PHILADELPHIA -- Philadelphia Eagles coach Nick Sirianni stood by resting many of his starters in the regular-season finale against the Washington Commanders Sunday, even though the decision negatively affected their seeding.
The Eagles needed a win over Washington plus a Chicago Bears loss to the Detroit Lions to move from the No. 2 to the No. 3 seed. The Lions held up their end with a 19-16 road win, but Philadelphia lost to the Commanders 24-17, locking them into the No. 3 slot and a matchup against the sixth-seeded San Francisco 49ers in the Wild Card round of the playoffs.
"No," said Sirianni, when asked if he regretted not playing all his starters. "You go through your process, you make what you think is the best decision for the football team, and that's what we did. I knew that this was a [possible] outcome, that these things can happen.
"One thing I could guarantee was giving them rest. I couldn't guarantee anything else. And us being healthy and going into the playoffs healthy is a big deal for us."
Tanner McKee got the start for Jalen Hurts at quarterback and ended 21-of-40 for 241 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He was playing with mostly backups. One notable exception early was receiver DeVonta Smith, who entered the game 44 yards shy of 1,000. Smith (3 catches, 52 yards) reached the benchmark in the latter stages of the first quarter and sat the rest of the game.
"I wouldn't necessarily say it's important but just had a talk with Coach Nick and he allowed me the opportunity to go out there and do it. I'm grateful that he allowed me to do it," said Smith, who reached the 1,000-yard mark for the third time in his career.
Several starters played on defense, including defensive linemen Jordan Davis, Moro Ojomo and Jalyx Hunt. But the bulk of the regulars did not see action, a decision that the players supported in the locker room afterwards.
"We can play the what-if game. When the Lions win, when you're on the sideline you're like, man, I wish I would have played," said safety Reed Blankenship. "But you're not going to know that. I'd rather have a week of rest and let my body recover than go out there and be in a dogfight and then feel bad going into a playoff game."
Attention quickly turned to the upcoming matchup with the 49ers. San Francisco's offense had been on a roll, averaging 36 points per game over its six-game win streak before a 13-3 loss to the Seattle Seahawks Saturday.
"We've got to stop their run, Christian McCaffrey," said defensive end Brandon Graham, on what comes to his mind first when thinking about the 49ers. "Then on top of that, [Brock] Purdy has been doing a great job since he's been back.
"We've just got to be us and bring the energy and play fast on defense and put the offense in a great position."
