LeBron, McNabb and a shot at Eagles fans
Why in the world would an ESPN video about LeBron James and Cleveland include a photo of Donovan McNabb? The answer might surprise you. Well, actually, it probably won't.
LeBron, McNabb and a shot at Eagles fans
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
I was about to call it a night when this link caught my eye on Twitter, courtesy of The 700 Level.
It's a video on ESPN.com by Rachel Nichols titled LeBron Breaks Hearts in Cleveland.
So why in the world am I writing about this on an NFL/Eagles blog? Especially when I know how sick most of you are by the LeBron coverage?
That's a good question. Go ahead and watch, or just fast forward to the 46-second mark. You'll see a familiar face: Donovan McNabb. Here is part of the monologue from Nichols:
James was one of them. And if James was the greatest basketball player on earth, then fans whose only reflection had been failure could finally too claim some greatness. It's the reason people here never turned on him the way other cities have turned on their sports stars, even when James didn't deliver a title over seven years.
That part about people in other cities turning on their sports stars? Yeah, that's when they throw in a still frame of McNabb.
All I could do was crack up when I watched it. The video is only 1 minute, 33 seconds long. There is only ONE non-Cleveland-related image, and it is of McNabb in an Eagles uniform.
My only conclusion is that whoever edited the piece lost some kind of wager where he/she was forced to somehow take a jab at Eagles fans, despite producing a video that is so unrelated it's comical. It's the only thing that makes sense.
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Comments (37)
Why did you crack up, then? I'm one of the few who held out in favor of McNabb until the end, but you have to admit, those who did not might have been a numerical minority, but they were an audible majority, and that's all ESPN needs to cook up a story.— IgglesFan79- Sheil, "it's the only thing that makes sense" is thinking about it all wrong. When, and this is open to anybody, when does B.S. in this world EVER MAKE SENSE? Credit card companies made Billions of dollars in 2008, and because of a financial crisis they invented, abused, and failed to correct, recieved 750 Billion in tax dollars in 2009. BP blew up an oil rig as a result of cost-cutting manuevers they had been practicing for years and have polluted the Earth's global water system, probably for forever, all because they refused to just blow up the pipe and permanently close the oil leak. All so that they can eventually retap the deposit and go back to making billions every year. And of course, there's Lebrongate, which has literally hijacked the sports world for months and months in a row. And just because he stands 6'9", 265 lbs, jumps 12 feet in the air, runs down and blocks shots from behind, but still can't seem to manage to win the big one. Making sense of this world, even something as stupid as DMac being included in a stupid video, is a waste of time, intelligence, and effort.— Bleue
- thats unbelievable... and just shows how the national media takes every chance they can to take a shot at philly fans... they can all rot in hell I love philly— GillyKingofPhilly17
- SOME fans turned on Mcnabb. A thousand score didn't, but who did the media cover to make a story? And good for Lebron. I feel sorry for Cleveland, but owners' break hearts everyday for their OWN purposes. So Mr Cav's owner can stop his whining.— SemperAugust
- Why are people so upset about this? Truth hurts I guess...Anyway, that Cleveland owner is scumbag crybaby...the PR person fro the Cavs should be fired immediately for letting him post that message on their website. What player would want to play for a guy like that? Congrats LeBron, you deserve better than that worthless organization and owner.— EaglesBleedMoney
- Like a lot of people, I didn't like McNabb from Day Number One, therefore who really turned on him? My only conclusion is that Rachel Nichols was turned down by a drunk Eagles fan.— Voytas
- Why didn't you like him from day 1 Voytas?— EaglesBleedMoney
- In my experience, it became quite fashionable to bash McNabb around here -- on any and every ground imaginable. I never bought into that, and I remain a huge McNabb fan,even if that was/is unpopular --even when he played here, and performed at a HOF level. Although I'm a Philly guy (all sports), I just don't subscribe to the curious psyche of so many of our fans. As easy as it is (seemingly) for the national media to dump on Philly fans, it's even easier for members of the Philly media to feed into the tired backlash against these horrible indignities visited upon us. In many respects, (many) Philly fans have a curious double standard. We reserve the right to kill/rip apart our superstars (or would-be superstars), but God forbid people from outside of here notice. Then we bellyache, "They said what about us/how dare they/what do they know?" Again, I don't respect lazy journalism from the national media or from the local media and fans. I'd much rather stake out intelligent (and passionate) positions that I would represent, not only on a semi-anonymous site but also in-person, or with a byline.— MG44
- Another example of media explotation. The vast majority of Eagle fans are McNabb fans and appreciated what he did for the team and don't blame him for not winning a SB. The media focus is on the loud and obnoxious, WIP knuckelheads, that the media "thinks" will drive ratings. The only question left is if this is just complete explotation or laziness in reporting by the media?— craig123
- LBJ is a young guy. In 5 yrs he could return to the Cavs after a couple of rings. Then help his hometown win one. Well I guess now the owner has destroyed that. Like the owner didn't enjoy all that money LBJ made him.
