Dirk Koetter: Percentages say go for it on fourth down, but if I fail I’m out of here

Getty Images Buccaneers coach Dirk Koetter says there are two choices on fourth down: Play the percentages, or play it safe.
But in the next breath, Koetter said he doesn’t want to risk going for it on fourth down at the wrong time, perhaps costing his team a game and himself a job.
You might get three in a row, but if I don’t get it in this particular game, we might be losing, and I might be out of here.
We’ve got a plan for every game.
We have a plan for the season and then we do an analytical plan based on the team we’re playing.
There’s analytic number that tell you what to do on every play, but this game isn’t played by computers.
It’s combination there – you’ve got to make decisions in real time and not look back.” It’s true that a coach who goes for it on fourth down more often might make three in a row and then get stopped on a key fourth down that costs his team a game, and if that happens the coach will be criticized and maybe even fired.
In NFL coaching, your job is always on the line.
Pederson has embraced analytics and was the NFL’s most aggressive coach on fourth down last year during the regular season, and continued his analytical approach in winning the Super Bowl.
Pederson’s success ought to be a lesson to other coaches about going for it on fourth down, but some coaches are stubborn.