Backing Into the Playoffs

Phil Simms has a pretty good article here about teams "backing into the playoffs". He's a little horked about that cliche! Simms is a former QB who played in a few post-season games and the Super Bowl, so you have to respect what he says about this. But I would disagree on a couple of points.

First, he uses the Jets and Vikings as examples of backing into the playoffs. Here's a note to Phil and the New York media; 10-6 and losing your last game on the road in OT to another playoff team is not backing into the playoffs! The Jets earned their way in, so Phil has a point here.

But, on the other hand, the Vikings went 3-7 in the last 10 games, and one of those wins came when the Lions mishandled an extra point attempt that would have sent the game into overtime. The Vikings DID back into the playoffs.

Using the term "backing into the playoffs", in my opinion, isn't predicting how a team will play in the post-season. It is a criticism of how a team is playing when the pressure is on.

Simms goes on to say that QBs and others don't need "momentum" going into the playoffs, so there is no reason not to rest those players whenever possible. I agree completely with this, but I think some teams may take too much time off. It is not momentum that QBs and receivers have to worry about. It is timing and intensity. Take one week off and you don't lose much.

But here is where Phil lost me. Philadelphia hasn't played a meaningful game in 3 weeks and it will be 2 more before they play again. They (the starters) took the last 2 games off, completely. In 4 or 5 weeks off McNabb and Co will lose some of the intensity they had and will lose a lot of their timing. TO caught the majority of passes during the season and he won't be there for the next 2 games. Do the other receivers have their timing down with McNabb? Did he spend time in any games after TO went down figuring out who the go-to guy is? Does he know who to trust?

Phil Simms knows what he is talking about when it comes to taking time off to rest at the end of a season. But Simms never took a month off and then jumped into a do-or-die playoff game. I think the Eagles will falter in the playoffs because of their lackadaisical approach to the game the last 3 weeks.