McNabb’s last stand

By John McMullen  |   Thursday, July 03, 2008  |  Comments( 21 )

Philadelphia Eagles
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If you are a fan of "The Sopranos," you know much of the final season of the show centered on the back-biting of some of Tony Soprano's most loyal lieutenants.

Christopher Moltisanti, Bobby 'Bacala' Baccalieri and Herman 'Hesh' Rabkin were just a few of Tony's close friends who pondered what life would be like without the skipper of North Jersey's most notorious crime family.

It's an age-old story -- in life and in art -- that a lot of people think the grass is greener on the other side.

Take Andy Reid and the Philadelphia Eagles, who are ready to move on, with or without their franchise quarterback.

Revisionist historians may disagree, but the Birds were a bit of a laughingstock when they hired Reid in 199. He had no experience as a coordinator and wasn't even a blip on the NFL head coaching radar.

But, despite a rocky beginning in which Reid inexplicably handed the keys to the woefully overmatched Doug Pederson, the coach persevered and made Philadelphia's brain trust look great in the process. In fact, he became the most successful mentor in franchise history thanks, in large part, to one move.

Reid ignored the merry band of stereotypes local radio host Angelo Cataldi dragged up to New York for the 1999 draft and selected Donovan McNabb over Ricky Williams. Four NFC championship games later, McNabb has solidified himself as the best quarterback in Eagles history.

But, thanks to a bizarre personality featuring bouts of stunning immaturity, McNabb has never really clicked with the fans who follow his team. And now, the Syracuse product is a broken-down veteran, evidently stunned that the Eagles would dare try and plan for a future without him.

Take his infamous blog. Over the past year, the 31-year-old has not only whined about the lack of playmakers surrounding him, alienating both Reid and his teammates, he has also rehashed some ridiculous criticism levied on him by the president of the Philadelphia branch of the NAACP.

Nearly three years ago, J. Whyatt Mondesire, the publisher of the Philadelphia Sunday Sun, an African-American newspaper, wowed us with his grasp of the football world.

Mondesire wrote that McNabb was "mediocre" and that he found it insulting that the signal-caller had "concocted reasoning that African American quarterbacks who can scramble and who can run the ball are somehow lesser field generals."

That little gem was written in December of 2005. Instead of brushing aside an ignorant view, McNabb, hurting in April of 2007 after the Eagles drafted fellow QB Kevin Kolb, fanned the flames early last season.

"I bet Fran Tarkenton, Steve Young, Jake Plummer, and Doug Flutie have never been told by a member of any racial consciousness organization that they don't play the quarterback position white enough," McNabb wrote in September of last year.

Think about that for a moment: An NFL starting quarterback in a major media market singled out a columnist whom few even know.

Socially, Mondesire is surely an important figure, but to football fans, he's not exactly Peter King or John Clayton in the football world. Moreover, his take on McNabb and pro football teetered on the brink of moronic.

Despite all of that, McNabb was and likely still is hurting over Mondesire's woefully uneducated barbs hurled nearly three years ago.

The whole episode magnified McNabb's fatal flaw.

He is a delicate flower, a painfully sensitive person in the spotlight.

His solution? Get out of Philly -- America's worst sports city for the sensitive.

And the time is coming. Much like the mafia, there is no loyalty in the NFL and your career can be "whacked" at any time.

If Reid is Tony Soprano in the world of the Eagles, McNabb is his best earner who has seen better days. And both sides are now pondering how much better life would be without the other.

Of course, in the end, Reid is the boss and as McNabb becomes less and less useful, it will be Reid who gives the order. It won't be a bullet behind the ear, but make no mistake that Reid will "whack" McNabb's career in Philadelphia.

First, the boss will order his soldiers to disseminate some unflattering talking points about McNabb. Then, when Reid has convinced enough of his constituency that Kolb is the answer, he will pounce and jettison McNabb.

The sitdown has already taken place. The only question left is when the order is carried out.
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About John McMullen

John is the managing editor of The Phanatic Magazine, the assistant managing editor of The Sports Network and the co-host of the highly rated 'Johns on Sports' radio show on WTBQ in New York. Every Saturday from 6:30-9 p.m. (et) you can hear John along with his co-host, John Gottlieb, talk to the...
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CommentsComments: 21  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
bardley80		11:15 AM
07/03/2008
With McNabb's injury history, the Eagles have to plan for the future without him. That said, I think he'll have a good year in...
No.2
12:34 PM
07/03/2008
They will probably make the playoffs, because 3 teams are going to come out of the NFC east again. But once McNabb goes I think...
Avatar
No.3
RedskinFan21ST		01:16 PM
07/03/2008
I don't understand why people want McNabb out of Philly. This guy put the team on his back and brought them to 3 consecutive NFC...
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