I really wanted to be done talking about Donovan McNabb- unless it involved him getting Justin Bieber's autograph. But when he does a long interview with GQ and touches on Reid, Vick, and the Super Bowl, we have to mention it.
The highlights? They're aren't many, but what we do see, is a walking contradiction. He tries to paint himself as a guy who let's things roll off his shoulders. What he winds up doing, is showing us that he still has pent up frustrations with the Eagles.
I had a meeting set up with Andy and [owner] Jeffrey Lurie after the season. We sat down and talked, and I got everything off my chest from '99 on. It went all the way back to the T.O. situation, it went back to us not winning big games, me being criticized for whatever, leadership, whatever it may be, and how no one in the organization ever stepped up and said anything. They'll say something to you in the building, but not publicly. My feeling was, 'I'm out here getting cut up, where are you? I'm always defending and helping you guys, but where's that support?' I thought it was beneficial, because you can sit there and tell somebody you truly love them, you're a big fan, your family loves you, but what about when we're over here in the hot seat, where are you now?
It's rare to see an athlete who cares as much about perception as McNabb. This one doesn't do much for Reid's image:
When I'm out on the field, if he calls a play and I can't hear it, I'd look back and mouth "What is it?" and he'd just say, "Just call something." I'd go out there and probably get a first down or we score or whatever, and he'd say, "Why don't you just call the whole game?" and I would say, "I've been waiting on that."
Finally, McNabb says he didn't puke (with another veiled shot at Reid):
"We were trying to figure out if T.O. [Terrell Owens] was in or if T.O. was out, because of his leg. T.O. wanted to be in. We were trying to rotate different guys in and get the personnel together and things of that nature. The play calling was a little slow, maybe, but it made it look like we were just kind of standing around. We were hustling, it was just blown out of proportion. No, at no point did I throw up. I got hit and dumped on my face a couple of times…we lost Todd Pinkston…we all were gassed, and there were a couple of times in the game where I got hit either by [linebacker Teddy] Bruschi or by [defensive end Richard] Seymour, I had grass in my helmet and maybe I lost my wind a little bit, but nothing to the point where I would come out of the game. People can run that game back and forth and find out that I wasn't throwing up, but I guess it's a sexy topic to talk about."
Read the whole interview at GQ.com.
11 Responses
Diehard Eagles fan here. Donovan is a legend.
Eh.. I feel for the guy… Always played his heart out and I have alway feklt he took more s**t than he deserved
typical McNabb always wants to shoot the blame towards someone other than himself.
All you hear these days is how the Redskins have a new leader at qb blah blah blah where is his leadership with this Fat Albert situation.
Couldnt agree more that mcnabb is a paper leader. I mean everything from his “we showed our youth today” comment to the air guitar. The man never got how a sports crazed city and fan base react. In all his 11 years he never once showed anything that can be considered true emotion. Always pedaling the company lines without realizing that many a Birds fan dont relate to them for those same reasons! Quoting Bull Durham might get you labeled as a “classy and underappreciated” in the national media but those are observations that are from people who just catch the highlights or recaps of interviews and games. They dont live and die with this team, they dont rep the city and they definetly dont BLEED GREEN!
if you have to declare that you are the leader of the team than you aren’t.
Alex, is dead on. He is trying to basically explain for misconceptions….why? You are on a different team, who cares about the past? Hes a great QB, but never seemed confident in his game when the goings got tough, thats what Philly didnt like about him, and that was really it. He was as professional as I could ask (see Iverson for comparison, he has more class than Iverson). Hes done with PHI now he just needs to move on and start choking in games with WAS now.
So glad the worst QB is out of my city. Have fun Washington with a chunky soup eating idiot. Good Riddens. Worst part of the NFL is this you McIdiot.
Didn’t Frayley say he puked? I would think that the center should know since the QB is standing over him in the huddle.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m not going to miss that Stevie Wonder-esque spaced out look and smiling/lauging after McNabb just tried to break the receivers ankles on 3rd and 5 by throwing the ball at their feet.
Just like Cliff Lee, Donovan is gone. Let’s try and forget about them both and destroy them when they come back to town.
echz we wont, because the thing is they both made us better and theyre both better than us. Donovan McNabb is the Greatest Philadelphia Eagles Quarterback EVER! he is gonna throw 1,110 yards this year…against the team he built. thats 555 yards a game for those of you playing at home which breaks Norm Van Brocklin’s record twice. McNabb was never the problem it was andy reid calling 900 pass plays a game, the front office being cheap and a lack of a supporting cast for many years. McNabb made it to the NFC championship game 3 times with Freddie “The Peoples Champion” Mitchells and Todd “ol’ alligator arms” Pinkston as premier wide receivers. Donovan McNabb will win a superbowl in 2011-2012
Donovan, i love everything you did for the Birds. One of the best to ever wear an Eagle’s jersey. But shut the hell up. its all part of bein a pro athlete in any sport. things arent gonna go your way and certain people arent gonna stick up for you. its not really their job. and in a press conference if no one asks about it then no one is gonna bring it up. get used to it as long as youre in the league dude.
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