Donovan McNabb was relieved.
Relieved he could finally play his former team, the Philadelphia Eagles, six months after being traded. Relieved the crowd of fans and critics welcomed him before the game with warm applause.
And, most of all, relieved the Redskins defeated the Eagles 17-12 on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field.
“I think the relief that I got was the fact that this was over,” McNabb said.
The Redskins are back in first place in the NFC East despite a modest 2-2 record. Two straight losses now have melted away behind a 2-0 start in the division. Football is a constantly shifting roller coaster, and Washington once more is cresting.
Not that McNabb is part of the “I-told-you-so” club. He consistently said Philadelphia was just another game even if no one believed him. OK, McNabb lied a little — but just a little. McNabb looked around his former home of 11 years — a place that always was an epitome of a love-hate relationship. He surely remembered that the fans booed his selection as the second overall pick in the 1999 draft. They wanted Ricky Williams. History says McNabb was the right choice.
McNabb led Philadelphia to five NFC championship games in 11 seasons. His only sins were winning just one of those games and failing to win a Super Bowl. It was the highest of standards, and even a borderline Hall of Fame career wasn’t enough for the City of Brotherly Love to embrace McNabb fully.
The Eagles decided to toss McNabb to Washington for a couple draft picks so they could start Kevin Kolb, who ironically lost his job in the opener but played most of the day Sunday when Michael Vick was injured. Kolb couldn’t find receivers because the Redskins jammed them inside, and McNabb’s successor managed only modest gains, throwing one touchdown and an interception (on the game’s final play).
Instead, McNabb received the game ball from teammates who knew how special this moment really was despite his denial. They showed it by playing their best game of the season. The Redskins punched their way past the Eagles with hits that surely will make the weekly replays. Even beleaguered defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth responded with a passionate effort.
McNabb came through with a sharp game far beyond the statistics — eight of 19 for 125 yards with one touchdown, one interception and a 60.2 rating. The Redskins scored on their first three possessions to keep the Eagles reeling the entire game.
McNabb silenced a stadium that once roared for him. By the waning moments, when the Eagles were a loose ball in the end zone away from winning, there were barely any Eagles fans left to urge them on.
Now McNabb can move on to Green Bay, Indianapolis and Chicago in coming weeks without worrying about his return to Philadelphia. McNabb went home — finding it distant and strange but still another happy memory.
Examiner columnist Rick Snider has ?covered local sports since 1978. Read more at TheRickSniderReport.com and at Twitter @Snide_Remarks or e-mail at [email protected].
