Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Andy Reid: Donovan McNabb will return next season as Philadelphia Eagles quarterback

PHILADELPHIA -- No. 5 will return to Philadelphia for a 12th season.

Eagles coach Andy Reid said Donovan McNabb will be the team's quarterback next season.

Michael Vick's status remains questionable, however.

Reid sought to squelch speculation about McNabb's future with one year left on his contract.

"That's my call," Reid said Monday when asked who will make the decision to bring McNabb back. "I think he's a great player. His work over the last 11 years has proven that. I truly believe it's a team sport; it's not one guy."

Donovan McNabb will return next season as Philadelphia Eagles quarterback

Vick

Donovan McNabb will return next season as Philadelphia Eagles quarterback

McNabb

McNabb has failed to lead Philadelphia to a Super Bowl victory in 11 seasons. But he had one of his finest seasons in 2009 before struggling badly in consecutive losses to Dallas. The Cowboys beat the Eagles 34-14 Saturday night in an NFC wild-card playoff game.

After the loss, McNabb said he wanted to return to Philadelphia.

"He got a nice little kick for the next few years here in salary," Reid said.

The Eagles have a $5 million team option available for Vick. He may have increased his trade value with a 76-yard touchdown pass to Jeremy Maclin in the last loss to the Cowboys.

The backup who joined the team before last season after a 2-year prison stay for his role in a dogfighting ring said Sunday that he continues to hold lofty goals.

Donovan McNabb will return next season as Philadelphia Eagles quarterback

Kolb

"Everybody wants to be a starter in this league and everybody wants to play," Vick said, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. "That should be your goal. The ambition you should have is to want to be great. ... I know I can still play at a high level."

Vick, 29, played a limited role in short-yardage situations in his first year back in the NFL after missing two seasons. He said he would be happy to remain with Philadelphia.

"I would hope so," Vick said, according to the newspaper. "I tried to be the best ambassador that I could be in the community, the best football player that I could be. And that won't stop. I'll continue to do that, and I'll continue to work hard."

Vick said his performance this season spoke for itself.

"I feel like I'm probably better than I ever was in my career, as far as the mental aspect of the game," he said. "Physically -- that will come. That is easy."

The Eagles also have Kevin Kolb on the roster.

Kolb filled in nicely when McNabb got hurt in the season opener. He became the first quarterback in history to throw for 300 yards in his first two career starts.

NFC East blog

Donovan McNabb will return next season as Philadelphia Eagles quarterback

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"I don't want to give up any of them. I like them all," Reid said of the three quarterbacks. "Can Kevin Kolb play in the National Football League? Absolutely. Can Kevin Kolb be a starter in National Football League? Absolutely. The other two guys have proven that. They've been top quarterbacks in this league for years."

Kolb also will enter the final season of his contract.

"We'll look at all this," Reid said. "I haven't gotten to that point where I'm comparing players and contracts. We like Kevin Kolb. We like Michael Vick. We like Donovan McNabb. It's a pretty good situation to be in as we go into the offseason."

McNabb threw for 3,553 yards, 22 TDs and 10 interceptions in 14 games. His passer rating of 92.9 was the third-highest in his career.

In a 24-0 loss to Dallas last week that cost Philadelphia the NFC East title and a first-round bye, McNabb was 20-of-36 for 223 yards. He misfired on a couple of throws, including a deep pass to a wide-open DeSean Jackson.

In the playoff loss to the Cowboys, McNabb was 19-of-37 for 230 yards, one TD and one interception. Most of those completions came late in the game after Dallas had the game in hand.



Philadelphia Eagles’ Michael Vick recipient of courage awardGuti ready for Real return