Its the ultimate question for team’s with championship aspirations, do you build momentum into the NFL Playoffs 2019, or rest your team? Does one mean a Super Bowl victory, while the other an early exit?
For a team locked into its position in the postseason, there are two ways to treat its Week 17 game. The first option is to do what the Seattle Seahawks did. With no chance of moving out of a road game wildcard weekend, Seattle still trotted out all the roster mainstays for the entire match. The second option is to do what the New Orleans Saints did. They treated the game as a hybrid bye week. The outcome didn’t matter. Drew Brees didn’t take a snap. Neither did Alvin Kamara. We’ll see you in the divisional round.
The Dallas Cowboys actually tried to split the difference. By resting Ezekiel Elliott yet playing Dak Prescott all game, Jason Garrett didn’t really know which way he wanted to go. The team mounted a final drive to win the game against New York, which everyone will say breeds confidence for the postseason. In actuality, the Cowboys were confused as to how to treat this ballgame. Its the ultimate question heading into the NFL Playoffs 2019, do you build momentum or rest your team?
Two brothers from New York, Dan Salem and Todd Salem, debate the NFL Playoffs 2019 in today’s NFL Sports Debate.
Todd Salem:
The objective is what Dallas will claim happened (unless they look flat next week). Taking Week 17 seriously is supposed to keep off the rust and get the team feeling good with a win-or-go-home game on deck. Seattle, it seems, attempted to keep riding the high of the win over Kansas City a week prior but looked sloppy and/or lethargic anyway. The objective of the other plan is also obvious: to avoid injury and be well rested for the playoffs.
Which tactic do you prefer? In some cases, it depends on the team. I would actually argue that New Orleans made a mistake by taking the week off. It has another bye coming up in round one. Do you really want your detailed, movement offense to have not played for two full weeks? If someone was banged up, certainly give them an extra week to heal, but otherwise, I want my group firing on all cylinders.
Perhaps you’ll tell me this is a veteran quarterback thing. Brees doesn’t need a practice week against the Panthers to be ready for the postseason divisional round. I suppose that’s logical but still worries me slightly.
I opened by disparaging the Cowboys for not knowing what they wanted to do with Week 17. Call that some classic misdirection, though, because I actually prefer their course of action. Rest the guys who need the rest, but otherwise treat this game as any other. They executed on both sides of the ball and look sharp for what will be a tough test against Seattle. I don’t believe momentum exists, but that word is a misdirection in itself. It isn’t about momentum in terms of what fans assume when they hear that.
The fact that Dallas came back to beat the Giants isn’t going to help it against the Seahawks. It’s about staying on point and sharp. The fact that Dallas wanted to try to come back and executed in doing so are the important pieces. Maybe the Cowboys had no plan at all for how to treat Week 17. It ended up being the best plan.
Dan Salem:
Teams absolutely must rest players in week 17 who are banged up or need the extra time to recuperate. This includes older veteran players. The Cowboys made the right decision for their team, but no two teams are created equal. With years of playoff futility logged in the history books, Dallas could not afford to let off the gas. They need all the momentum they can get and definitely proved something special to themselves by pulling out a victory over New York. That bodes well for the first round of the NFL Playoffs.
Great head coaches, or even slightly above average ones, know the chemistry and energy of their football teams. My philosophy is simple, read the room. Unlike in other sports, the answer of what to do at the end of the season is not black and white. In the NBA, the top teams rest for a week or two at the end of the season. Its a long year and the first round of the playoffs is traditionally David versus Goliath.
In Major League Baseball it is foolish to rest in September. That almost always proves detrimental to teams once the playoffs begin. Players lose their edge and their groove, with teams entering flat. That usually spells defeat for baseball teams.
In the NFL, we have two camps to consider. The top two teams get a bye week, so if you’ve already earned one then I believe it’s smart to avoid injury and add more rest into the equation. Injuries come out of nowhere, so avoid them at all costs.
The second camp is made of teams like Dallas who are above average, but not the top teams in a conference. I would include Seattle in this camp as well. Those teams need momentum entering the playoffs. They need to keep fighting and keep building confidence for a long playoff road which includes a wildcard game. You cannot be happy to have simply earned a playoff spot. Taking Week 17 off tells me you are happy.
Seattle did not take Week 17 off, but the players were smart enough not to give it their all and risk injury. That is a veteran team with a Super Bowl winning quarterback at the helm. They know what the road ahead entails. Dallas is young and inexperienced. They did what they needed to do.
So did the Patriots, who fought to earn a bye week, but also put a stamp on their season. New England looked vulnerable of late, yet reminded the league they are the conference champions with a decisive victory. Read the room and your team. That is a coach’s job.