Panthers-Giants: Can New York Afford To Lose?

I know the question seems to border on the fringe of practical football thinking. Can any team afford to lose any game? However, before you send out the men in white coats, I will bet that Giants' coach Tom Coughlin has given it some thought as well. Coughlin's Giant's are banged up, very banged up...so, could a loss actually help them? 

The Giants' injury report sounds like a list of "who's who" of the Giants' roster. Players like key power running back Brandon Jacobs, who was forced by the Giants' medical staff to sit out last week after an MRI revealed damage to his knee. Jacobs was also limited in practice this week. 

Giants' tackle Kareem McKenzie has been hampered by a back injury, safety Kenny Phillips is coming off of a concussion, Justin Tuck has as lower leg injury and Domenik Hixon has an ankle injury and this list of Giants is less than half of the Giants' players listed  on their injury report.

It is expected that everyone will play, however, there is still somewhat of a question mark by Brandon Jacobs' name. 

Giants coach Tom Coughlin is, among other things, a logical guy. Much to the chagrin of the New York fans and media, Coughlin has erred on the side of caution before and has usually succeeded in doing so.

However, this week may be different. Coughlin knows there is so much at stake in this game that anything short of throwing every player he has, plus the kitchen sink, at the Carolina Panthers could be seen as "taking a dive."  

But he also knows that "overplaying" his key players could possibly cost him any real chances of a deep playoff run. 

What does this game mean to New York? This Sunday's game versus the surging Carolina Panthers is for home-field advantage and the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs. However, Tom Coughlin knows his Giants team, when healthy, can win on the road. 

He knows a team with its' key players healthy in the playoffs has a much better chance of getting to the Super Bowl than a team missing their star players. Also, Coughlin and the Giants have already "been there, done that," just last year in their trip to the Super Bowl as a wild-card team.

As far as the numbers go, the Giants have already clinched the NFC East and even with a loss Sunday the Giants, under a few scenarios, could still have a one-week bye and can possibly still get both playoff games at home, if things fell their way. 

Anything can happen when players are coming off of an injury and the Giants can ill afford to lose Jacobs, McKenzie or Tuck for any period of time in the playoffs. 
With this in mind, why would Coughlin risk putting an unhealthy Jacobs and a handful of his key players on the field against a very physical Carolina Panther team? 

Well, for one thing, the Giants have lost two in a row and a losing trend is no way to enter the playoffs. Coughlin knows that game experience will keep his players sharp and can help keep them get better prepared for the coming playoffs.

Finally, Coughlin knows all about home-field advantage and just how hard it has been for other teams to come in and win in the blustery, windy, hostile, cold and sometimes snowy confines of the Meadow lands. 

Finally, not fully competing and giving 100 percent runs contrary to everything Coughlin stands for. The Giants' offensive output has been abysmal as of late, due partially to Jacobs' absence and also due to Plaxico Burress being out of the mix.

Eli Manning was banged up last week after being continually smothered by the Dallas Cowboys' defense and is only one akward fall away from a visit to the injury report himself...Did I mention Julius Peppers is playing against a banged up offensive line?   

So, what would might a coach do?

One argument could be made to go out with adequate substitutes and just have a banged up team simply rest while trying to get your key personnel healthy. 

The thought process behind that is the fact that you need your stars for the future games that "really count" and depending on how the NFC playoff picture is settled you can possibly still have some or even all of the benefits of being a number one seed.  

Remember, regular season wins and a good record will get you into the playoffs. January wins will get you into the Super Bowl.  No coach can force a team to "peak," yet nobody wants to come off of a three game losing streak.

However, placing players who are nowhere near being healthy, back in harm's way and risk having a huge "setback" can definitely impede a team's chances for future wins. 

Where do the Carolina Panthers come in on the subject. One the injury front, the Panther's starting guard Keydrick Vincent, was placed on the "Injured Reserve" list Saturday.

Vincent will be replaced by former starter Jeremy Bridges. Vincent has been a very consistent member of an above average offensive line this season. However, Bridges has played well when called on, he knows the offense and there should he very little drop off when he lines up Sunday. 

The only other Panthers' starter who is really in question is inside run stopper Ma'ake Kemoeatu.

If he were held out, it could possibly allow for the Giants to have some advantage running the ball on the inside as the Giants' line may be able to more easily get to the second level of the Panthers' defense, and more specifically, allow their offensive linemen to get "chip" blocks on the Panthers', league's second leading tackler, Jon Beason.

