IS GLAD SPRING TRAINING IS FINALLY HERE
It looks like I picked the wrong day to drive to and from Penn State to speak to my old sportswriting class.
Lots of rumors floating around, and I think we have at least a little bit of new information.
Let's start with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch column by Bryan Burwell. The line that got everyone buzzing was this one:
According to more than one well-informed source, the Rams have had intense internal conversations with the Philadelphia Eagles about a trade for Pro Bowler Donovan McNabb.
As the fine folks over at Eagletarian pointed out earlier, that statement doesn't make sense. Were they internal conversations? Or were they conversations with the Eagles?
Turns out they were the former.
Burwell joined Mike Gill of The Sports Bash on 97.3 ESPN Radio in South Jersey and said those were not his words. His copy editor screwed up.
"I hate to do this, but my copy desk screwed up my copy," Burwell said. "I did not say that the Philadelphia Eagles and the Rams were having intense conversations. What I wrote... and I just noticed it while I'm reading my column now and I went 'Holy crap. I didn't say that.' What I initially wrote was that the Rams were having intense internal conversations about acquiring Philadelphia Eagle Donoavn McNabb. There's a difference between having intense internal conversations with the Eagles and having internal intense conversation."
So whether you put stock in the report or not, Burwell is saying the Rams have had internal discussions about McNabb, not discussions with the Eagles.
Quick comment on this. I've heard many suggest McNabb would never agree to an extension with a losing team like the Rams. And no team is going to give up valuable draft picks to rent McNabb for a year.
But I disagree on the first point. Do you really think McNabb would rather come back to a team that doesn't want him than go somewhere and get a fresh start? If the price and contract terms are right, he would agree to an extension with just about any team in the league if the Eagles went to him and said they were interested in dealing him. Just my opinion there.
The other item floating around is Michael Vick saying he wants to play for the Panthers. I actually listened to the interview yesterday and thought about writing about it, but held back. It seemed to be such a non-chalant answer. He likes the uniforms? C'mon. Let's not put too much stock into that one.
Adam Schefter, however, seems convinced that the Eagles are giving serious consideration to holding on to Vick.
"They're planning to bring back Michael Vick for another season in Philadelphia despite the fact that many thought the Eagles would trade him this offseason," Schefter said on SportsCenter. "The indications right now are that they plan to keep him and that Michael Vick will not be going anywhere. They have a lofty sense of his value. They think he's worth a lot. They think he's worth more than other teams think he's worth. So right now, with no trade in sight, it looks like the Eagles will pick up the option. They will bring back Michael Vick."
The Eagles have long been rumored to overvalue their assets in trade discussions, but I'd still be surprised if he came back next season as the third quarterback. Then again, I was pretty surprised when they signed him in the first place.
Ok, that's all for now. Hope to get something else up a little later though so check back.
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