PHILADELPHIA (AP) -Benching Donovan McNabb didn’t solve the Philadelphia Eagles’ problems, but it’s another sign the team has a lot of them.
Another indication of a team in tumult: The star quarterback, pulled in favor of his backup in Sunday’s 36-7 loss at Baltimore, will be starting again on Thursday against Arizona.
The Eagles hope it’s a fresh start for everyone.
Philadelphia (5-5-1) is on the verge of its third last-place finish since falling three points short against New England in the 2005 Super Bowl. It can’t all be pinned on McNabb, who played hurt or was out altogether in three of those seasons.
Yes, McNabb has been awful recently – and that obviously played into Reid’s halftime decision to yank a veteran who has been to five Pro Bowls.
hey did not score again behind Kolb, who had thrown only nine career passes and finished 10-for-23 for 73 yards and two interceptions. He was also on the wrong end of an NFL record – one interception was returned 108 yards for a touchdown by Baltimore safety Ed Reed.
Fans were left to wonder whether McNabb’s experience would’ve made a difference in the second half. The Eagles were down 22-7 and had a second down inside the Ravens 1 with just under 8 minutes left when Kolb’s pass was picked off by Reed, essentially deciding the game.
McNabb’s return might settle the Eagles, who face a short week to regroup before hosting Arizona (7-4) on Thanksgiving night. The Cardinals can clinch the NFC West with a win and a loss by the 49ers.
Eagles coach Andy Reid has compiled an impressive resume in his 10 seasons as coach, leading a franchise that was a laughingstock to five division titles and one Super Bowl.
“It’s obvious that everybody, starting with me, needs to pick up their game,” Reid said Sunday. “When you get beat up like we did, that’s a head coaching problem right there, and a direct reflection of the job that I’m doing. It’s unacceptable. I need to make sure that I get this changed and get an answer.”
In the locker room, players aren’t questioning Reid’s judgment.
“He’s a great coach, and we always play hard for him,” wide receiver Hank Baskett said.
crisis last year when his sons were arrested on drug charges, points the finger at himself after every loss. He always says he needs to put players “in a better position” to succeed.
Or it could be the Eagles need better players at several positions.
As executive vice president of football operations, Reid has final say on personnel matters. But the team has blundered a number of times in the early rounds of the draft, sometimes in ways that still haunt them.
One notable miss was 2005, when the Eagles drafted diminutive running back Ryan Moats in the third round instead of a bigger back to complement Brian Westbrook. Left on the board? Marion Barber and Brandon Jacobs, both drafted a round later by Dallas and the Giants.
Moats lasted three seasons before landing on the waiver wire. The Eagles still see Barber and Jacobs two times every season.
McNabb turned 32 on Tuesday. Considering what Brett Favre, Kurt Warner and Kerry Collins are doing in their late 30s, he’s far from too old, despite his recent struggles. He’s also due to earn $9.2 million in base salary next season and is signed through 2013.
But franchise quarterbacks are hard to come by, and with no guarantee that Kolb will become one, McNabb’s benching may not have been a move by Reid to try out a future quarterback.
It may be the Eagles are down to trying anything.
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