Yes, it was the first application of coach Andy Reid's new 30-plus club, where veterans over 30 years old will get the morning practice off every third day of training camp, but McNabb was scheduled to be in the autograph tent with the other quarterbacks and tight ends.

So, as the younger Eagles were coming off the field after about 2 1/2 hours of intense practice, McNabb exited the locker room, got in a golf cart and was driven about 100 yards to the autograph area.

After the session was over, McNabb was given a ride in a golf cart back to the locker room. Quarterbacks Kevin Kolb, 23, and A.J. Feeley, who is 31 like McNabb but not the starter, walked to and from.

"I wish I was 30," said Eagles guard Max Jean-Gilles, 24, who is working with the first team in place of the AWOL Shawn Andrews. "You have to respect what [Reid] is doing. The veterans have earned that right.

"For us, it's all about opportunity. If coach gives the veterans some time off, young guys have a chance to step up."

It's not like some youngster is going to take the spot on the depth chart of McNabb or veterans like offensive tackles Jon Runyan and Tra Thomas, and safety Brian Dawkins, but as Jean-Gilles said, it provides an additional opportunity for some younger players to improve and impress because they will be getting repetitions they would not normally get.

"This was an opportunity for younger guys to improve ourselves," said offensive tackle

Winston Justice, who worked in Thomas' left-tackle spot during the morning session. "The over- 30 guys have already proven themselves. For us, this just provides one more chance for us to work to get to where they are at.

"I don't know for sure why

[Reid] did it, but I know that's how the young guys have to look at it."

It's probably hard to envision how one morning practice can make that much of a difference in the development of a young player.

But yesterday morning marked the most repetitions Kolb has taken during an Eagles practice.

Even though Kolb has moved up to No. 2 on the depth chart in his second season, he is going to fall way behind McNabb in the number of repetitions he gets with the first-team receivers and against the first-team defense.

There are going to be five or six more 30-plus practices before training camp breaks and that will give Kolb valuable opportunity to work with the top receivers - something that would not have happened in past camps.

"It gives me the opportunity to play with the guys I will hopefully be playing with one day," Kolb said. "It's a chance to get more reps and be the focal point. It's the small steps like that which lead you up to a game and prepares you better."

As the cliche goes, Kolb is

always just one snap away from becoming the Eagles' starting quarterback, and while everyone, including Kolb, is hoping McNabb makes it through the season healthy, having the backup quarterback getting more work can be beneficial if he needs to be called on.

"The thing about opportunity is that if you make a mistake, you get a chance to come back and make another play," Kolb said. "When you have limited work, you tend to dwell more on those mistakes.

"Everyone is going to make mistakes, but if you have limited reps [you] don't get a chance to make up for them. That's the good thing about being the starter and getting a lot of work."

There is also the fact that every quarterback has a different pace and throws with a different velocity.

In an offense like the Eagles', where timing and rhythm between quarterback and receivers are so crucial, these bonus practices when Kolb gets to work most of the reps could be a major advantage should he have to step in for McNabb.

"It's all about a comfort level," Kolb said. "[The receivers] feel comfortable with Donovan, and the more I get in there, the more comfortable they will feel with me and I'll feel with them.

"That way if something happens, there will not be a dropoff. I think that's what the coaches want and that's what we want. God forbid something happens, but if it did, hopefully, we'll keep rolling."

If they are still Eagles when they turn 30 and the 30-plus club is still in existence, a lot of the players who practiced yesterday morning will undoubtedly welcome that kind of break.

Until then, an old man's earned rest is a younger man's opportunity. *

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