However, Carolina has a few options to play if Kemoeatu cannot go. The one thing Carolina cannot replace in Kemoeatu's position is size.

The Carolina Panthers know the road has not been their friend this season. The have picked up their only three loses, this year, on the road. On the other hand, the Panthers know that home-field advantage has meant everything to them this year. They are undefeated at home.  

The Panthers are playing inspired football.  They are number one in scoring over the past eight weeks and their rushing duo of Williams and Stewart is number one rated one-two punch in the NFL.

Steve Smith has been on fire as of late and quarterback Jake Delhomme reminded the Denver Broncos just what can happen if you try and stack the box to slow the Panthers' run game.   

Then there are the intangibles. The Panthers' owner, Jerry Richardson, came to last weeks Panthers' home game after getting the nod from his doctors. However, the entire Panther organization knows the "Big Cat" is going through  very tough challenge as he was placed on the heart transplant waiting list after suffering multiple heart problems since 2002. 

This past offseason Mr. Richardson challenged this team to win and he challenged Julius Peppers to take more of a leading role in doing so. While Jon Beason and Muhsin Muhammad have been the de facto leaders of the team, the normally quite and reserve Peppers has rallied the Panthers' defense on more than one  occasion this year and has made some very timely plays that have given the Panthers the opportunity to win some very close games this year. 

If there was ever time for the Panthers to win one for someone else, this is the game.  If there was a time to leave it all on the field in a game, this is it for the Panthers.  If there was ever a time to play hurt, play hard and make sacrifices to win, this is it for the Panthers. 

Finally, the Panthers 11-3 record had not even promised them a playoff invitation until a late Saturday loss by the Dallas Cowboys happened to hand the Panthers a wild-card spot to the postseason.

There are more won-loss scenarios that will happen Sunday afternoon before the Panthers take the field that could help the Panther's position.  A Tampa and Atlanta loss could propel the Panthers into winning a division title, and if the football Gods decided on a Minnesota and Atlanta tie, with a Tampa loss, the Panthers would take a first-round bye, no matter what happens tomorrow night in New Jersey.

Panther fans are all too familiar with scoreboard watching and having to depend upon other teams to win or lose games just to keep their team in the mix. 

This Sunday night's game is a schedule maker's dream. It could not have been planned better. But who could have known. During the preseason and early on this season, the Panthers were picked by many to finish 6-10 to 8-8.

The Panthers were on nobody's radar. Jake Delhomme was washed up as he had irreparable damage to his throwing arm because no other professional quarterback had ever successfully come back after Tommy John surgery. 

In Week Three, Fox pregame "analyst," Howie Long, when asked which 2-0 team would not make the playoffs, quickly reported "the Panthers would not make the playoffs."  After the bye week, Jake Delhomme and Steve Smith seemed to have some major timing issues more questions arose.  

The duo had spent four days away from practice, something they had not done in months.  Delhomme had more than a few passes "sail" on him and even the casual observer could tell the pair was not on the same page. 

During this same time the Panthers' run game began to take over games, but Howie Long had to step back in on another Fox pregame show, four few weeks following the bye  and declare, "Sources in Carolina have reported that Jake Delhomme had a dead arm." 

Now, I openly question the "sources" and their information. The next game saw Delhomme make tough touchdown passes and critical third-down throws. Long was even "ribbed" by co-host Terry Bradshaw on the Fox postgame show about Delhomme's "dead" arm following the Panthers' win. A win that was made possible after key passes from who? Well, you guessed it, Jake Delhomme.

So, what happens? Coughlin isn't giving up anything. Neither is Carolina coach, John Fox. The players all swear they are healed up and ready to go. Now, as far a scenario that may play out...I have to believe Coughlin plays his starters but does it with reservations and care.  

Occasionally, some big-time boxing matches are postponed for months due to a fighter suffering a cut during training. They postpone the fight due to the fact if the fighter is not given time to heal properly, his cut will easily re-open and could quickly cost him a fight or even worse, a career. 

It is called living to fight another day.

Would either coach do that Sunday?  I could see at least one coach not force the issue and change up his personnel if there is any injury issue that could become more problematic if he kept that player or players in the game. 

I can also see another one of the two, NFC leading, coaches try every play in the book to walk away with a win. I think you can figure out what happens. Who has the most to gain and the most to lose should answer all of your questions.