Donovan McNabb is Thirty Years Old

Eagles fans may be beating a dead horse with the talk surrounding Kevin Kolb, but it's such a hot topic that we can't stop thinking about it.  As for Kolb as a player, I'd venture to guess that none of us really know very much about the guy.  I don't doubt that he could turn into a great NFL quarterback.  Fans didn't boo Kevin Kolb on draft day, they booed the fact that the Eagles selected a quarterback with their first pick on Saturday.

The NFL draft is full of posturing and misinformation.  The Eagles trying to tell us that the Kolb pick had nothing to do with Donovan McNabb is garbage if you ask me.  Number five is 30 years old and will turn 31 during the 2007 season.  That isn't exactly old for a QB.  I think a safe estimate of when McNabb will hang it up would be between the age of 35 and 37 depending on a number of factors.  That means Donovan could play another 5 to 7 years.  Do you really use the 36th overall pick on a guy who will sit the bench for that long?

When the Eagles tell us that this has nothing to do with Donovan McNabb, they're not fooling anybody.  The only way the Eagles will ever live this pick down is if Donovan McNabb retires in a couple of years and Kevin Kolb takes over the reigns and is immediately a superstar.  Anything else and you're going to hear many more boos.

Good luck, Kevin.  We're all hoping you make Andy Reid look brilliant.  We're certainly not holding our breath.

Previously: Eagles Select Kevin Kolb.. Kevin Who? [The 700 Level]

Comments

[Matt P]

word on the airwaves is that McNabb hasn't returned Reid's phone calls since Saturday.

[J. Weitzel]

I'm no expert on Andy Reid's offense, but what you want most from a QB in his system is accuracy and a good, quick arm. Kolb has good size, and apparently a good attitude and understanding of the game. But the thing that impresses me most are the numbers. They're outstanding. Four interceptions last season? Is that a misprint? And a 67 percent completion percentage? That's outstanding.

Perhaps the thinking with this draft is that the impact will come from last year's group, which we haven't really seen (Bunkley, Ramsey, Gocong). Justice and Gilles are actually another year out, at least.

I'm not too worried about it. It seems like a lot of the picks they would have taken in the first round fell right ahead of their pick. New England probably got the player they wanted in that DB from Miami. After that, which player was going to step in and make an immediate difference?

[DD]

I definately don't think their draft was as bad as what people are making it out to be. I think they wanted that Meriweather guy from Miami or that Nelson kid from Florida. When they both were picked, I think they kinda cut their losses and decided to stock up on draft picks. Kolb was kind of a surprising pick because they could have probably gotten him with a later pick. I've heard the Eagles brass actually had Kolb as the 2nd best quarterback in the draft, behind JaMarcus Russell. I looked at Kolb's stats and scouting report and he actually seems to be a prototypical West Coast offense quarterback. His statistics are real impressive, though at Houston, his level of competition was a lot lower than Russell's or Quinn's. Besides that pick, I thought the kids they picked were pretty good. They picked up a linebacker and they got that power back they really needed. I hope Reid continues to emphasize the run next season. If he does, they should win their division again.

[J. Weitzel]

I may have understated Kolb's arm. Apparently in workouts, Kolb had one of the best arms in the draft. It's going to take a year or more for him to learn this offense, however. I guess Houston ran some form of a shotgun run-and-shoot.

[J. Weitzel]

I may have understated Kolb's arm. Apparently in workouts, Kolb had one of the best arms in the draft. It's going to take a year or more for him to learn this offense, however. I guess Houston ran some form of a shotgun run-and-shoot.

[BGN]

If the worst thing that happens is McNabb stays healthy and plays at a pro bowl level for the next 5 years... then I doubt Eagles fans will be all that upset with this pick.

If at worst Kolb becomes Matt Schaub... so? Maybe it will get us something in the future.

If at best, McNabb gets hurt again like he has in the 15 games he's missed the last 3 years, and Kolb becomes the next start QB of this franchise... well this may end up being Andy's best pick ever. At this point, isn't expecting McNabb to play healthy and at a high level for 5-7 more years a stretch?

I really don't know. I totally get why people wouldn't like it, but at the same time it makes total sense to me. We'll see...

[Justin]

To the guy discussing Kolb's accuracy and completion percentage -

Kevin Kolb threw mostly short routes and he threw to guys that all ran sub 4.3 40s. They ran the run and gun/spread offense.

This guy may be something who knows...but so could Eric Weddle or the LB Harris or even a WR at that pick than guy we could have drafted with either pick in the 3rd round.

[Walklett]

What ever happened to that QB from Hawaii that set all sorts of NCAA records?

[Chamomiles Davis]

Something in my gut tells me either McNabb or Kolb get traded in the next two years.

(My gut's been wrong before, but as it gets larger I tend to place more value in its opinion.)

[the Krisheim]

neither donovan or kevin can help us stop the run, so as far as my concern (and i am only looking at 2007), who cares.

[Kulp]

The most common theme I've heard since Saturday is that the Eagles needed to add a guy who could make an immediate impact. Yet I look at the board at #26, and I ask those people: who would that have been? Once Meriweather was picked, there were no players remaining with first round talent that would have been an instant upgrade, and only Posluszny would have warranted that high selection.

I don't know anything about Kolb except what other people are telling me. And I don't care right now, because first McNabb is the starter. And he'll be the starter for at least the next two seasons. So fans are asking why the Eagles would draft a guy that might not see the field for five to seven years, and that's just stupid. Do we really believe McNabb won't get hurt once even in just the next three years? The way he moves around and fights off tacklers, he is always going to get banged up more than a Peyton Manning or Tom Brady, so I don't think it's very smart to suggest he won't miss a game in the next half decade.

So what's wrong with this pick? It's not what we wanted and it doesn't improve any major holes, but I don't see who at 26 or 36 was that guy. The offense is absolutely stacked, Spikes will hopefully hold us over at linebacker, and I expect Bunkley and Patterson to form a pretty good duo at the defensive tackle spot. They need to pick up another safety at some point, but teams have done worse than Sean Considine before.

This is a good team so let's sit back and give the season a chance to play out.

[Run Up The Score]

The Eagles don't really care about stopping the run unless it gets completely out of hand. They're more focused on preventing big plays and pressuring the quarterback. That's just the philosophy, like or not.

Justin -- Come on, nobody's running sub-4.3's anywhere outside of the USA track team. I didn't see a ton of Houston WR's flying off the draft board this weekend, and their top 3 receivers were seniors.

Once the Eagles couldn't get a safety, they fell into "best available" mode with an eye on some specific needs. Also, Jim Johnson is under the impression that Considine is going to be bigger and better this year. He'd better be.