Dodger
Indomitable
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WILL SATURDAY BE THE LAST WE SEE OF McNABB?
You better face it. It’s coming. Whether you like it or not. I watched as everyone else did on Sunday as the Dallas Cowboys took apart the Eagles 24-0. Dallas will do it again this Saturday night in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs. It may be a little closer. The Eagles may actually score.
But there is one glaring truth that can’t be ignored: The Eagles can’t deal with the Cowboys’ defense, that’s all there is to it. Philadelphia’s high-octane offense has been reduced to just one touchdown against Dallas this season. The Birds have been a skittish mess when it’s come to facing the Cowboys. And another six days, five days or four days won’t change that.
What is coming and what could drastically change is who calls the Eagles’ offense next year. If the Birds get banged around again by Dallas, which I can’t see otherwise, will Saturday mark the last time we see Donovan McNabb in an Eagles’ uniform?
The Eagles are already circling the wagons on that conjecture. But it is very real. McNabb is up after this season, and there is a likelihood that the “going-in-another-direction” message could be trumpeted from the NovaCare Complex when it comes to No. 5.
Now do I want to see it? No. I think McNabb is the best quarterback the Eagles have had since Ron Jaworski. He’s won more games than any quarterback in the team’s history and will one day have his No. 5 retired by the Eagles—as he should. I think McNabb has two more good years in him.
Can he be maddeningly inaccurate at times? Yes. Can he force you to throw a bowl of tortillas and salsa at a wall next to the flatscreen? Yes. Does his flippant personality endear him to this city? Definitely not.
But he’s won. He’s provided a great body of work that merits Hall of Fame consideration (Note: I said Hall of Fame consideration, not that he’s lock for Canton). He’s done everything possible except the one thing we all wanted him to do—win a Super Bowl. That will forever be the epitaph to his career here in Philadelphia … but he never won a Super Bowl.
It’s going to be the reason why the Eagles will opt to say goodbye to McNabb after the Eagles get beat by Dallas this Saturday.
Do I want to see that? Again, no. I don’t care how many times the Eagles or Andy Reid spout off about how much they’ve learned from Sunday. The disparity right now between the Eagles and Dallas is too great. A few mistakes can’t nor won’t hide the fact when the Cowboys’ massive offensive front manhandles the Eagles’ defensive line again. That’s not anything mental. It’s the laws of nature working there.
In fact, the Cowboys are playing the best football of any playoff team in the NFC right now. It’s kind of hard to argue after the slammed a manhole cover on the Eagles Sunday.
It’s why Reid was re-upped and McNabb wasn’t. Kevin Kolb appears ready. The young nucleus this team has appears ready to be led by him. None of us really know what Kolb will do under the strain of a 16-game NFL schedule—and we’ll have a good idea soon if Kolb is re-signed to a multi-year deal with one year left on the current deal.
It’s not just the Eagles who will be playing for their collective lives on Saturday—but the end of an era could be here, and it probably is when the Eagles loss to Dallas again this Saturday. You better face it. It’s painfully hard to ignore.
Joseph Santoliquito is an Emmy Award-nominated writer based in the Philadelphia area who can be contacted at Jsantoliquito@yahoo.com.
Link: http://www.610wip.com/pages/2635402.php
You better face it. It’s coming. Whether you like it or not. I watched as everyone else did on Sunday as the Dallas Cowboys took apart the Eagles 24-0. Dallas will do it again this Saturday night in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs. It may be a little closer. The Eagles may actually score.
But there is one glaring truth that can’t be ignored: The Eagles can’t deal with the Cowboys’ defense, that’s all there is to it. Philadelphia’s high-octane offense has been reduced to just one touchdown against Dallas this season. The Birds have been a skittish mess when it’s come to facing the Cowboys. And another six days, five days or four days won’t change that.
What is coming and what could drastically change is who calls the Eagles’ offense next year. If the Birds get banged around again by Dallas, which I can’t see otherwise, will Saturday mark the last time we see Donovan McNabb in an Eagles’ uniform?
The Eagles are already circling the wagons on that conjecture. But it is very real. McNabb is up after this season, and there is a likelihood that the “going-in-another-direction” message could be trumpeted from the NovaCare Complex when it comes to No. 5.
Now do I want to see it? No. I think McNabb is the best quarterback the Eagles have had since Ron Jaworski. He’s won more games than any quarterback in the team’s history and will one day have his No. 5 retired by the Eagles—as he should. I think McNabb has two more good years in him.
Can he be maddeningly inaccurate at times? Yes. Can he force you to throw a bowl of tortillas and salsa at a wall next to the flatscreen? Yes. Does his flippant personality endear him to this city? Definitely not.
But he’s won. He’s provided a great body of work that merits Hall of Fame consideration (Note: I said Hall of Fame consideration, not that he’s lock for Canton). He’s done everything possible except the one thing we all wanted him to do—win a Super Bowl. That will forever be the epitaph to his career here in Philadelphia … but he never won a Super Bowl.
It’s going to be the reason why the Eagles will opt to say goodbye to McNabb after the Eagles get beat by Dallas this Saturday.
Do I want to see that? Again, no. I don’t care how many times the Eagles or Andy Reid spout off about how much they’ve learned from Sunday. The disparity right now between the Eagles and Dallas is too great. A few mistakes can’t nor won’t hide the fact when the Cowboys’ massive offensive front manhandles the Eagles’ defensive line again. That’s not anything mental. It’s the laws of nature working there.
In fact, the Cowboys are playing the best football of any playoff team in the NFC right now. It’s kind of hard to argue after the slammed a manhole cover on the Eagles Sunday.
It’s why Reid was re-upped and McNabb wasn’t. Kevin Kolb appears ready. The young nucleus this team has appears ready to be led by him. None of us really know what Kolb will do under the strain of a 16-game NFL schedule—and we’ll have a good idea soon if Kolb is re-signed to a multi-year deal with one year left on the current deal.
It’s not just the Eagles who will be playing for their collective lives on Saturday—but the end of an era could be here, and it probably is when the Eagles loss to Dallas again this Saturday. You better face it. It’s painfully hard to ignore.
Joseph Santoliquito is an Emmy Award-nominated writer based in the Philadelphia area who can be contacted at Jsantoliquito@yahoo.com.
Link: http://www.610wip.com/pages/2635402.php
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