What fans and reporters (and probably owners) forget is that in football, as in poker, the value of playing the odds rarely manifests over the course of a single game. It only becomes evident over time—across entire seasons and even multiple seasons. Just as there's never a guarantee that pocket aces will beat K-10 suited or that 7-2 offsuit
won't produce a full house at the flop, there's no guarantee that going for it on fourth down instead of punting or going for the touchdown instead of taking the easy three will win you the game. Indeed, the
seminal paper on this topic estimated that going for it on fourth down within 60 yards of the goal line would only net on average one extra win every three years. But over hundreds and thousands of hands, mathematically sound players who have the intestinal fortitude to withstand the short term variability tend to inexorably build their bankrolls, just as appropriately aggressive coaches who are able to weather the fan and media scrutiny tend to pile up the wins and championships.
I know which side of that equation I'd rather be on.