Obviously, the Bucs were aware Sunday that Seattle was having its way with Baltimore, assuring the Bucs would be locked into the No. 4 seed in the NFC with virtually nothing to play against San Francisco.

Jon Gruden took out several starters, including Jeff Garcia, and the results were predictable: the Bucs made several key mistakes, and the 49ers claimed a 21-19 victory, keeping Tampa Bay’s abysmal West Coast record intact.

The reasoning behind Gruden’s decision to rest his key players is solid. But are the Bucs running a risk of entering the playoffs without precious momentum? What if they treat the regular season finale against Carolina the same way - as a preseason game? How do they strike a balance between being competitive and smart?

I hope Gruden announces in advance what his intentions are in regards to the Carolina game. If he is going to treat it as another preseason game then I’ll watch Dallas-Washington at my sportsbar instead.

If Gruden DIDN’T rest players and someone got hurt this week would be about him NOT having rested players. Momentum means squat with your starting QB out and your running back dressed in street gear on the sidelines. These next few weeks are similar to bye weeks, preparing for a key opponent. Not to mention the guys sitting are all veterans. They don’t rust, they prepare that much harder. Smart move Chucky.

jvnootz - 25 December 2007 01:03 PM

If Gruden DIDN’T rest players and someone got hurt this week would be about him NOT having rested players. Momentum means squat with your starting QB out and your running back dressed in street gear on the sidelines. These next few weeks are similar to bye weeks, preparing for a key opponent. Not to mention the guys sitting are all veterans. They don’t rust, they prepare that much harder. Smart move Chucky.

Totally agree with you jvnootz.  Nothing is gained by a win these last two games.  The Bucs are locked into the fourth seed, just as the Giants are locked into the fifth seed. Gruden is a smart coach to keep his older players healthy.  At this point the more starters still playing at the end of the season is an advantage considering how many of the older players (and younger players ) the Bucs have lost htis year.  Another good move by Gruden, he is in this to win as many playoff games as he can - and forget the regular season games since it will have no impact going forward.

EG gets hurt, Garcia gets hurt, any injury to a starter for that matter, is a much bigger negative going into the playoffs then having some rested guys.