Ian Holloway backed Jake Bidwell and Alex Baptiste after leaving them out for QPR’s win against Barnsley.
Both players were dropped to the bench for the game at Loftus Road, where Josh Scowen’s long-range strike gave Rangers the points.
Baptiste made way for James Perch, who played for the first time since suffering a broken kneecap last August.
Manager Holloway said: “My senior pros, I can’t praise them enough. They’ve taken my decisions so well.
“I made some changes because those lads have taken all the responsibility lately and I wanted to take the pressure off.
“The graveyard shift for example – left wing-back – poor old ‘Bids’ has been doing that over and over again.
“It was nice to have people fit enough to be able to give him a bit of a rest. It doesn’t mean it’s his fault. It’s not.
“‘Baps’ has been outstanding. I thought he looked a bit jaded so I put Perch back in and I thought he was exceptional.”
Massimo Luongo missed the game with a knee problem and has also been struggling with a virus.
Holloway believes the midfielder could be available for next weekend’s trip to face Championship leaders Wolves.
“He has a sore knee and he was ill. He might be back next week,” Holloway said.
This post was last modified on 03/02/2018