McNabb, Kolb trades shape 'D'
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McNabb, Kolb trades shape 'D'
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
The Eagles' last playoff win came on January 11, 2009 against the New York Giants.
Donovan McNabb was the starting quarterback for 16 regular-season and three playoff games that season as the Birds snuck into the playoffs with a 9-6-1 record, advanced to the NFC championship game and eventually fell to the Arizona Cardinals.
McNabb's backup was Kevin Kolb, a second-year player who had attempted 34 passes and had to wait until the following season to make his first NFL start.
Now, a little more than three years later, McNabb is reportedly working with Warren Moon to make himself attractive to NFL teams. But retirement may be near for the 35 year old.
Kolb started only nine games in his first season with the Cardinals last year and is looking to prove that Arizona made a wise move in trading for him.
The Eagles, meanwhile, are counting on a number of players from the McNabb and Kolb trades to make an impact on this year's defense.
Let's start with the McNabb swap. The Eagles sent him to the Redskins on Easter Sunday in 2010 for a second-round pick in that year's draft, along with a conditional third- or fourth-rounder in 2011. With the second-round pick (37th overall), the Eagles selected safety Nate Allen. Allen's first two years have been marred by injuries and inconsistent play with flashes of production. He's slated to be a starter in 2012, but the Birds need him to put everything together in his third season.
The other pick ended up being a fourth-rounder (No. 104 overall) in 2011. But the Eagles traded that selection to the Bucs (who took Tennessee tight end Luke Stocker). In exchange, the Birds moved down 12 spots and selected linebacker Casey Matthews. They also received a fourth-round draft choice in 2012 from Tampa.
However, the Eagles didn't make the 2012 pick they got from the Bucs. Instead, they used it as the primary compensation to acquire middle linebacker DeMeco Ryans from the Texans earlier this offseason. The two teams swapped third-round picks as well (Nos. 76 andd 88 overall).
So overall, for McNabb, the Eagles got Allen, Matthews and to a degree, Ryans. I mentioned expectations for Allen above. Matthews will get a chance to compete at WILL and nickel linebacker, while the Eagles are counting on Ryans to solidify the middle, which has been a constant problem.
As for Kolb, the Birds dealt him to the Cardinals in July of last year for cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and a second-round pick. Rodgers-Cromartie struggled in the slot last year and will move back outside in 2012, which is the final year of his contract.
The second-round pick was No. 51 overall, but the Eagles traded back eight spots to No. 59 and took defensive end Vinny Curry. They also got a fourth-rounder from the Packers in the deal (No. 123 overall) and picked Georgia cornerback Brandon Boykin. Boykin will get a chance right away to replace Joselio Hanson as the nickelback and be the team's kickoff returner. Curry will likely be a rotational pass rusher, who will have a chance to start in the future if he produces.
So overall, for Kolb, the Eagles got Rodgers-Cromartie, Curry and Boykin.
And for both quarterbacks, here's the total: Allen, Rodgers-Cromartie, Matthews, Curry, Boykin and to some degree, Ryans.
There have been other moves on defense along the way. Most notably, the signings of Nnamdi Asomugha, Cullen Jenkins and Jason Babin, along with several draft picks. But in many ways, the players the Eagles received for Kolb and McNabb project to have a significant impact on the success of this defense in 2012.
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Lurie spent a lot of money on Kolb for nothing.— CaptainCrunch
Tpizza, you are so right. We jacked Arizona, and were lucky to do so.- I kinda like what Lonewolf said at the beginning of these post, regarding the Kolb acquistion, instead of Sheils point of trying his best to put a positive light on the trades. Looks good on paper, but has the acquired players really done anything yet to merit something to go crazy about. Of course this years draft picks haven't had a chance yet, but we have to wait and see. I mean DRC wasn't so great last year, and with Asante gone, he could wind up being a disaster as a replacement.— watsonmr
- WMR, I remember Mark Schlereth, having a cow over the Kolb pick for the exact reasons L11 aptly and accurately stated. I can't recall who the Eagles left on the board to take KK but perhaps the Dallas pick [Spencer?] would have looked a lot better in green than Kolb? Not that we ever needed a LB...— tpizza
- LONEWOLF 11, YOUR AN IDIOT,DO ALL OF US REAL EAGLES FANS A FAVOR AND PICK ANOTHER TEAM TO FOLLOW...BECAUSE YOU CAN'T REALLY BE A TRUE EAGLES FAN...YOUR WAY TO NEGATIVE ALL THE TIME.....NAME ME SOMETHING POSITIVE AND YOU ARE PROUD TO SAY ABOUT YOUR TEAM ,THE EAGLES...YOU CAN'T CAN YOU.— bigpaulie
- Stik, oddly the Brees though has come to my mind too. Always thought the future QB would be a FA...REid running out of time and all...no time for a rookie to develop.
Nailed to the Ground? :) Good description.— tpizza - Tony Romo is better than Vick...Romo's career QB rating is MUCH HIGHER than Vicks, plus Romo has a better pass completion percentage than Vick, Romo has more TOUCHDOWN passes than Vick, plus Romo has more passing yards per game , plus Romo has more passing yards than per attempt than Vick in their entire careers....and even last season Romo was much more successful than Vick...Romo had a QB rating of 102 which was the FOURTH best in the entire NFL...Vick had a QB rating of only 84 which was the FOURTEEN in the NFL....Romo is obviously better than Vick, and you Vick lovers should stop with the silly hype for the lousy Vick.— phil500
- Romo's a choker with slippery fingers and bad taste in women to date (as opposed to sleep with. Seriously, with all the tape on Jessica, why would you possibly date her.) I'll take next year with Vick over Romo any day.
- phil Mcnuggett: Now that I have clearly shown you Tony Romo is better than the lousy Vick....that means that Vick is now the worst QB in the NFC East...Eli Manning, who has won TWO Super Bowls is obviously much better than Vick, and Romo is clearly better than Vick, and now RG3 is better than Vick also, RG3 is 10 years younger than Vick, RG3 is faster than Vick and RG3 is a more accurate passer than Vick...congratulations, Vick is now the worst QB in the NFC East...LOL.— phil500
- Kevin Kolb looks depressed in every last photo i've ever seen him in.— Zeru
- Tony Romo is better than Micheal Vick? When did Tony Romo carry a team to the NFC championship? Tony Romo isnt even a qb. He's one of those underwear models for NFL merchandise. He's only in it to date girls wear the star and enjoy his 15 minutes of fame while it last. I"m really surprised the cowboys still have him at qb. But i'm definately not complaining. Keep him there.— Zeru
- Yes, Tony Romo is better than Vick...read the comparisons in the post below that prove Romo is better than Vick....you Vick lovers are in denial, Vick is the worst QB in the NFC...even the young kids like Cam Newton and RG3 are better than Vick...LOL.— phil500
- Hey hindsight, is your point that you want the Eagles to pass MORE? Love it when you contradict yourself. Congrats...wiff. Now you're learning something!
Quote the exact stats including games played AND rushing TDs and get back to me.— tpizza - lol.. rushing TD's by QB's do not win superbowls...they mean virtually nothing. look it up for confirmation.
- We will never win a superbowl without Donovan McNabb! Vick can't even win a playoff game! I love Vick but numbers show that Donovan gave us the best chance to win the Big game.— southweezy
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