McNabb still has gas in the tank

By John McMullen  |   Thursday, September 11, 2008  |  Comments( 8 )

Philadelphia Eagles
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The NFL draft is bigger than the game.

For months leading up to the gala event, various experts tell us exactly who is climbing up the "big board" and who is sinking faster than the Titanic.

Like women at a dance club, the prospects are treated like they are in the local meat market. They are poked and prodded looking for razor-thin differences in size, speed, strength, weight, quickness and mental aptitude.

On draft weekend, the local zealots are encouraged to get out their own ratings and weigh in on the wit and wisdom of their favorite team’s selections.

The NFL itself encourages this behavior by producing a slickly packaged draft show held annually in New York. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell steps to an imposing podium, hands each top draft selection a team jersey and the sports world's version of the paparazzi snap away.

Then the fun begins: A plethora of experts from the most famous draftnik of them all, Mel Kiper, to comedian and notable cheesy fake cat Nick Bakay may chime in.

The ESPN crew then scans the crowd immediately for a fan dressed from head to toe in his beloved team’s colors. The fan is inevitably either bumping chests with his buddy in alleged victory or screaming in utter despair as he sees his dreams of Super Bowl glory slipping away.

Never was it more pronounced in 1999 when a dimwitted local radio host in Philadelphia brought a busload of Eagles fanatics up to the Theater at Madison Square Garden specifically to boo the organization for drafting quarterback Donovan McNabb over Heisman Trophy-winning running back Ricky Williams.

McNabb’s introduction to the city he would be playing in couldn't have been worse and still bothers him nearly a decade later.

Luckily for the fans who booed him, McNabb, despite his sensitive streak, has showed the mental toughness it takes to play quarterback in the NFL. He ignored the slap in the face by all the armchair general managers and vindicated the Eagles’ organization by leading his team to four consecutive NFC title games.

Meanwhile Williams, while talented, flashed a bizarre personality and a fondness for the hippie lettuce that has disappointed two organizations, New Orleans and Miami.

Fast forward to the 2007 draft: With Super Bowl dreams still dancing in their fans' heads, the Eagles felt no need to address any of their immediate needs and traded down to grab McNabb's presumed successor, Kevin Kolb, in Round 2. It was an unequivocal sign that Andy Reid had finally lost confidence in his franchise's signal-caller.

Normally Reid would be given the benefit of the doubt. At some point you have to move on and McNabb had been sidelined by major injuries in three of the past five seasons. He was also on the wrong side of 30, a significant milestone in the NFL.

So, the end was near -- but just how close was it?

"I'm convinced this (the drafting of Kevin Kolb) signals the end of Donovan McNabb's tenure in Philadelphia," ComcastSportsnet's Ron Burke said on my radio show after the 2007 draft. "It won't be this season, but they drafted Kolb to take over in 2008."

If Burke's prediction turned out to be true, it would have been time to finally take inventory on Reid. He certainly has been a good coach for a very long time, but let's be honest -- all his success boils down to one definitive moment. Everything else is just window dressing.

If this organization succumbed to Angelo Cataldi and the 30 losers he brought to Madison Square Garden all those years ago, Reid would be in the Federal Witness Protection Program, likely coaching the offensive line in Tennessee far off any NFL head coaching radar. Like him or not, McNabb carried the Eagles to heights they never achieved before. If the team actually picked Williams over McNabb, Philly fans would have been watching the Detroit Lions over the past nine years.

That doesn't mean McNabb doesn't have his warts. But, if you listen to his detractors, the longtime Eagle might as well be . . . Kevin Kolb.

Fortunately he isn't, and the Birds still have a chance to make a run. Enjoy it while you still can ...
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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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