Recently Donovan McNabb has been having issues with head coach Mike Shanahan over him being pulled in the last 2 minutes of the game versus the Detroit Lions, in which McNabb was replaced by 8th year QB Rex Grossman.
Grossman has been anything but good in the NFL, playing 6 seasons in Chicago, where he was loved up on by head coach, Lovie Smith, even though only having a 70.2 QB rating in his tenure there, he did help get the Chicago Bears to the Super Bowl in 2006. In which they lost to the Colts 29-17, where Rex threw for 165 yards and 2 picks.
This brings a few interesting thoughts about this pulling of your starting QB to me. First and foremost, it endangers trust in your starting QB. The Skins brought in McNabb to be the man to lead this team, after their terrible 4-12 season last year. So, in doing so, you are saying this is the beginning of a new era for your team.
McNabb has been disappointing on the season so far, with limited weapons on offense, throwing for 1971 yards, 7 TDs and 8 picks. And the Skins are still in the division race at 4-4, with big wins over Green Bay and at Philly.
The offense has been somewhat better from last year, in 2009; the Redskins scored 16.6 a game, opposed to this year’s 19.4 they are putting up on Sundays.
So by pulling McNabb, what is it really saying to your team? That you think Rex Grossman is the QB to lead your team to a win if it’s a close game? You are essentially stating, McNabb is not better than Rex in the important final 2 minutes. When obviously McNabb has the experience and control over Grossman. Shanahan later stating about McNabb’s conditioning as another possible out on why McNabb was pulled late, Mike Shanahan even stating recently that he is not happy with McNabb's practice habits.
Didn’t we hear something similar in 2004 by notorious “QB hater” Terrell Owens, during the Super Bowl in Super Bowl XXXIX. About McNabb throwing up, and being out of shape then? Is this who McNabb is? Is he an out of shape guy, who is winded and exhausted after 3 quarters of play? Maybe he is. But, personally, I would still take an out of shape McNabb over a terrible career 54% pass completing Grossman any day of the week.
Now, coming off the bye week, after losing to the Lions, the Skins play Philadelphia on Monday Night football. For reasons, that need not be explained, this game is enormous for both teams. The Eagles to show they made the respectable decision, and the Skins to show they did as well, dumping off disliked Jason Campbell to the lowly Oakland Raiders (who by the way are 5-4, in 2nd place in the AFC West, and Campbell is having a decent season).
Would Shanahan do it again? If McNabb is playing poorly and the team is suffering, by all means, I have no qualms with a starter getting pulled, even though it may be humiliating and egos can be damaged. But if in a close game, needing a drive against a division rival, would he pull McNabb and likely obliterate any future trust between them both for the rest of the season?
A lot of questions arise from this catastrophe in Washington, but one answer I am pretty sure about, come 2011, the Skins will not have McNabb at QB.
Written by Tony Karpinski.
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