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It’s a No-Brainer: Eagles Should Rest the Starters in Season Finale
By Nick Piccone
Published:
After being upset by the Atlanta Falcons on Monday night, the Los Angeles Rams remain one of three possible teams the Eagles will face on Super Wild Card Weekend. The San Francisco 49ers and Green Bay Packers are the two other possibilities, and I think out of those three, most of us would prefer a date with the Packers.
But heading into the final week of the season, there remains a question as to whether the Eagles should play their starters or rest them with NFC seeding still up in the air. If the Eagles beat the Commanders and the Bears lose to the Lions, the Eagles will host the Packers. It’d be one thing if the outcome of the Eagles game holds all the cards, but it doesn’t. The Eagles not only have to win their game, but hope other results benefit them.
Under Nick Sirianni, the team has almost always elected to rest their starters in situations like this. Maybe they play a drive or two. The narrative Washington concocted of being disrespected after the Eagles went for a two-point conversion in their last meeting probably gives the lowly Commanders some motivation heading into the final week of the season, which is pretty sad. But a dirty team will play dirty no matter the circumstances.
The 49ers will clinch the No. 1 seed in the NFC if they beat the Seahawks, and if the Seahawks lose, they’ll take the No. 5 seed, so the Eagles won’t see them at all in the opening round.
And let’s be honest, do we really think Week 18 is going to be the light bulb that suddenly chemistrifies [you like that word] this offense? Against a bad Washington team? We’ve seen glimpse after glimpse about what this offense can be, but a game against a team that’s admittedly looking to hurt your guys? Not exactly worth it. And belaboring the point that the starters should play just ignores past precedence. Just fills time. Argues for the sake of arguing.
It’s not what Nick does. Will I be surprised if the starters see time this weekend? Absolutely. If one of the main goals was to get out of Buffalo healthy, why wouldn’t that be the biggest goal this week? The Eagles backups could probably give them a great chance to win against Washington, anyway. Having to rely on another team that’s playing at the same time is just not worth it. Resting the starters works for this team.
Nick Piccone has covered Philly sports and events for over 14 years with various outlets, including PhillyVoice and Philly Influencer. In 2015, he co-launched the Straight Shooters Wrestling Podcast. He's also a producer for Fox Sports Radio Philadelphia and the Villanova Sports Radio Network. He grew up in South Philadelphia and South Jersey, and is a graduate of Neumann University. Contact: picconenick@gmail.com