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All-business Birds rally around Reid
By Bob Brookover
Inquirer Staff Writer
Something was missing as the Eagles went through practice yesterday at the NovaCare Complex in preparation for Sunday night's important NFC East game against the Dallas Cowboys.
Tight end L.J. Smith said he noticed it during the morning meetings.
"He wasn't here in the meetings, so everybody was kind of like, 'Where's Coach?' Then word kind of spread," Smith said after the Eagles went through the first practice of the nine-year Andy Reid era without Reid in attendance.
By the time the team hit the practice field in the afternoon, almost every team member knew that Reid was in a Montgomery County courtroom in Norristown for the sentencing hearings of his two eldest sons, Garrett, 24, and Britt, 22.
"He felt it was an important day to be present with his kids," Eagles president Joe Banner said. "We support that."
It had to have been as difficult a day as any in Reid's life as he listened to Judge Steven O'Neill refer to the family's home environment as "a drug emporium." O'Neill sentenced Garrett Reid to two to 23 months, and it also was revealed that his oldest son had smuggled 89 pills into jail. Britt Reid was sentenced to eight to 23 months, and four years of probation as part of a road-rage incident during which he brandished a gun.
At the NovaCare Complex, Reid received support from his players and coworkers.
Quarterback Donovan McNabb said he didn't think it was fair to link the Eagles' 3-4 start to Reid's personal problems.
"It bothers me, because that's kind of an excuse that people really should avoid," McNabb said. "When they talk about his family being a distraction, we're all human beings, and I think people forget that sometimes. When anything involves your family, it's somewhat hard to concentrate, but I think he's handled it great. We can't tell if it's bothering him or not when he's here."
Banner acknowledged that anyone would be distracted by such a serious personal issue, but that he didn't think Reid's job performance has suffered because of it.
"There's a difference between being distracted and not being able to do your job," Banner said. "If you know Andy, of course he's thinking about it. But I think he's still able to do his job really well. Whatever happens on Sunday won't have anything to do with whether Andy was here or not."
That seemed to be the consensus in the locker room.
"Obviously, Coach Reid felt like he had to be a father first today," Smith said. "He's got personal responsibilities he needed to attend to, and I think anybody would have done the same thing.
"That whole fatherhood thing is something foreign to me right now, but my mom used to always tell me, 'You never know love until you have kids.' I know he loves his kids, and I know it hurts him a lot to see them go through what they're going through. He probably feels like right now is the best time to show them that he still loves them and he wants to be there for them."
Like McNabb, Smith thinks it's a weak excuse to blame the Eagles' sluggish start on the coach's personal life.
"That's nitpicking," he said. "His personal problems have nothing to do with us being 3-4."
As for the first practice without Reid during his nine seasons with the Eagles, everyone seemed to think it went well.
"We took it as business," cornerback Lito Sheppard said. "We went out there and executed, and everybody just did their job. It's not to say we don't miss him, but we don't need Big Boss Man watching over us to do our job."
Said offensive tackle William Thomas: "We kept it business as usual. It wasn't hard to do. We have a big game coming up, so I think everybody was focused in on what we had to do. We didn't want to treat the other coaches like the substitute teacher in class and try to get away with as much as we can. I think everybody focused in and did what we had to do. We're all professionals."
By Bob Brookover
Inquirer Staff Writer
Something was missing as the Eagles went through practice yesterday at the NovaCare Complex in preparation for Sunday night's important NFC East game against the Dallas Cowboys.
Tight end L.J. Smith said he noticed it during the morning meetings.
"He wasn't here in the meetings, so everybody was kind of like, 'Where's Coach?' Then word kind of spread," Smith said after the Eagles went through the first practice of the nine-year Andy Reid era without Reid in attendance.
By the time the team hit the practice field in the afternoon, almost every team member knew that Reid was in a Montgomery County courtroom in Norristown for the sentencing hearings of his two eldest sons, Garrett, 24, and Britt, 22.
"He felt it was an important day to be present with his kids," Eagles president Joe Banner said. "We support that."
It had to have been as difficult a day as any in Reid's life as he listened to Judge Steven O'Neill refer to the family's home environment as "a drug emporium." O'Neill sentenced Garrett Reid to two to 23 months, and it also was revealed that his oldest son had smuggled 89 pills into jail. Britt Reid was sentenced to eight to 23 months, and four years of probation as part of a road-rage incident during which he brandished a gun.
At the NovaCare Complex, Reid received support from his players and coworkers.
Quarterback Donovan McNabb said he didn't think it was fair to link the Eagles' 3-4 start to Reid's personal problems.
"It bothers me, because that's kind of an excuse that people really should avoid," McNabb said. "When they talk about his family being a distraction, we're all human beings, and I think people forget that sometimes. When anything involves your family, it's somewhat hard to concentrate, but I think he's handled it great. We can't tell if it's bothering him or not when he's here."
Banner acknowledged that anyone would be distracted by such a serious personal issue, but that he didn't think Reid's job performance has suffered because of it.
"There's a difference between being distracted and not being able to do your job," Banner said. "If you know Andy, of course he's thinking about it. But I think he's still able to do his job really well. Whatever happens on Sunday won't have anything to do with whether Andy was here or not."
That seemed to be the consensus in the locker room.
"Obviously, Coach Reid felt like he had to be a father first today," Smith said. "He's got personal responsibilities he needed to attend to, and I think anybody would have done the same thing.
"That whole fatherhood thing is something foreign to me right now, but my mom used to always tell me, 'You never know love until you have kids.' I know he loves his kids, and I know it hurts him a lot to see them go through what they're going through. He probably feels like right now is the best time to show them that he still loves them and he wants to be there for them."
Like McNabb, Smith thinks it's a weak excuse to blame the Eagles' sluggish start on the coach's personal life.
"That's nitpicking," he said. "His personal problems have nothing to do with us being 3-4."
As for the first practice without Reid during his nine seasons with the Eagles, everyone seemed to think it went well.
"We took it as business," cornerback Lito Sheppard said. "We went out there and executed, and everybody just did their job. It's not to say we don't miss him, but we don't need Big Boss Man watching over us to do our job."
Said offensive tackle William Thomas: "We kept it business as usual. It wasn't hard to do. We have a big game coming up, so I think everybody was focused in on what we had to do. We didn't want to treat the other coaches like the substitute teacher in class and try to get away with as much as we can. I think everybody focused in and did what we had to do. We're all professionals."