We were told that it was all about production when many of the people in the local media said repeatedly that the Eagles should trade Donovan McNabb and give the keys to the Philadelphia Eagles to Kevin Kolb. According to them, McNabb hadn’t led the Eagles to a Super Bowl title, so he should be traded.
Understand that McNabb had helped the Eagles break the team scoring record with the same offensive personnel which Kolb led onto the field against the Green Bay Packers in the season’s first regular season game.
What was their proof that Kolb could do the job? All they had was two games from a year ago to prove that Kolb was ready. Now that evidence isn’t enough to prove that Vick should be the starter. What’s the explanation?
Andy Reid said that Kolb’s demotion was all about Michael Vick and not about Kolb but he wasn’t telling the truth. If you read the article I wrote on Monday, “Vick’s Rise And Kolb’s Struggles Have Been Quietly Going On For Months” you will discover that Kolb has been playing poorly and practicing poorly since McNabb was traded.
Kolb failed to lead the offense to one touchdown during the preseason. Let me repeat that, Kolb failed to lead the offense to one single touchdown during the preseason.
The offense under the leadership of Kolb looked like a joke in the first half against the Packers. The body language of the offense was sunken during the first half of the Green Bay game. The offensive players were moving around like they didn’t have a chance.
There’s no way Reid could have faced his football team and kept a straight face while saying they were doing everything they could do to win with Kolb starting over Vick. Vick has a quarterback rating above 100 in two games, while playing behind an offensive line that has been dismal.
We’ve all seen the first two games of the season, but I’ve also seen months of practices. The rest of the team and coaches have seen months of practices and they realize that Vick is by far the better of the two quarterbacks.
Kolb isn’t even getting in done from the pocket any more. The young man has “happy” feet now since he was spooked by the hits from the Bengals, Chiefs and Packers in his last three outings. Reid is preventing Kolb being hurt and embarrassed by making this move now. We would wind up with the same result if he let Kolb start, but no he has credibility with his football team.
All the people that think Kolb should start must explain why he didn’t have a good performance in three preseason outings. Why did he look so unprepared in the first half of the Green Bay game? Kolb didn’t even play well during the “Flight Night” performance.
Vick not only took the starting quarterback job, but Kolb handed it to him because he never performed well during the practices or games. I guarantee you that Kolb will struggle if Vick gets hurt. The young man isn’t ready to be a starting quarterback in the NFL and that’s what Reid was talking about when he said young quarterbacks go through a growing process.
Right now Kolb is going through that growing process and shouldn’t be starting in the NFL. Let me say that again, he shouldn’t be starting for a team that wants to win.
Well, Andy just reassured me that this team is not “rebuilding”. The best players will play. I applaud Andy for standing up and making this decision. I feel bad for Kolb because the kid has said all the right things….but he was sandwhiched inbetween two pro bowl caliber QB’s. One was traded and the other was rejuvenated. There is nothing you can do but sit back, cash your check and wait for another opportunity.
The Michael Vick Experience 2.0 will lead us into 2010. Teams are scared. Fly Eagles Fly.
I want to hear from the local media lap dogs like gargano who said it was only a half of football? Who said GB was in a prevent ? See you FO groupies, you become totally irrelevant when you don’t do honest reporting.
Haha ozz im wit ya eskin too. He said vick cant win a sb now watch retract that statement get off the birds payroll.
Thx for the article, i like the practice stuff most cause we didnt see that but i was reading thru the lines between g n other sites reporting camp evday.
Clearly we r admitting we made a mistake that d5 should have never been traded in the first place but im wit birdo whether it works or not u gotta love the balls on andy, clearly standing up vs management. I love the message he is sending n should fuel every player to give their all cause we r trying to win n regardless of money or anything the player playing the best will play. I said numerous times besides his gameday decision making andy manages a team with the best of them . I hope the vick experiment works out. Clearly can beat any team in league when hes on.