- Who exactly would want to play in Cleveland now? That owner made Cleveland the least desireable team, as if it already wasn't.— EaglesBleedMoney
Well, LeBron has weapons now. Let's see if he can succeed with weapons. 5 couldn't.— Richard Saunders- nobody of any importance "turned their back" on donny. He became way too big and goofy for his britches. He did not really do it at the end there making it hard for the team to diagnose and correct the problem. So the team decided to try another route to the championship. Its on them now— scranton
- When kolb turns into a big bust, who will the McNabb haters have to scapegoat for the team's failure?— josh moneyman
Richard Saunders wrote; Well, LeBron has weapons now. Let's see if he can succeed with weapons. 5 couldn't.___________Rich, what 'weapons' did McNabb have? Yeah, there were a couple of decent receivers, and T.O. for 1 1/2 seasons, but no rushing game plan thanks to Coach Reid. The defensive coordinators for opposing teams had easy prep work in the days leading up to a game against the Eagles - just focus on passing defensive schemes. Until the Eagles adopt a BALANCED OFFENSIVE GAME PLAN, Kolb, Vick(?),... are doomed to the same fate.— snad264- Philly fans, despite what many say, aren't that bright. The buffoonery that is thrown out from WIP onto the DelVal airwaves, is largely to blame. Too many clowns listen to what those idiots say and deem it to be Gospel. Count me in the small # of fans that WAS and WILL ALWAYS be a #5 fan. The mindless drivel that MOST on these boards throw out there is embarassing. The DOPES don't realize that he himself created the ruler by which to measure him. He brought a winning culture here for a long time. Unfortunately he didn't get it done. What's more unfortunate is that in Arizona they were right there. Too bad a long in the tooth safety and a rookie safety were beaten senseless by Fitz. McNabb goes 2-0 vs our Birds this year--Book It!— somertonspartan
- snad - Owens, Jackson, Celek, Avant, Maclin, McCoy, Weaver and Westbrook (who carried 5 for several years) etc. A QB who doesn't hold onto the ball for 15 seconds (and a healthy RB) might help balance the offense. If you're listening to Keith Brooking then you're crazy - though he did predict Kolb will win Philly a couple rings.— Richard Saunders
- Richard Saunders - don't mean to burst your bubble but provide me with some of Westbrook's playoff stats please. When exactly did he carry the team to a Super Bowl or anything?— EaglesBleedMoney
- McNabb never fit into the Eagles west-coast scheme. The marriage of the two was doomed to fail from the start, and after a decade of "same old, same old," somebody finally realized it. It's a shame, because I think McNabb is a great player, and he was successful (at least statistically) even though the offense the Eagles were running didn't make sense. To this day is still probably doesn't. I can't conceive how you can survive without a running game unless your QB is Peyton Manning, which he and Donovan are completely different builds and mindsets. I would have rather seen Reid go first, but coaches with winning records are hard to come by.— jwilphl
- I remain a true McNabb fan no matter what! I love my EAGLES, but I can't wait to see what my man does in DC.. All I can say is he'll give us a run for our money!— Bridgette
- Richard S...check-out jwilphl's comment (posted @ 3:26p), he pretty much nails the real problem with the Eagles during McNabb's years at QB.*****BTW, the receivers you mentioned (@1:42p) were average NFL receivers, which goes back to my original question, "what 'weapons'..?"— snad264
- EaglesBleedMoney - huh? Are you serious? http://bleacherreport.com/articles/351142-brian-westbrook-8-seasons-2-pro-bowls-and-a-million-memories— Richard Saunders
- snad264, I agree with jwilphl.— Richard Saunders
