IS TAKING DOC TO SEE THE DOC
Let he who has not missed any days at Lehigh as a rookie cast the first stone, Donovan McNabb said, or something along those lines.
The Eagles' quarterback addressed reporters Monday for the first time in the 2009 training camp, seeming thoughtful and relaxed, except for the swarm of gnats he kept swatting away from his face. Asked about missing rookie wideout Jeremy Maclin, who remains unsigned, McNabb said he figures the deal will get done sooner or later, and mentioned that he was able to work on timing with the first-rounder when his receivers made the annual pilgrimage to Arizona earlier this month.
"I wasn't here, my rookie year," said McNabb, who missed the first five days of camp in 1999, including two days of full-squad workouts, which don't start until Friday this year. "It's part of the business, it's something you go through. I'm just excited that we had an opportunity to work out in Arizona, so for the days that he (misses), I've had an opportunity to work with him, so when he comes in, we can just kind of feed from that."
Asked how long Maclin can miss before he starts imperiling his chance to contribute as a rookie, McNabb said: "There's ways about that. For him, these days would would just be days to get ahead, because we're going to go back over the same thing when the vets get here.. I'm sure he and his agent and Joe and Andy and those guys will sit down and resolve something and give him an opportunity to get here, so that he can kind of get his feet wet and be able to battle and compete with the rest of the guys."
McNabb, as usual, shied away from talk that the Eagles have their most talented offensive lineup of his tenure, or should be penciled in for the Super Bowl.
"It's premature to say that," he said. "Obviously, when guys come out of college, the great things they did in college, people think they can translate that to the NFL. That's hard to say ... You have to give guys an opportunity to develop into the offense or the schemes they've been drafted into. For Maclin, it's too much pressure to put on his shoulders to (expect him) to do what DeSean (Jackson) did his rookie year, what Reggie (Brown) did his rookie year."
McNabb said Brian Westbrook sounds positive about his rehab following an ankle cleanout last month. He noted the difference, not seeing familiar faces such as offensive tackles Jon Runyan and Tra Thomas, and free safety Brian Dawkins. But McNabb jokingly resisted inferences that this indicated he is getting old. In fact, when a questioner mentioned rookie running back LeSean McCoy's story about coming to Lehigh as a youngster and getting McNabb's autograph, McNabb said he hoped that was a story from just a few years back, because "I'm not that old. I'm not Brett."
McNabb also joked when asked about Terrell Owens' reality show. "I'll be making an appearance on the show," McNabb said, before making it clear that would not be happening. "First episode had some interesting people on there," he said. Asked how the creators could improve the show, McNabb said: "By not having it."
On a more serious level, McNabb said he thinks now that Michael Vick is out of prison, the former Falcons quarterback should be reinstated, without having to serve a suspension.
***
On the Maclin watch, agent Jim Steiner offered this assessment late Sunday night, via email: "(Eagles negotiator Andrew) Brandt is doing a good job with negotiations. Lines of communication are excellent, and we will continue discussions tonight and as long as it takes to get Jeremy in asap. Since there is only one player signed in that area of the (first) round (Cleveland's Alex Mack, taken 21st) it is a little more difficult. Andrew is a pro, and he is steadfast in getting it done!"
***
New defensive coordinator Sean McDermott also spoke to reporters Monday. McDermott was asked if he had been able to speak with Jim Johnson, since McDermott was introduced Saturday as Johnson's successor. McDermott's answer sounded ominous, in terms of Johnson's battle against metastasized melanoma.
McDermott said he had made contact with Johnson's family, and said he "looks forward to staying in touch as long as I can."
Les
Bowen has covered the Eagles for the Daily News
since 2002.
Before that, he spent nearly 13 years covering the Flyers. It took Les
only a few seasons after the switch to figure out that there was no
penalty box at the Linc, and that the time really wasn't his, despite
what Andy Reid kept saying. Les came to Philadelphia and the Daily News
from Charlotte in 1983. In the intervening years, he has pretty much
lost track of NASCAR, and his accent. He, his wife Barbara, and their
two sons live in Haddon Township, New Jersey.
E-mail Les at bowenl@phillynews.com
and follow
him on Twitter.
Paul
Domowitch has been with the Daily News since 1982.
He has spent most of his nearly 3 decades with the paper covering the
Eagles and pro football. For the last 10 years, he’s been a
selector for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. A native of Wilkes-Barre
and a graduate of Wilkes University, Domo started his career in Texas,
working first for the Midland Reporter-Telegram (1976-78), and then for
the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, where he covered some god-awful Texas
Ranger baseball teams. His first beat at the Daily News actually was
boxing, which he covered just long enough to lose 2 sports coats to
blood spatter before moving on to football. Domo and his wife Shelley,
a University of Oklahoma grad who still hasn’t gotten over
that Fiesta Bowl loss to Boise State 5 years ago, have 2 terrific
daughters -- Allison, 28, who is an attorney in South Jersey, and Amy,
25, who works in administration for a professional baseball team.
E-mail Domo at PDomo@aol.com and follow
him on Twitter.
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