NFC East: Recovering McNabb enjoying life without Owens
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Donovan McNabb believes only his sports hernia needed fixing. His relationship with his Philadelphia Eagles teammates was never as frayed as it seemed.
And now that the T.O. Show has moved on to Dallas, McNabb is more than ready to move on without him.
"I don't plan on doing anything different than what I've been doing," McNabb said Saturday after the Eagles opened minicamp. "I'm not here to make friends, I'm here to win ballgames."
McNabb had a new look to go with his hardened attitude. He dropped a few pounds, shaved the cornrows and wore a T-shirt that echoed a comment he made a few times when pressed about his place in the locker room: "If you can't trust family, who can you trust?"
McNabb had to wonder last season whom he could trust after the relationship between Terrell Owens and the Eagles disintegrated to a point where the locker room became divided. The daily drama -- and part-time amusement -- that Owens caused was a reason why the Eagles went from the Super Bowl to 6-10 and last place in the NFC East.
"For a lot of us, it was a re-evaluation period," McNabb said.
McNabb's season was cut short by a sports hernia and he entered the Eagles minicamp with plenty of questions about his health, his leadership and his ability to take the team back to the top of the NFC.
McNabb showed he was recovering fine from the hernia, rolling to his left and throwing across his body without any pain during Saturday's practice. McNabb said he expected to feel some soreness and tightness, and insisted he would be ready to play in the preseason.
"It feels great right now," he said.
So does his relationship with his teammates. While some Eagles lobbied for Owens to return to the team at the end of last season after he was suspended, McNabb said any perceived problems were overblown.
"There was never a point where I felt I was losing my teammates," he said.
Coach Andy Reid said he never worried about McNabb's stature in the locker room.
"He's a resilient guy, he's tough minded," he said. "Talk to the guys and they realize he leads this football team."
Offensive tackle Jon Runyan said McNabb was the leader on the team.
"I'm not worried about it. That was last year, this is this year," Runyan said.
A five-time Pro Bowl selection, McNabb and Owens clearly couldn't coexist after the wide receiver's repeated verbal jabs at the quarterback he once claimed he so desperately wanted to play with. McNabb injected a race element into his rift with Owens earlier this year, saying the receiver's criticism amounted to "black-on-black crime."
McNabb refused to back down or apologize for the analogy.
"What I said is what I said. It's over now," McNabb said. "If they don't understand what I said, then that's tough. Move on."
McNabb, who passed for 2,507 yards and 16 TDs last season, stayed in Philadelphia longer than usual in the offseason, mostly for rehab, but also to send a message to his teammates that leading the Eagles back among the elite is "serious business."
"With everything that happened, I'm still focused, I'm still looking forward to getting back out on the field and I wanted them to have that same attitude as well," he said.
After five straight trips to the playoffs and four consecutive appearances in the conference championship game, the Eagles hit rock bottom. The Owens fiasco, injuries to key starters and a defense more flimsy than feared all played a role in the team's sudden decline.
"There are no hangovers from last year," Reid said. "It's a fresh start."
McNabb has been waiting for one since he underwent surgery. While his answers were more serious in tone, the franchise quarterback said he'll never change his personality, smiling, laughing, cracking jokes and staying a "nice guy."
How nice? McNabb joked he may even buy Owens' book, scheduled to be released during training camp and sure to include all sorts of inflammatory and juicy tidbits about his stint in Philly.
"I'll buy the book," McNabb said, smiling. "Try to get it signed maybe. An autographed book. That would be awesome."
And now that the T.O. Show has moved on to Dallas, McNabb is more than ready to move on without him.
"I don't plan on doing anything different than what I've been doing," McNabb said Saturday after the Eagles opened minicamp. "I'm not here to make friends, I'm here to win ballgames."
McNabb had a new look to go with his hardened attitude. He dropped a few pounds, shaved the cornrows and wore a T-shirt that echoed a comment he made a few times when pressed about his place in the locker room: "If you can't trust family, who can you trust?"
McNabb had to wonder last season whom he could trust after the relationship between Terrell Owens and the Eagles disintegrated to a point where the locker room became divided. The daily drama -- and part-time amusement -- that Owens caused was a reason why the Eagles went from the Super Bowl to 6-10 and last place in the NFC East.
"For a lot of us, it was a re-evaluation period," McNabb said.
McNabb's season was cut short by a sports hernia and he entered the Eagles minicamp with plenty of questions about his health, his leadership and his ability to take the team back to the top of the NFC.
McNabb showed he was recovering fine from the hernia, rolling to his left and throwing across his body without any pain during Saturday's practice. McNabb said he expected to feel some soreness and tightness, and insisted he would be ready to play in the preseason.
"It feels great right now," he said.
So does his relationship with his teammates. While some Eagles lobbied for Owens to return to the team at the end of last season after he was suspended, McNabb said any perceived problems were overblown.
"There was never a point where I felt I was losing my teammates," he said.
Coach Andy Reid said he never worried about McNabb's stature in the locker room.
"He's a resilient guy, he's tough minded," he said. "Talk to the guys and they realize he leads this football team."
Offensive tackle Jon Runyan said McNabb was the leader on the team.
"I'm not worried about it. That was last year, this is this year," Runyan said.
A five-time Pro Bowl selection, McNabb and Owens clearly couldn't coexist after the wide receiver's repeated verbal jabs at the quarterback he once claimed he so desperately wanted to play with. McNabb injected a race element into his rift with Owens earlier this year, saying the receiver's criticism amounted to "black-on-black crime."
McNabb refused to back down or apologize for the analogy.
"What I said is what I said. It's over now," McNabb said. "If they don't understand what I said, then that's tough. Move on."
McNabb, who passed for 2,507 yards and 16 TDs last season, stayed in Philadelphia longer than usual in the offseason, mostly for rehab, but also to send a message to his teammates that leading the Eagles back among the elite is "serious business."
"With everything that happened, I'm still focused, I'm still looking forward to getting back out on the field and I wanted them to have that same attitude as well," he said.
After five straight trips to the playoffs and four consecutive appearances in the conference championship game, the Eagles hit rock bottom. The Owens fiasco, injuries to key starters and a defense more flimsy than feared all played a role in the team's sudden decline.
"There are no hangovers from last year," Reid said. "It's a fresh start."
McNabb has been waiting for one since he underwent surgery. While his answers were more serious in tone, the franchise quarterback said he'll never change his personality, smiling, laughing, cracking jokes and staying a "nice guy."
How nice? McNabb joked he may even buy Owens' book, scheduled to be released during training camp and sure to include all sorts of inflammatory and juicy tidbits about his stint in Philly.
"I'll buy the book," McNabb said, smiling. "Try to get it signed maybe. An autographed book. That would be awesome."
posted by The Gryphon at 8:30 PM
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