I should also commend Andy. I am not a Reid fan and I criticize him ruthlessly, but he stood up and made the right decision…or should I say…he finally” put a player in a position to make a play” One thing that cannot be over looked here though was the FO confirming that trading McNabb for Kolb was a blunder. All the fluff they sold us was crap so I will say it again how can ANYONE believe the FO? ( Except for my man Schiller)
G, you’re article yesterday regarding the poor performance of Kolb during practices was very surprising. Especially when you stated that you’ve seen consistent poor Kolb and excellent Vick practices since last spring. Where were those reports before yesterday? Yes, we’ve read occasional reports from you and others about a poor Kolb practice here and there but nothing at the magnitude that you write of now. As a reporter that profits from people coming to your site to read Eagles “news”, I find it extremely hard to believe you elected to keep that a secret all these months then whip it out as a point to bolster your argument in support of Vick who is apparently now you’re, and everyone else’s, golden boy. Funny how I haven’t read anything from other reporters, some of which also have NFL expertise like you, and none have reported this point. Conspiracy? Nah, more like jumping on the bandwagon and now you’re now piling on as though yesterday’s revelation is now fact. You, just like Reid, managed to undermine your credibility yesterday with on major stroke. Not for who is now the starter, for how easily your support shifts from one player to another. Less and less reasons to return to this site with waffling, ads and viruses…
Starting QBs shouldn’t have been taking the sacks Kolb did preseason –either because he didn’t get rid of the ball etc or because of the O line –First game was just a continuation of the same
AND Vick took 6 sacks Sunday –That keeps up it is only a matter of time until they will be starting Kafka and maybe a 4th QB
G, I don’t get it… I go on other Philly sports blogs and they’re preaching that Kolb needs to be given the chance AR afforded him after the McNabb trade; stating that he needs the whole season. I firmly believe that he does not have the intestinal fortitude to be an NFL QB. He looks sooo scared out there and that fear effects everything. You’ve got to be cool and confident to be a successful QB and he’s neither. A half a season or a half a game, that’s all the time you need to see that Kolb doesn’t have the heart to do this thing. It’s a quick read. Anymore time with him as a leader is just spinning the wheels. I really can’t believe that people aren’t picking up the queue’s he’s giving off….
I have to admit Gary was reporting problems in minicamp and on the noncontact passing drills with Kolb
Boyer
Agree and the concussion isn’t going to help –I think his career is over
He ought to count his $$$ and be thankful that he probably doesn’t have to work the rest of his life
Oh well what will 610 and their so call experts have to say now? .
Oh, what about the one expert who said in great admiration that Kolb “was a leader and that it was in his DNA because he was a son of a football coach.”
Again Philly fan’s that praise him got there wish, only one expert called this thing correct.
G was right on with his predictions
This is the best move at this time for the Eagles,VIck,& Kolb
If the 1st 2 weeks on the NFL has taught us anything, it is that it’s wide open this season and whichever teams can get off to good,fast starts will have an excellent chance to make the playoffs..
If the pressure to win in the NFL is appearent, take a look at 4 teams that made QB Changes this
Bills, PAnthers, Raiders and the Titans yanked Starter V Young after a poor 1st half verssu the Steelers.
I also would caution those who want to bury Kolb and say that he is done, there isa very good possibility that the Eagles will need him to play and to play at a high levelthroughout this season.
Vick took a lot of shots last week and if the O/Line doesn’t improve it’s pass-protection and quick,
he will not last a full season.. You need at least 2 QB’s who can run the offense these days in the NFL.. I bet in a year or 2, Kolb may look back at this time as the best thing that’s ever happened to him (besides that ridiculous $12 Million Deal the Eagles gave him this off-season) who made that decision, it wasn’t like Kolb had earned it or even expected it, that was a very foolish amount of $$ to give a player who has only played in a handful of games…
Paul Mancini
I agree and have been posting Vick won’t last taking 6 sacks a game
They better get a 4th QB for the practice squad because Kolb and Kafka won’t last long either
Reid better DAMN well start running the ball or QBs in Philly will be an endangered species
I saw this coming. Local Philly media was more concern with McNabb struggling with learning a new offense, instead of focusing on Kolb. I believe that Michael Vick was out performing Kolb every day in practice, but all we heard about was McNabb was washed up, or he didn’t have any weapons. McNabb threw for 426 with the no bodies. Kevin Kolb gets benched.
When the Eagles got the crap kicked out of them in the Play-off game I was as sick and depressed. If it had’nt be for Bret Farve throwing that touchdown and rubbing it in and running up the score on Dallas I would have gotten all my Eagle Jerseys, blankets and hats and Jumped off the James River Bridge.
