Derek Bodner’s Blog

As I was sitting there watching Donovan McNabb wince from the pain of a broken rib, the thought of being the starting quarterback should McNabb be out an extended period of time came to me. It doesn’t seem McNabb should be out long enough for this to become a reality (yet), and Vick isn’t even eligible to play until week 3. In all likelihood he is probably even longer away from being in football shape to be effective. Still, it got me to thinking: am I at the point yet where I can cheer for Michael Vick?
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I purposefully withheld writing this article after A.J. Feeley’s admirable performance, even if it did come up short, because I wanted to see if he would be up to the task of repeating his success. Clearly we now know he was not, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take anything away from his performances. The last two games have shown that McNabb’s a very talented quarterback, but one that doesn’t fit the offense Reid is trying to run, whereas Feeley’s the right fit for the offense but a mediocre talent.

What the success Feeley had in the loss to the Patriots showed was what this offense can look like with the right fit at the position. Someone who gets the ball out quickly, throws to a spot, has touch on the midrange passes. All criticisms of McNabb, which they while don’t make Feeley a better quarterback, they do make McNabb a square peg in the round hole that is the Westcoast Offense, an offense predicated on timing and accuracy.

The last two games have also shown that Feeley is what he is. While being the right type of quarterback for the system, he has the talent level of a backup quarterback. The interceptions thrown during the Seattle game weren’t one of timing mistakes or simply throwing the ball up and letting receivers make plays, they were incorrect reads. It is possible to get a quarterback of Feeley’s style with the talent level of McNabb, and to play the game Feeley played without throwing the interceptions.

I do not fault McNabb for this one iota. All quarterbacks are different, with different skillsets and tendencies. McNabb is a very good quarterback, and a very successful quarterback. The fact that he succeeded at the level that he has even while working in a system that doesn’t cater to his strengths says a lot about the overall talent level of the best quarterback in Eagles franchise history. Ultimately, my blame goes to Reid. First, he cheated us out of the last nine years by drafting, developing, and sticking with a quarterback who’s strenghs don’t correspond to the requirements of the position in his offense. He also cheated McNabb out of the best years of his career by putting him in an offense that doesn’t play to his strenghts, and refusing to change the system to make the most out of his franchise quarterback. McNabb is a very good intermediate and long range passer, plays very well off the playaction, and was great at improvising and buying time on busted plays with his legs. You can’t have a successful play action pass when the defense doesn’t respect the run, and the defense won’t respect the run when you throw 65% of the time. You don’t put McNabb in a timing offense that requires you to get the ball out and throw to spots when that’s never been the strength of his game. Both McNabb and the Eagles fans would have been better served if Andy Reid had tailored his offense over the years around the strength of his quarterback. He failed to do that, and in the process failed to utilize the best quarterback in Eagles history. It’s most definitely time for the Eagles and McNabb to part ways, and it’s a shame it’s ended like this.

In the past few days, I’ve found myself incredibly torn with the comments made by Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb. I do certainly agree that there is racism in this world. What I don’t agree with is that (the majority) if his critics critisize him because he’s black.

It’s probably easiest to go over some of what he said.

“But they [white quarterbacks] don’t get criticized as much as we do. They don’t. I pass for 300 yards. Our teams wins by seven. [They say,] ‘He could have made this throw. They would have scored if he did this.’

That, Donovan, is not racism. People who say that are not racist. They are not saying that because you’re African American. People are saying that because you’re a quarterback. You don’t think that happens to white quarterbacks? For proof of it happening in this town, look back at Ron Jaworski, who received ten times as much criticism as Donovan did during his tenure. Need a contemporary example? Ask Rex Grossman if fans withhold criticizing him because they’re winning. This is a tough town to start with, which becomes even more demanding because the Eagles haven’t won a championship in nearly half a century. Top that off with playing a position that is universally criticized if you don’t win the big one, and the criticism isn’t surprising. Think Dan Marino didn’t get unfairly criticized because he didn’t win a Super Bowl? Think John Elway didn’t get heat before winning his? Peyton Manning?

That comment’s just wrong. Those are criticisms that come with the position, and really don’t go away until you win a Super Bowl, regardless of your success.

While defending himself this past week he goes on to say:

They (white quarterbacks) probably have not been told that they should have scrambled more

Donovan, the reason people are telling you to scramble is because YOU’RE GOOD AT IT! People are not telling you that you should scramble more because you’re black, but because it’s a weapon that makes you better. I don’t think many people are telling Byron Leftwich he should scramble more because he’s black. Since he came into the league, Donovan has always seemed to look at scrambling as a bad thing because it makes him a “black quarterback”. No. It improves you as a quarterback. Donovan’s fear of racism has limited one of his strengths, and that’s why people get upset.

I don’t think people disagree with McNabb’s assertion that he faces more (and different) criticism than white quarterbacks. I don’t think people disagree that racism still exists, or that there’s not progress to be made. I think what they take exception to (and at least what I take exception to) is the example he gave in the HBO interview. Specifically, the quote about going out, throwing for 300 yards, winning by seven, and saying “we could have scored more had he done…”.

That’s the example he gave, or at least the example HBO chose to show. And that does happen to every quarterback who has failed to win the big one. There are superior QB’s to McNabb (Marino, Elway until he won, Manning until he won) who have received unfair criticism because of the position they play. The specific example McNabb gave IS something all QB’s go through. It’s the nature of the beast.

Had Donovan said “I walk out of the stadium, and I hear people tell me I’m too dumb to play QB”, there wouldn’t be nearly this reaction. In fact, I think people of all color would empathize with that. But that’s not what was aired in the interview. The reaction does not prove that racism is an issue (that’s proven through other acts), it proves that people don’t like to be painted as racist because they criticized a QB. It was Donovan’s example, not his message, that got people upset.

The expectations for the Eagles heading into the draft were not overwhelming. With the 26th pick in the draft, you were looking to get a corner who when he learns the system could play the Nickel slot. Maybe draft a safety who could challenge Sean Considine, hardly a world beater. With a deficit of draft picks, moving up was not a likely probability. And while Tom Heckert had been quoted this week saying it would be hard for rookies to make the roster, knowing how the Eagles valued draft picks, trading down was a distinct possibility.

Nothing could have prepared you for what was next to come. And after giving it a few hours to sit back and let it sink in, I think I may be more confused.
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“Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.” The popular (shortened) adage coined by Major Edward A. Murphy, JR in the United States Air Force in 1949. Even Murphy could not have predicted this much turmoil in the Eagles season. The full text of Murphy’s Law is as follows:

1. Nothing is as easy as it looks.
2. Everything takes longer than you think.
3. Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.
4. If there is a possibility of several things going wrong, the one that will cause the most damage will be the one to go wrong. Corollary: If there is a worse time for something to go wrong, it will happen then.
5. If anything simply cannot go wrong, it will anyway.
6. If you perceive that there are four possible ways in which a procedure can go wrong, and circumvent these, then a fifth way, unprepared for, will promptly develop.
7. Left to themselves, things tend to go from bad to worse.
8. If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something.
9. Nature always sides with the hidden flaw.
10. Mother nature is a bitch.
11. It is impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so ingenious.
12. Whenever you set out to do something, something else must be done first.
13. Every solution breeds new problems.

#3 on the list is obvious and well known. The other bolded items are of particular interest with the way this season has unfolded. Read more