Terrell Owens for Dallas Cowboys
Is Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb finally prime for NFL Playoff run?
With Terrell Ownens gone to Dallas, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb has a new chance to get back to the NFL playoffs.
Donovan McNabb's nightmare may finally be coming to an end. The Philadelphia Eagles quarterback suffered through one of his worst seasons as a professional, during the 2005 NFL season. Not only did his team play sub-.500 football, he was thrown under the proverbial bus by then teammate Terrell Owens, and McNabb's Eagles missed the playoffs for the first time in five seasons. Most of the blame fell on McNabb.
Philadelphia's problem, though, was only partially McNabb. Owens - the biggest mouth in the NFL - called his quarterback everything but the man responsible for slavery. According to T.O., McNabb couldn't throw a football from here to there, if he was the only man on the football field and there was just five yards away.
Owens has a new book (why is it that every jerk in the sports world has a book?), in which he spends more than a few sentences vilifying Donovan McNabb. Not only does he blame a Super Bowl loss on McNabb, calling him a quitter, Owens says McNabb chokes in big games and suggests that McNabb can't perform under pressure.
Let's see, didn't McNabb lead his team to a string of NFL playoff victories and NFC championship appearances? Didn't he get the Eagles to a Super Bowl?
In fact, McNabb has eight playoff victories, second all-time on the Eagles playoff win list. His three consecutive NFC semi-final round victories are not the mark of a "choke."
When a team has a goal-to-go situation, wouldn't this be considered a pressure time in an NFL game? In these situations, McNabb has thrown 59 touchdown passes and only two interceptions. I'd certainly call this clutch play.
I once watched an ailing, exhausted McNabb drive his team down the field, in a come-from-behind victory. After a beautiful 20-yard completion to his opponent's 30, McNabb ran to the line of scrimmage and spiked the ball to stop the clock. He quickly huddled his team, approached the line again, paused, then threw up in front of millions of people in TV land and about 80 thousand stadium viewers.
He wiped his mouth with his already dirty jersey, stood over center, took the snap and completed another pass. A few plays later the Eagles scored and won the game.
Donovan McNabb is a gamer. He is a good guy, and he's is a winner.
Now, that Terrell Owens and his oversized ego are gone, McNabb will win again and lead the Philadelphia Eagles back to the NFL playoffs.