Andy. Andy. I love you. I want to win now! None of us are promised tommorrow. Nobody saw the Saints coming last year, and Nobody predicted Tampa Bay would win when they did. An Eagles victory just makes me feel good. The air is fresher, the sun shines brighter. Losing is for Losers.
JUST WIN BABY!
To Blkmanwtan,
Point well taken about not enough reporting on how Kolb was actually playing/practicing during camp
On a side note,
Can you forecast my 401-K Portfolio too..
Both my kids will be starting College in a couple of years and I need to maximize my returns
Should I go for Large Caps, Medium Caps, Small Caps, Real Estate, Utilities, Transportation, Energy,
Domestic, International,
At least Vick earned the job unlike Kolb. I like the move but Reid didn’t have to paint himself into this corner. He did not have to come out BEFORE the lions game and say that Kolb was starting against th Jags. I’m pretty sure at that time Reid believed that but the media will portray him as a liar and one who betrayed Kolb when in actuality he probably just changed his mind which is more likely the scenario.
Here’s where this all stems from. They probably thought too highly of Kolb and didn’t think Vick was this good. if Vick was really this good, then there should have been a some type of competition or something. But I think they misjudged both players and fortunately for them Vick is pretty good right now. Having said that, I’m good with the decision and glad we aren’t going to chaulk up a season so the “young guns” can grow together. Vick will have some struggles like all NFL QBs but if he continues to play well overall the you have to consider trading Kolb. It would be hard to imagine him being the backup next year because if Vick plays well they have to extend him for a few more years.
The only way Kolb can try to prove himself again is if Vick gets hurt (which is never out of the question) and Kolb plays well. He seems to play well in spot duty and that may be the only thing that could save his career as an eagle.
5+ months of preparation to be benched after a half. Gotta feel sorry for the kid as a person. But then again, he got that money so it’s hard to feel sorry for someone making that much money on the bench. From the beginning this was not a good situation for Kolb. Having to follow McNabb and be hyped up as the next best thing then to have one of the most dynamic players in the history of the league behind you, in PHILADELPHIA. When you look back, not that surprising that this happened.
ozzman, exactly. They called fans crazy who thought Kolb should be benched after only a half. Well either those crazy fans aren’t that crazy or Reid is just as crazy as them.
It still hurts to see this guy as our QB. This team has a D that could not stop the Lions with a back up QB. What makes anyone think it’s going anywhere. Hard for me to believe that a team that was confident enough in Kolb to trade McNabb could lose confidence this quickly to pull him in favor of a bad guy that never won a thing either. It used to be that I could hold my head high as an Eagles fan and say – sure we don’t have the Super Bowl but at least we do things in a classy way with character players. Now, I can’t even say that.
I heard thru the Grapevine,(and let me know if this is out-of-line)
That Kolb was going in for a “Reverse Michael Jackson Skin Color Procedure” where after 2-3 treatments he’s skin will be come much darker and then he will continue to practice & work hard to get another shot at the Starter’s spot next season
The Kevin Kolb era lasted as long as a television sitcom, but who’s fault is that?
GCobb,
You are the only one that has kept it real with your reporting. It is embarrassing to listen to so many radiohosts and “so called” football analysts flip-flop their way out of this mess.
By the way, the big loser here is Andy Reid’s Offense, which we now realize that there is no such thing because the QB who was supposed to run it, can’t get on the field. Andy Reid’s offense has never been special; for 10 years it was a guy making plays and now it will be with another guy making more plays.
Paulman’s list of misplaced people
#1) Joan Rivers – late night TV Talk Host
#2) Pat Sajack – late night TV Talk Host
#3) MNF with Dennis Miller – Comedian in the booth, bad idea
#4) Tony Kornheisur – MNF on ESPN, a talking head who I am not sure what qualifications he had
#5) GW Bush – was a joke of a President
#6) B Obama – has become a bigger joke than GW
#7) K Olberman – A news commentator, should have stayed with ESPN Sports
#8) Paula Abdul – should have stayed on American Idol, what else can she do…
#9) Sarah Palin – should have remained as a Newscaster
#10) Sandra Bullock – Stop going thru men like underwear, she should have married me…
Paul, some might be offended but I thought it was funny.
