you that sports "journalists" share the honor, with other "journalists", of being in a close contest with Wall Street people for the supidest people on Earth. As the clock went under 5 minutes in that playoff game with the Baltimore Ravens, the Titans were inside the Raven 10. They were facing a fourth down and less than a yard. They were behind a field goal, and if they kicked the field goal it would, in effect, put the game into sudden death overtime (because of the short amount of time left in the fame). The first team to score would probably win the game. Kicking the field goal would give the Ravens, in effect, the first possession in sudden death overtime. The idiot CBS announcers called this a "no brainer". They said that the Titans had to "take the points", to tie the game, because they could not afford to come away without points when they had a chance to tie the game. Hogwash. It was almost a "no brainer" the other way. Tennesseee could not afford to kick a field goal, at the cost of giving the Ravens an opportunity to win the game by just getting lucky in the opportunity (with possible decent field position) they would have to win the game. No. I promise you this is not hindsight. It is exactly what I thought in foresight, and you can look at my previous football entries for examples of this same kind of thinking (critique) on my part.Look at what happened in the Pittsburg game. The Steelers faced a fourth down at the one, and wnt for it (admidttedly, they were in better position than the Titans--ahead 14 points or so at the time. The Steelers failed to make it. It did not matter. San Diego had to punt from the end zone, and the Steelers ended up with a touchdown anyway.You can say that Jeff Fisher was relying on his defense. But when all it takes is a field goal, one play can doom you. If Jeff Fisher had that much confidence in his defense, why not go for it. If you don't make it (preferably with something other than an absolutely predictable play), you will still be a favorite to get the ball back with a good chance for a later touchdown, or an even better chance for the same tying field goal (but with a coin flip chance to have the first chance to win the game in overtime). If you make the fourth down try, then you are a favorite to take the lead with a touchdown (again, a fiedl doal will be a near certainty, but with less time for the Ravens). I call this the wrong decision. I said so at the time (to the TV screen). You need to play for the win, and not for the mere chance to win later. You may never get the chance to win later. Plus, you have the advantage that if your defense is that good, you will get another chance if you fail to make the fourth down. If you defense is not that good, you are going to lose by giving the Ravens the ball with an opportunity to win the game with a field goal. Yes, the Titans defense could still have won the game. And Jeff Fisher did not fumble twice, and get a ball intercepted, in scoring position. So Jeff Fisher did not lose the game. Yes, his team could still have lost by taking my advice, and the second guessing would have been even more severe. That is the problem. Football coaches want to avoid second guessing, and criticism for the wrong decision, more than they want to make the decision that gives them the best chance to win a game. There is no doubt in my mind that going for the win, on that fourth down and 1, would have given the Titans at least a 75% chance to win the game. Going for the tie gave them little more than a 50% chance (maybe a 55% chance, since they were at home, but balanced by giving up the ball in a tie game, with the game on the line). Yes, Jeff Fisher is known as a "conservative" coach. You would expect him to do what he did. To me, that kind of "conservative" coach is a losing coach. I remember Jimmy Johnson, with the Dallas Cowboys. He would have gone for it. I remember Vince Lombardi, in the "Ice Bowl", who went for the win when it wasdoubtful he would get a further play (he claimed he would have been able to do it, but it was going to be really close). In short, I think Jeff Fisher deserved to lose this game, even though he could hardly be said to have lost the game by this one decision.