Washington is First Playoff Team Able to Rest Starters, But Don't Expect to See Robert Griffin

The Washington Redskins are the first team to formally clinch not only a playoff spot, but lock down a particular seed and have absolutely nothing to play for in week 17. Just as we all predicted a couple of months ago. Nothing Washington can do can change the matchup in the wildcard round, where they will host the NFC’s fifth seed (currently Seattle, if they win out).

This is part of what I hate about the current “division winners get a home game regardless of their record” set up. Congratulations to Washington for winning what has been an awful division in 2015, and putting the Philadelphia Eagles out of their misery. They haven’t–and will not–have beaten a winning team this year, going 0-3 versus the Jets, Patriots, and Panthers, but have gone 8-4 against the teams with losing records. But it’s kind of ludicrous that they are the first team to rest up for a playoff showdown. They would also be well-advised to do so since they might have to turn around and play a Saturday afternoon playoff game, and there is nothing to gain. This isn’t a case of a top seed basically shutting down the starters for multiple weeks.

Houston could join them, by the way, in being teams that won bad divisions but get the double benefit of a home game and getting to rest starters to face a team locked in a battle for a playoff spot or positioning.

But while it would be likely that Washington rest starters or gets them out of the game fairly early, don’t expect Robert Griffin III to come on in relief of Kirk Cousins when that happens. His “injury-only” clause that would trigger next year’s contract would only go into effect if he played and suffered an injury severe enough to prevent him from passing a physical going into the next league year. And so you may have a situation where it is actually Griffin that gets inactivated, and Colt McCoy gets extensive playoff time.