Turf Show Times
Teams with ties win playoff tiebreakers more than you think. Should the Rams have played for a tie against the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday and at least tried to match the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys, both of whom earned a tie on Sunday (the first tie game in three years), just in case the NFC playoff wild card picture comes down to L.A. against either of those teams?
Winning is better than tying, but think of it this way:
What if this game happened in Week 18 and the Rams knew for sure that a tie would get them into the playoffs over the Packers? Would McVay have still played for the win if all he needed was a tie?
McVay said that the field goal was never a consideration. Would he have said that if the Rams knew that a tie would get them into the playoffs? Because even though it’s only Week 5, this season could come down to losing a game that L.A. might have been able to tie.
In 2022, the 9-7-1 New York Giants made the playoffs over the 9-8 Detroit Lions. New York was the worst team that year (outscored by 6 points) but a Week 13 tie to the Commanders allowed Brian Daboll and Daniel Jones to overcome a season in which they lost six of their last 10 games.
Despite playing that poorly, the Giants made the playoffs and beat the Vikings in the wild card round. That tie allowed the Giants to WIN a playoff game.
The Lions would have made the playoffs over the Giants if New York hadn’t accepted a tie against Washington; Detroit had beaten the Giants during the regular season. But that win proved meaningless because the Giants ended one of their games in a tie after Graham Gano missed a 58-yard field goal at the buzzer.
A year earlier, the 9-7-1 Steelers earned a wild card spot in the AFC over the Miami Dolphins, L.A. Chargers, and Indianapolis Colts, all three of whom went 9-8 and missed the postseason.
The Steelers lost to the Chargers in the regular season but made the playoffs over them because they tied the Lions 16-16 in Week 11, partly thanks to Ryan Santoso missing a 48-yard field goal for the Lions.
McVay can poopoo ties all he wants, there were playoff teams in 2021 and 2022 because they tied games during the regular season and gained an advantage over teams that didn’t. And oh by the way, tying the 49ers would have been doubly good because the Rams could have tried to give San Francisco a tie instead of a win. It’s better for the Rams to not fall an extra game behind the 49ers in the division if they tie, but McVay says he never once considered this.
Is that just machismo or is it good strategy?
In 2018, a tie didn’t factor into...