- Do you realize how stupid Eagles fans have looked over the years digging on McNabb? He was the best quarterback this franchise had....EVER! That isn't my opinion, it's a fact. Why the people in this town were so quick to complain about this guy boggles the mind.... And don't give me that whole "He never won the big game BS," neither did any other quarterback that played for the Eagles, nor have such beloved greats as Reggie White (as an Eagle), Randall Cunningham, Buddy Ryan or Brian Dawkins.— atlasmc
- @josh, I like big busts..and Go Eagles.— bigphillydad
lol, that was pretty funny. McNabb is somehow synonymous with angry fans now apparently
Comment removed.- As a fan if you don't demand winners why go and watch. Sure Philly can be a bit fanatical at times but the media has this wrong. You cant have all the money and media attention as an athlete, coach or owner and then not be held accountable. It is not as if they are playing in there backyard for fun with a couple of friends. As far as Lebron going to Miami - people would complain if he didnt win in Cleveland, if he took the biggest check, or if he tried to go create a super team as he did. Not a lot of friends in the spotlight.— JL68
Phila fans are deserving of the national scorn they recieve and the reason why is because they don't understand that sports are supposed to be like a garnish on the dish of life and not the main course. Their over devotion to their teams is not laudible, it is laughable, and it is exploited time and time again by people that use this misguided set of priorities to make money.- jwilphl: Good NFL coaches do not force a system on their players that they are not able to function well on. If McNabb never fit Reid's offensive scheme, then maybe Reid should have tailored a scheme that fit into McNabbs strengths. Reid drafted him, so blame for his poor fit must ultimatelt fall on Reid. If Phila had an owner really set on winning championships, this fact would have been addressed and corrected at some point.
- laFraud will never win a title there will always be an excuse,he should have done it in cleveland if he was good enough,great players don't switch teams to win a title in there prime..that is what laFraud and mcNoheart have in common....wolf.— wolf 4
- espn is a very interesting company. they definitely have certain platforms on players that want to continue to perpetuate to create disney-like storylines. they will work in the spurned mcnabb angle to death in hopes the story follows the classic plot of the player against all odds winning it all. good luck with that one. it's the same as the sterotypes that have perpetuated with TO (all negative/diva type breaking news). you need to look no further the ben rapelsberger and how that network has covered his transgressions. they are not a news organization. they are in the entertainment business. don't confuse the two.— djack10
- It will all be clear when Kolb steps on the field, God help the kid if he has a rough start...he'll be the next new Redskin......— merlinknghts
- Richard Saunders, actually Mcnabb did not not succeed because he did not have any weapons unless you consider Torrance Small a hall of famer. Moron
- Yea Snad no weapons for Mcnabb but jackson, TO and Westbrook were with him. But I bet those dont count. Also a fantastic Oline for years with 2 high quality Tackles. No talent for Mcmope.
- Comment removed.
- The difference was that Cleveland had a great player playing on a bad team, that he made good. We had an above average player playing on a good team. I supported Don when he was here, but other than the Arizona Cardinals game, he continually proved he couldn't get the job done. McNabb had weapons to relieve him from pressure, LeBron did not. He voluntarily left, we forced McNabb out. Time will only tell.— Knock0ut12
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About this blog
Sheil Kapadia is in his fifth season writing about the Eagles and the NFL for philly.com. His earliest
memories as a sports fan include several trips to Veterans Stadium with
his Dad. He's not a beat writer or an Insider, but is here to
discuss the NFL 365 days a year. E-mail him at skapadia@philly.com or
by clicking here
Sheil Kapadia
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