One of the NFL's great ironies is a problem that pops up when a team wins too much. At 12-0, and with the NFC South already wrapped up, the Carolina Panthers have reached that point.
Their final stretch featuring opponents with a combined record of 17-19 doesn't look daunting. So on Monday, coach Ron Rivera faced the inevitable hypothetical. If the Panthers make it to 15-0, would he play his starters in the regular-season finale against the Bucs?
"Hypothetically speaking, yes – to a point," Rivera answered. "The reason I would is because I was on a team that had done the same thing, and we didn't, and it cost us in my opinion because I thought we were rusty."
"I wasn't the head coach then and didn't make that decision but I went along with it."
It's unclear which team Rivera was referencing, but the 2009 Chargers are a good bet.
That year, Rivera was Norv Turner's defensive coordinator when San Diego wrapped up the AFC's No. 2 seed in Week 16. The next week, their starters saw limited action, including quarterback Philip Rivers, who played less than a quarter.
When the Chargers returned to the field two weeks later, they scored just 14 points in a Divisional Round loss to the Jets.
But Rivera's team back then wasn't in the position his Panthers are now. Those Chargers lost three regular-season games. These Panthers are inching closer to becoming just the second team to go 16-0.
“More is made of 16-0 outside the building than it is in here," defensive end Jared Allen said. "If you can lock up home-field advantage, then that's key."
Allen speaks from experience.
"I always joke with Roman Harper: 'If you would have come to us in 2009, it would have been a different story."
In that year's NFC Championship, Allen's Vikings lost in overtime to Harper's Saints in New Orleans. Two weeks later, the Saints won the Super Bowl.
Sure 16-0 is rare, and making history is a potentially fun storyline. But that's not a necessary path to the real prize.
"The ultimate goal is to win it all, not necessarily be undefeated," Rivera said. "That's the most important thing - to come into the playoffs on an up note as opposed to down or where somebody gets hurt needlessly."
Play the starters jobber.
If you don’t play your starters, you’re asking for a loss. Are you going to give them 2 weeks off? Undefeated or not, play em. If you get a big lead in the 3rd or 4th, then rest em.
I say dance with the girl you brought to the prom, and stick with the starters. I say screw it, let’s be greedy and try to win them all. Hate how wanting to win is looked as problematic.