With Father Time looming, McNabb calls for urgency

Published: September 19th, 2011 | Tags: Donovan McNabb, Leslie Frazier, Mike Shanahan, Minnesota Vikings, Washington Redskins

It has been a steep fall for Vikings fans since the team’s heartbreaking loss to the Saints in the NFC Championship Game two seasons ago.

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After an ugly 0-2 start — which included losing a 17-0 lead to the Buccaneers on Sunday — coach Leslie Frazier, in comments to The Associated Press, urged Minnesota’s faithful to stick around: “My only words to our fans are be patient. We’re going to get there. I have great belief that we will.”

Grade-A coachspeak, perhaps enough to quell newbies, but not Donovan McNabb. While the QB’s play has contributed to the team’s rocky start, he’s preaching a message of urgency.

“Do I have time to sit back and let it grow?” McNabb told The AP after the team’s opening loss to the Chargers. “No. I want it to happen now, and that’s the way that I prepare. We prepare to win now.”

McNabb has been hotly criticized for just about everything during his career. Booed by Eagles fans when he was drafted in 1999, it never seemed to let up — especially in his ugly episode with the Redskins last season. After Mike Shanahan threw McNabb under the bus, he took a pay cut to join a team he believed could win now.

Barring a sharp reversal of fortune, it could be a long season for a man who largely has remained a class act through thick and thin.

– Marc Sessler

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Newton more McNabb, less Russell says NFL exec

Published: January 17th, 2011 | Tags: Cam Newton, 2011 NFL Draft, Donovan McNabb, JaMarcus Russell, Josh Freeman, Steve McNair, Vince Young

One of the more intriguing names in the upcoming 2011 NFL Draft is Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton. Not only regarding where he’ll be drafted, but the inevitable comparisons to failed (so far) quarterbacks JaMarcus Russell and Vince Young.

One veteran personnel executive told NFL Network’s Albert Breer that Newton is much better than both of them.

“He’s significantly better than JaMarcus Russell and Vince Young were for a lot of reasons,” said the league source. “I’d put him somewhere in the (Steve) McNair, (Donovan) McNabb, (Josh) Freeman category. This kid showed more accuracy and better decision-making than Freeman did at (Kansas State), though in the end, Freeman might be more intelligent.

“He’s like McNabb, but McNabb’s shorter. What you have here is a giant. He’s 6-foot-6 and a lean 255 (pounds). He’ll be hard to sack like those guys were. I don’t know his smarts, he might be really intelligent, but I do think, like those three, even if he can’t pick apart a defense, he can buy time with his feet. Coverages are only made to hold up for four seconds or so … so like those guys, he can make time to find the open guy. And this guy has those guys’ leadership. I don’t think Vince or JaMarcus had it. Teammates follow (Newton).”

It’s not to suggest that Newton’s game is perfect. One scout was quick to point out that “the structure of that offense made him look more accurate than he is. It’s all play-action based, throwing to wide open receivers, with bubble screens that pad his numbers. He gets so much respect because of his athletic ability.”

A number of quarterback-hungry teams sit atop the NFL draft — Carolina, Buffalo and Arizona in the top five alone. Will one of them be willing to risk such a high pick on Newton?

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Redskins Stunner; Grossman to Step in for McNabb at QB Sunday vs Dallas

Various reports are beginning to surface, indicating that Rex Grossman will be starting this Sunday versus Dallas, ahead of Donovan McNabb.

Per Kelli Johnson, the Redskins beat reporter for the local Comcast SportsNet:

Just learned that Rex Grossman is starting over McNabb Sun in Dallas; I’m told Redskins Lockeroom is divided and guys are extremely upset

If this holds up to be true, then consider “Pandora’s Box” to be fully opened. For a team that’s already sick and tired of losing, could Mike Shanahan lose the locker room in just his first season as the Redskins coach? And what does this say about the future of Donovan McNabb in a Redskins uniform?

It’s going to be an interesting weekend, to say the least.

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McNabb still starter, but booed at Wizards game

Published: December 15th, 2010 | Tags: Donovan McNabb, Mike Sellers, Mike Shanahan, Rex Grossman, Washington Redskins

It’s bad enough there were rumblings Redskins QB Donovan McNabb could lose his starting job to Rex Grossman. But now he’s getting booed at NBA games to boot? And for that matter, at a Wizards game?

