Timing is Everything

There are a range of opinions about the last 2:24 of the Eagles-Redskins game and clock management. Redskins "associate head coach - defense" Gregg Williams stoked the burgeoning war of post-game words between the two coaching staffs when he said in a Sunday night interview he told his players that if the "Eagles were dumb enough not to take a knee then to let them score a touchdown." The idea being that the Skins would only be down 8 points and still only need one possession to tie, albeit a touchdown and 2 pt. conversion.

Indeed, there are typically instances in a NFL game where the clock decision is clear cut. And just as typically, the head coach, whose primary responsibility on game day is time management, gets it wrong. It is why I am in the process of writing a guide on football time management.

After reflecting upon the matter further and hearing several different perspectives from friends, I think both sides have legitimate arguments and that perhaps there is no "right" answer concerning these specific circumstances.. The Eagles won, so Reid obviously made the correct call. But the alternative may have just as likely resulted in a win so, it too, may have been as high a percentage decision. Alas, we'll never know.

Indeed, during the game I briefly thought that the Eagles might take a knee after gaining possession at the Redskins 10 yard line with 2:24 to play, and up by 1, 26-25. The Skins were out of timeouts and i thought perhaps the Eagles would at least run the clock down to the 2:00 minute warning and leave the Skins with no more opportunities to stop the clock.

Under this scenario, the Eagles would have had 2nd down at 2 minutes and likely taken a knee. They could have then run the clock down to approximately 1:16 before having to take a knee on 3rd down. Facing 4th and 10 from the 10 (not sure if it was goal to go or not, but it doesn't matter) they would have called timeout with 1 second on the play clock which would have been about 35 seconds to go. Akers would have come in for the 27 yard FG. That would have taken 7 seconds off the clock. The net result would have been the Eagles kicking off to the Skins up 29-25 with 28 seconds to go, the Skins out of timeouts and needing a touchdown to win the game. The worst case under this scenario is that Akers misses the FG and the Skins take over at their own 17 yard line with 28 seconds to go and rather than needing a touchdown, need only a field goal to win, though again, with no timeouts.

On the flip side, and what really happened, is that the Eagles scored before the 2:00 warning and the Skins returned the ensuing kick to their 30 and had 2:18 with no timeouts to go 70 yards for the touchdown. That is a lot of time, especially against a defense that earlier in the season gave up a 97 yard TD with less than 2:00 to go. It would have been much more concerning had big-play WR Santana Moss been active, but as it was Randle-El has plenty of speed to be extremely wary of the deep threat.

Obviously, the main benefit of the approach the Eagles did take was that Skins would have to score AND get the 2pt conversion, and even then the worst outcome for the Eagles is a tie and overtime. Even with a successful Hail Mary or a 60 yard pass interference call the Eagles were essentially guaranteed of OT.

I see both points of view. Shrink the game to roughly three maybe four plays but risk losing on a fluky TD, or give your defense a cushion - a margin of safety in requiring a TD and 2 pt. conversion that doesn't it lose it but merely extends the game. One friend argued strongly that you ALWAYS take points - especially touchdowns - whenever you can get them. The upside benefit greatly outweighs the downside risk.

Like I said, the outcome confirms that Reid made the right call. Still, I can't help thinking that the better call should have been to take a knee and run the clock down to the 2:00 warning, and then run an actual offensive play. At that point, I wonder if the Skins would still have let Westbrook score.

But the best call was the one recommended by my neighbor after we debated it after the game. Westbrook should have run it to the one yard line and then fallen down. I'm not actually sure what the procedure is at that point. I think the refs eventually have to whistle the play dead even if no Redskin even tries to touch the player and make "down by contact." That would have made the FG a true chip shot, given the Eagles an opportunity to take a knee on second down, run another 40 seconds off the clock and then tried for the TD on 3rd down - the best of all possible worlds. (unless Westbrook were to pull a "Bettis" and cough it up at the goal line for the game clinching TD and have the defense return it the other way for the score).

Anyway, like I said, it is unusual in that there is no clear cut right answer, and unusual that two opposing coaches pointedly disagreed in the press about the decision after the game. Gregg Williams thought the Eagles made the wrong call. Andy Reid thought he made the right call. The Eagles won so Reid does too in this instance. But if the Skins had scored 8 points in the last two minutes...