Originally Published: February 11, 2010
What's next for McNabb in Philly?
By Sal Paolantonio
ESPN.com
PHILADELPHIA -- Will the Eagles trade Donovan McNabb? With apologies to the Brett Favre retirement watch, this is the most compelling story of the 2010 NFL offseason.
Eagles coach Andy Reid has said all the right things -- almost. So has McNabb. And that's the problem. This time of year, it's not what they say that counts but what's going on behind the scenes and how you read between the lines.
Philadelphia is the only team in the NFL with all three quarterbacks on its roster going into the final year of their contracts. Teams are calling, wondering who's available, who's not and what the Eagles would want in any potential trade.
The Eagles' front office is listening. But here's the kicker: The Eagles, according to multiple league sources, have so far told teams that both McNabb and his primary backup, Kevin Kolb, are not available.
Now, does that mean the Eagles won't trade McNabb? Definitely not. Most league insiders believe the Eagles are just posturing right now, trying to determine the market and how to proceed. If the team says publicly or privately McNabb is on the trading block, its bargaining position would tank.
Among the teams that have talked to the Eagles, according to multiple sources, are the Denver Broncos, Cleveland Browns, St. Louis Rams and Buffalo Bills. The latter two teams are believed to be interested in Michael Vick, who told Reid in his exit interview in January that he wants to be traded to a team that will give him an opportunity to start. Reid promised him nothing, team sources say.
Teams have showed varying degrees of interest in all three quarterbacks, but McNabb is the key. He has said he will be back and wants to be back. But is that necessarily the case? He often makes snide remarks about being underappreciated by both the fans and the media in town. That's nothing new. Former Eagles QB Ron Jaworski faced the same thing. Many big-media-market quarterbacks who don't take the team to the promised land of Lombardi face that kind of relentless scrutiny and rancid doubt.
Publicly, Reid left the door open on a McNabb trade -- if only ever so slightly. Reid at first said that McNabb, 33, would be back in an Eagles uniform in 2010 and reiterated that it's his call to make -- despite the recent shake-up of the team's front office. (General manager Tom Heckert was allowed to leave to take the same job in Cleveland, while Howie Roseman was promoted to take his place.)
But on Jan. 11, when making his final comments about the 2009 season to the local media, here's what Reid said that could be interpreted as he left himself an out:
"I was asked if Donovan would be my quarterback next year, and I said yes," Reid said. "That's what I'm...
-02-11-2010, 09:18 PM
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