Giants Country

Start 'Em or Sit 'Em? New York Giants Fans Split on Vote

The Giants are locked into the sixth seed in the NFC playoffs. So should they play it safe by sitting their starters and key players or play to win? We asked the fans to vote.
Patricia Traina|
Start 'Em or Sit 'Em? New York Giants Fans Split on Vote
Start 'Em or Sit 'Em? New York Giants Fans Split on Vote

In this story:

New York Giants

With the New York Giants having clinched a postseason berth last week--they will be the sixth seed in the seven-seed tournament--the chips have fallen in such a way to where the outcome of this weekend's Week 18 regular-season finale against the Eagles won't matter as far as the Giants' playoff seeding. 

That raised a question over whether the Giants should rest their key players against the Eagles or borrow a page from former head coach Tom Coughlin's book when in 2007, he played his starters against the undefeated Patriots despite the outcome of that game not affecting the playoff seeding.

As of Monday, Giants head coach Brian Daboll told reporters that he had not decided what to do, saying, as he's done just about every week, that the decision would be in the best interest of the Giants organization. 

But we were curious as to what the fan base thought, so we put the question to Twitter via a poll, and we were surprised given how close the poll was.

Here are a few responses that accompanied the poll by those who likely voted NO, which seemed to vocalize more than those who likely voted YES.

Interestingly, those who voted YES didn't weigh in as much a those who voted no, but here is one such response that one could argue makes a valid point.

Overall, most of the readers who participated in this poll shared the same opinion that we at Giants Country have, which is to take a middle-ground approach. 

Rest those starters who are either banged up and could benefit from a rest or those who have logged a lot of game snaps down the stretch, so they're fresh for the following week.

We don't feel it's in the Giants' best interest to sit everyone regardless and empty the bench (though there are advantages to doing so in that you get guys who haven't played a lot this year some valuable reps in case you need them in the playoffs).

We think Daboll's decision will be based on how the game flows. Those who are "healthy enough" to play will play. If the game gets out of hand either way by halftime, then we'll likely start seeing mass substitutions being made.

Logically speaking, this is the best solution to ensure that the Giants uphold the integrity of the game, get valuable game reps to keep those who can play fresh, and to also gauge how far they've come since their Week 14 blowout loss to a team that could end up as the No. 1 seed in the playoffs (and one that, if the Giants get on a roll in the playoffs, they could see again down the line).

Join the Giants Country Community

Published
Patricia Traina
PATRICIA TRAINA

Patricia Traina has covered the New York Giants for 30+ seasons, and her work has appeared in multiple media outlets, including The Athletic, Forbes, Bleacher Report, and the Sports Illustrated media group. As a credentialed New York Giants press corps member, Patricia has also covered five Super Bowls (three featuring the Giants), the annual NFL draft, and the NFL Scouting Combine. She is the author of The Big 50: The Men and Moments that Made the New York Giants. In addition to her work with New York Giants On SI, Patricia hosts the Locked On Giants podcast. Patricia is also a member of the Pro Football Writers of America and the Football Writers Association of America.

Share on XFollow Patricia_Traina
Home/Big Blue+