Drummer, anyone who blinked missed the “Kevin Kolb era”
This has nothing to do with McNabb. McNabb was traded because his ego was so wrapped up in Philly media, national media, and philly fans, that it was effecting his attitude and play. It’s evident in his comments about the Eagles brass not ‘having his back’ – he needed a change of scenery and the Eagles needed to move on from him. They knew they had two guys, Kolb and Vick. It’s not like the Eagles front office pretended that they only had one QB left on the roster, Kolb, when they traded McNabb. Sure their plan, or at least their plan to tell the media, was Kolb. But lets be honest guys, they traded McNabb because it was time to move on and they didn’t want to renew his contract. The Kolb part was just an attempt to move forward, and to cleanly send McNabb on his way without having to address the fact that they were giving up on him.
Ha, all this proves is that fans know nothing, and we have to admit that we can’t predict the NFL. Meanwhile, many of you now claim to know Kolb’s future. Ah the folly….
I take offense to that Schiller
I am 16-16 thru 2 weeks of Gcobb “Pick the Winners of the Week” so this qualifies me of making astute Football Observations with the best of them…
>Waiting patiently…for the time will come<
schiller, we all know you whole agenda is to show that no one knows anything. And quite frankly, I believe we all know that but that’s not going to stop people from expression their OPINIONS. If that’s the case, how about you stop coming the site? Fans will express how they feel whether you like it or not and whether it proves to be right or wrong. So how about you forget your agenda of expressing how you think no one knows what they’re talking about and you either bring something meaningful to the discussion or piss off?
Kolb may be a Cleveland Brown shortly.
****Trade Alert****
Eagles trade QB K Kolb to the Cleveland Browns for HC E Mangini who then becomes the DC
Coordinator for the Eagles, Holmgrem comes down from President’s role to become the HC of the Browns.. The Browns throw in QB Jake Delhomme which seals the Deal
*******************************************************************************************************************
Yeah right, I sat right here and read posts from “G” about how well Kolb was connecting his passes, to be sure gcobb did also tell us when kolb did not do good, but i remember alot of posts where gcobb was good with kolbs play. I am glad vick is our QB, very glad, but Vick had some horrid moments in preseason play. Kolb didn’t score but he moved the ball down the field well. Who knows what happened to him in that first game, but he has regressed. I do believe that he will be a good QB though. Maybe we can recreate and improve upon those McNabb/Feely days this time with quality WR’s, TE’s and a running game, and a killer instinct. “G” might be rewriting history just a little bit. GO EAGLES
Spartan, if Andy drafts one guy, that many fans at the time disagreed with, and that guy turns out to be not just a stud, but a franchise savior, then I guess that counts for something right. Andy did have Westbrook, staley, runyan, Tra, etc. I know we never got the stud reciever like we should have until to later (Except T.O.).
But if the truth be told as bad as we say the offense was, Andy beat alot of stud defenses, and alot of stude offenses. We beat Randy moss, we beat fitzgerald and boudin more than they beat us. We beat farve, vick, we took the greatest show on earth to the bring of defeat with pinky and thrash. We beat cower, gibbs, sperior, holgrem, parcels, etc, etc coaches. I know we came up sure in the big game of games (Drives me crazy). Not really trying to make a point or case for AR just throwing out some balance to the arguement (So an alien from deep dark space won’t think that he has landed on last years lion website), less we forget where we have been.
Hey paul that might be funny, give me a moment and I will get back to ya brother, for now I ain’t laughing. You still the man though so you got that going.
I’m sitting here, listening to Eskin and Reese, boy are they heated today. I hope Ike, jumps up and chokes the shizzle out of Howard. I don’t know what Eskin’s agenda is, but it doesn’t sound like he’s in favor of Vick, lol….
Boy, they are going at it. Damn this is good. Ike’s killing him. I wish they dead video into the studio.
did*
Vick is our QB now embrace it, feel it, loooooove it, let it engulf you. i am down with the team, Isay GO EAGLES..or OFFENSE, or DEFENSE. Not go bradley, Go vick, go Deshaun (well i do but not as loud as….GO EAGLES). I’m burning out fellas, I am ready for J-ville, urrrrrrr kill’em
Hey what the heck happen to wip website and internet radio?
Mono, use this link “http://player.radio.com/player/RadioPlayer.php?version=1.1.9205&station=60”
HOW SWEET IT WILL BE IN WEEK 4…VICK vs. McNabb…Vick guna show;em ho to get it done sone….vick for comeback player of the year and MVP…