IS BUYING CROSS-COUNTRY SKIS
Donovan McNabb was back at practice today and available to talk about his counseling of Bengals receiver Chad Johnson/Ocho Cinco, who was extremely unhappy with his surroundings last offseason. Johnson/Cinco told reporters on a conference call Wednesday that McNabb had lent a sympathetic ear, and that he had "blown up" McNabb's phone all summer.
"Mr. Ocho Cinco, he's a great guy," McNabb said, perhaps wistfully. Johnson/Cinco was unsuccessful in his attempts to force a trade from Cincinnati, which hosts the Eagles this Sunday. "He brings a lot of attention to himself at times, but he's an entertainer. One thing about the guy, obviously, when he had his quarterback in there (now-injured Carson Palmer) he put up big numbers, so it's not like he's not able and capable of making big plays for them. Carson's a little banged up; they're going through some things on offense. Chad's a guy I've communicated with numerous amount of times. He's obviously changed from where he was in the offseason of how he felt, and where he's at now, and with whatever situation he ends up in. He just wants to win. That's all that you ask."
It was an interesting testimonial, given the bitter breakup three years ago of McNabb's relationship with another entertaining wideout, who knew how to make waves. The guess here is, if McNabb was ever in a place where he would rather work with less stellar talent in exchange for fewer headaches, he has left that place now.
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.
Paul Domowitch has been with the Daily News since 1982. He has spent most of his 27 years at 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 came to the Daily News from the Fort Worth (Tx.) Star-Telegram, where he covered some god-awful Texas Ranger baseball teams. His first beat at the Daily News actually wa s boxing, which he covered just long enough to lose two sports coats to blood spatter before moving on to football. Domo and his wife Shelley, a University of Oklahoma grad and very dangerous to be around following a Sooner loss, have been married 29 years and have raised 2 terrific daughters – Allison, 26, a lawyer and graduate of Boston University School of Law; and Amy, 23, who graduated from Clemson and works in marketing and sales for a professional baseball team.
