Will We Boo McNabb?

This weekend, Donovan McNabb makes his return to Philadelphia. He'll be wearing the gawd awful burgundy and gold with his new team, the already-hated Washington Redskins.

The question many have been pondering is "Will the fans boo McNabb?" Here's my take.

Before heading down I-95 to play for the enemy, #5 led the Eagles to multiple 10 win seasons, NFC Championship games, and one Super Bowl appearance. Whether he accomplished a lot is no argument - the Eagles had never seen that sustained level of success they saw with McNabb.

However, there are a few important points to mention. First, he never got over the hump. Given 5 opportunities to advance to a Super Bowl, McNabb only led us to one. And given the opportunity to win that one, he came up short. It's always tough to appreciate what you have when you have it, but it's even tougher to appreciate what you have when you think you should have had even more.

Second, it appeared that McNabb didn't quite feel our pain when he failed to clear these hurdles. Philly fans appreciate hard work, but also appreciate accountability, and it seemed McNabb was content with these shortcomings. Often, he'd shrug off serious questions or apply lip service to them, saying what he thought the fans wanted to hear and often missing the boat.

There's another factor that plays into what I think will happen on Sunday: how well the Eagles are playing right now. Currently, we have a quarterback at the helm who is playing better than McNabb and who many think is playing the way McNabb should have been playing throughout his career, by displaying mobility when the pocket breaks down. Michael Vick is doing everything right thus far, and Eagles fans are feeling quite good about themselves. Does that translate into boos or cheers?

One could take this to mean two different things. Either fans will cheer for McNabb and show respect for what he brought to this team over the last decade because they are generally in a good mood about the team; or, fans will already be in a booing mood for the Skins and keep that momentum going as #5 trots onto the field - sort of a "who needs him anyway?" mentality because things are looking good for our guys right now.

Honestly, I don't think the reaction will lean one way or another. I think we'll have a combination of boos and cheers. Some fans will be riled up already and want to boo the enemy through and through. Some fans won't be in that mode quite yet, as the kickoff wouldn't be happening a few minutes down the line anyways from when he first steps onto the field.

If I could quantify it, I'd say the ratio would be 60-40, boo-to-cheer. I think fans will do what it takes to fire up this team and the rest of the crowd this Sunday afternoon just to get a victory against our hated rival.

Some fans will be wearing their old McNabb Eagles' jerseys on Sunday. Some fans will be attending burning parties for those same jerseys. All fans will have McNabb on their mind one way or another.

One thing is clear - nearly 100% of this stadium will want to see the Iggles come out victorious and stay atop the NFC East. There will be some love. There will be some hate. Booing and cheering will both be part of the equation.

And, We're Back....With an Eagles Preview

We’ve heard a lot of chatter this off-season about the Eagles, whether it was concerning Lito’s role on the team, Shawn’s depression, our lack of receiver depth, or McNabb’s superhuman abilities. Well, all that goes out the window once again as we start another season filled with high expectations. Many questions linger about all of these things, but the questions I’m concerned about are the ones that have gone unanswered for the entire decade.

Can the Birds stop the run? You’d think with all this talk of the improved secondary, that somehow stopping the run would be a problem that has long since been resolved. But I’m not convinced. We have guys that are undersized and unproven. And didn’t a few teams in the preseason march down the field on their first possession and score at will?

Will Donovan carry us? I mean, he sort of has to, no? With receivers that resemble the accountants sitting next to me, it’s going to take a lot from number 5. People say he’s improved and healthier than a mule. Well, does this translate into less happy feet and more touch on the ball? Does it? Because above all else, it has to. When opposing defenses are putting 8 in the box, and those 8 are storming towards D-Mac’s grill, will he have the wherewithal to step up, relax, and place a nice ball into the hands of these accountants that might only be 5 yards downfield? Or, will he get happy again and zing a ball like a scud missile to a guy with no one within 7 yards of him only to either swipe his feet out from under him or miss him high by 3 yards? That remains to be seen. All I know is, judging from one such throw that sailed over Kevin Curtis pre-hernia, Donovan can use a lesson or two in breathing and relaxation. Dude had plenty of time and he still missed a throw. And this was preseason, where there’s no pressure and D-Mac presumably felt like a million dollars.

Will Andy Reid get plays in on time and manage the clock well? History has proven that these skills have eluded him. What has he done to improve on this? I can all but guarantee we see one or both of these issues surface right away against a team that we should beat by 3 touchdowns (which raises another question – Can the Eagles avoid playing down to teams they should easily defeat?). Nothing says “kill momentum” like a delay of game penalty. Nothing says “we’re unprepared” like a wasted final minute and a half in the second quarter. Nothing says “wild card chances slim” like a bunch of these mishandlings during a season.

We can all agree that these questions have been huge concerns for Eagles’ fans throughout the decade. The question is, can the Birds prove that they’ve progressed beyond these annoying peeves on their way to a successful season.