Smarter Football: A Better 4th Down Bot: Giving Analysis Before the Play

Photo The NYT 4th Down Bot has new features and wants to spread its analytics to the masses. Credit Chang W. Lee/The New York Times; Photo illustration by Shan Carter It’s time once again time to officially fire up our favorite piece of sports-related software: the NYT 4th Down Bot. It’s a better bot. We’ve made several updates and improvements, including the ability to announce our analysis before a fourth down, so that you can see it and an N.F.L. coach can act on it.

For those who aren’t familiar with the bot, here’s the short version: A large body of statistical evidence suggests coaches are far too timid on fourth down, kicking or punting the ball away when they should be going for it.…