That just doesn’t seem right. I wonder what type of reaction the members of the Wizards who Washingtonians actually recognize — which narrows it down to Gilbert Arenas and John Wall – would get at FedEx Field.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post had an interesting post Wednesday, noting via fan reaction on Twitter that McNabb and teammate Mike Sellers were booed when they were shown on the big screen at the Lakers vs. Wizards game at Verizon Center.

The debate is still undecided about how much booing was actually done, and by whom, but this was an apparently short honeymoon. Redskins fans, what was your favorite moment with McNabb as quarterback of your team?

As for all the will-he-or-won’t-he start drama surrounding McNabb, the speculation has been out there. Jay Glazer of Fox Sports and NFL Network first had a pregame report last week suggesting Grossman could replace McNabb, and had taken more reps with the first-team offense the previous week.

Mike Shanahan declined to discuss those reports, according to Washington Post reporter Rick Maese. Meanwhile, McNabb said during his weekly radio show Tuesday on ESPN 980 he knew of no plan to replace him with Grossman and nothing out of the ordinary took place at practice last week.

This all feels like status quo this season in Washington.

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McNabb responded right way to Shanahan

I trust in Mike Shanahan – his coaching, his system and what he can get out of a quarterback — enough to know that signing Donovan McNabb to an extension was the right move for the Redskins.

I know Shanahan well, and he’s one of the best coaches in the league. He can coach the quarterback position as well as anyone. The realization for Shanahan is that if he feels he has a quarterback he can win with, go ahead and lock him up.

Everyone wants to talk about the circumstances surrounding how McNabb was benched, but the bigger picture was that Shanahan tried to offer some criticism to help his quarterback realize there was a sense of urgency and he needed to improve. Just because the two sides were approaching a new deal didn’t mean McNabb didn’t have to practice hard. Shanahan was going to dish out some criticism and have a measure of correction, just like a coach should.

McNabb isn’t above that.

Coaches are cryptic people by nature. They’re never going to tell us everything that’s going on. That’s one part of this league to which I’m not naive. I talk to coaches every week, and it would be foolish to think everything I’m told is exactly what’s going on. A coach can never step up to the microphone and tell us every single thing we want to know and answer every question truthfully and with full disclosure.

Rex Grossman didn’t give the Redskins their best chance to win. Everyone knows that wasn’t true. But people, let it go. What did they expect Shanahan to say? That McNabb was horrible that day, he hadn’t practiced well all week and that Shanahan saw exactly that on the field? That would have been throwing McNabb under the bus.

I’ve always said it’s the coach’s job to have his finger on the pulse of his football team, and he needs to know how to motivate players individually. You have to find ways to criticize players just enough to spark motivation to go out and fix problems, but not so much to damage their psyche or your relationship. Shanahan knows best what that is, much better than we do.

Players aren’t like regular people and can’t be overly sensitive to criticism. It’s critical that a player can receive coaching. If they get benched, then what? Are they going to play or quit? Coaches have to test players to find out if it’s fight or flight. Shanahan was going to find this out before extending McNabb. I believe McNabb responded the right way, and it’s a big part of why he got the big deal.

The extension might be premature, because I would have liked to see McNabb play better before giving him a contract. But if I’m Shanahan and I just criticized McNabb that way and he responded the way that he did, it’s a sign that I can give him the money because he can be pushed hard but won’t break. Maybe that was a sign for Shanahan that he could push McNabb to a higher level.

What Shanahan can trust is McNabb, who will be 34 soon, has always been a character guy who will work to improve. That’s what you bet on. McNabb won’t run and hide when there’s adversity. Shanahan was testing McNabb and the criticism was fair, how he responded was the most encouraging aspect for the Redskins.

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Was McNabb extension right move by Redskins?

Published: November 15th, 2010 | | Tags: Washington Redskins, Donovan McNabb, Warren Sapp, Brian Billick, Jim Mora, Charles Davis, NFL Total Access, Michael Lombardi

The “NFL Total Access” crew weighed in on the biggest question of the day Monday: Did the Redskins make the right move by signing Donovan McNabb to a five-year extension?

Insider Michael Lombardi believes the Redskins were at least partly motivated by what it would take to replace a proven, veteran quarterback.

“Obviously it’s hard to find great quarterbacks,” Lombardi said. ”And then you have to pay a guy to replace McNabb, which would be much more difficult than to keep him. I think that’s ultimately what happened.”

Check out the video for the full reaction from Lombardi, Charles Davis, Warren Sapp, Brian Billick and Jim Mora.

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