Dorsey: “We’re 85% Atlanta Braves and 15% Oakland Athletics”

Dorsey:

“We’re 85% Atlanta Braves

and 15% Oakland Athletics”

Laddie Morse

In an interview B.J. Kissel had with the Kansas City Chiefs general manager John Dorsey,  Kissel asked Dorsey about analytics. Here’s part of their conversation:

B.J. Kissel: How about the models to analytics, all of the things that you’ve learned… just how have you tweaked that, even since you’ve been in Kansas City, the process that you go through at this time of year, to put yourself in the best position to capitalize on free agency and capitalize on the draft?

John Dorsey: I always joke and I always say, ”This isn’t your daddy’s NFL.” We are now in twenty-seventeen: you have to use all the tools available at your disposal to make… the best… decisions moving forward and if that’s analytics, that’s great. If that’s sitting there studying trends and numbers, that’s great. If that’s studying models… but at the end of the day, all those decisions are going to be based on, as we sit there and moving forward, what’s best for this organization. So, we’re going to take advantage of all the tool and resources, but moving forward we’re going to do what’s best for this organization. The simplest way I can put it, we’re 85% Atlanta Braves and 15% Oakland Athletics. Meaning, you gotta touch it, feel it, smell it, and then… the Athletics part of it are the analytics. But at the end of the day, you’ve got to make real football decisions.

Dorsey didn’t say how long the Chiefs had been using analytics but what sticks out more about this conversation is “we’re going to take advantage of all the tool and resources.” While I see Dorsey as more of the old school type who is not into computers, that so many people use for playing games, even visiting sites as http://mycsgoboosting.com/guides/csgo-ranking-system for improving. — and still I could be wrong about that — he has had enough foresight to hire some young guns who can bring that “advantage” (technology) to the game.

What do you think? Are you glad Mr. Dorsey is opening up to the avenues of applied science?