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Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Donovan in the Desert

    We still don't have a comprehensive list of the receivers in Arizona this week with Donovan McNabb, preparing for training camp, but DMac drops some names in his latest blog posting. We already knew Brian Dawkins was out there, which is nice from a leadership solidarity standpoint, but I don't expect Dawk to be catching a lot of balls from McNabb this year. (Maybe he wants to get his hands ready in case Brett Favre ends up playing somewhere, though.)

    The offensive players mentioned are LJ Smith, Jason Avant, Hank Baskett and Lorenzo Booker. I was hoping to see DeSean Jackson's name, given that the second-round rookie missed much of the full-squad minicamp time with a hamstring injury and can't have a lot of timing with McNabb yet. Jackson's presence also would be reassuring from the standpoint of signaling that he probably will be on hand when camp opens for rookies and select vets up at Lehigh on Monday. Jackson and the other second-rounder, defensive tackle Trevor Laws, are the only unsigned Eagles rookies. Their status could be complicated by an NFL-NFLPA dispute detailed in the posting below.

    Lorenzo Booker, obtained draft weekend from the DolphinsI'm not surprised to see Booker out in Arizona. He not only looked sharp on the field this spring, he seemed to quickly grasp the nuances of the media, the city and the locker room. Hard to say anything definitive until they at least practice with pads on, but I see him playing a solid supporting role this season, as a receiver out of the backfield, in motion, or flanked wide.

Posted by Les Bowen @ 12:10 PM  Permalink | 34 comments
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Comments
Posted by Jack B. 11:55 AM, 07/16/2008
It's good to hear that Booker was out there. The guy clearly knows what it takes to make it at this level. Not only that, but the guy is even a pretty good player. In 5 games last year the guy averaged 4.5 yards/carry and had 28 receptions. He's a nice complement to Westbrook, and even a nice insurance policy if 36 goes down for a game or two. http://santadeservedit.blogspot.com/
Posted by Gibba Mang 12:19 PM, 07/16/2008
Yeah, I'm more excited to see how Booker fits with the offense than Jackson who will probably be relegated to special teams.
Posted by JLB 12:42 PM, 07/16/2008
It would be even more encouraging to see Reggie Brown's name on the list of WR's working out with Donovan in Arizona - by my count, Reggie cost Donovan at least 3 picks and 2 more near-picks by not coming back to the ball on "dig" or "hook" routes last year - this is a basic fundamental of WR play, and it mystifies me that he still doesn't grasp the concept after 3 full seasons in the NFL.
Posted by ox 12:43 PM, 07/16/2008
he has been in arizona with receivers (some eagles, some opponets) for years.........maybe he ought to spend a little more time in reviewing films and learning to understand defensive schemes better, ie when to get rid of the ball and not force it
Posted by Bama 01:20 PM, 07/16/2008
I hope they are practicing catching the ball off their shoetops and while jumping three feet vertically - some things really useful with McNabb throwing.
Posted by montymiller 01:32 PM, 07/16/2008
LOL...Bama maybe we should bring back Bobby Hoying right? You are the reason this town is labeled they way it is.
Posted by wildebill 01:34 PM, 07/16/2008
I have heard Donovan has been watching the latest films on shoe fashion for the new year, this will assist with where he will continue to target his passes.
Posted by snook65 01:34 PM, 07/16/2008
Booker will prove to be a great signing. He was outstanding with the Noles. Can't wait to see him and Westbrook playing together along with a healthy LJ. All of the WR's should be out there, its not to smart to alienate the man that distributes the ball. Big Tub should be out there as well working on reducing that girth and stubborn fat around his head.
Posted by splat 01:36 PM, 07/16/2008
Booker was a steal! Can't wait to see the "Book and Brook" backfield. shame the receivers suck!
Posted by BTH 01:45 PM, 07/16/2008
Ox, Get off Donovan. There probably aren't a lot of qb's in the league that spend extra time away from minicamps, preseason, etc. that take time to get extra work in with their receivers. I'm sure he watches plenty of film when its more pertinent to do so. I wish Reggie Brown and Desean Jackson were out there too. Good point by JLB.
Posted by splat 01:57 PM, 07/16/2008
I didn't even curse when i said something about the receivers and my comment was removed. Who's screening this, Banner and Spadaro?
Comment removed.
Posted by jaydes 02:21 PM, 07/16/2008
I am starting to have small issue with D-Jack. First off have you seen any pictures this guy took at the rookie introductions the NFL puts on??? He stands their looking like a thug. I know the whole hard-nosed football attitude is important but not when you are being introduced as an Eagle. So now he is not in Arizona with McNabb. He should of been the FIRST GUY out there. Also ... JLB ... Reggie Brown should be out there as well. Jackson better not turn out bad...he is way to fast not to be productive. Hopefully he goes to the west side to work with McNabb soon!
Comment removed.
Posted by Jack B. 02:29 PM, 07/16/2008
everybody needs to relax about "d-jack." we don't even know for a fact whether he's there or not (though if he was, McNabb probably would have written about it). Either way, i'm sick of reading comments about mcnabb throwing at people's feet. would you rather have him throw it in the hands of the other team? That's the alternative. The guy had a 61.5% completion percentage last year, which is very good, and he has the third-best TD/INT ratio of all time. Of course he's going to throw some incommpletions; every QB does. GET OVER IT. santadeservedit.blogspot.com
About The Daily News' Eagles Blog
Les BowenLes 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 DomowitchPaul 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.

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