Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

Let’s Talk About Donovan

Posted July 26th, 2026 | Comments Off on Let’s Talk About Donovan

Jalen Hurts has a good chance to go down as the best QB in Eagles history. His career numbers are about halfway to Donovan McNabb’s numbers, but Hurts is only 27 (about to be 28 in August). He can either catch McNabb or come close if he stays in Philly long enough. Hurts does have the advantage of two Super Bowl appearances and one ring. Plus he played at a high level in those games.

As of now McNabb is the best QB in team history. Ron Jaworski had a good run and got the team to its first SB. Randall Cunningham is the most dynamic QB in team history. He finished second in MVP voting in 1988 and 1990. He gave us a lifetime of memories, but struggled in the postseason. Norm Van Brocklin was only in Philly for three seasons, but his teammates swear he is the main reason they won the NFL Championship in 1960. They speak about him with reverence. McNabb had individual and team success. He also did it over the course of a decade.

I made a joke about McNabb on Twitter that got some mixed reactions.

Some people took this as a major insult to McNabb. It was just a joke. I saw McNabb’s first career start in college, when he led Syracuse to an upset win over North Carolina in September of 1995. I followed his college career after that and was happy when the Eagles picked him. I’ve been a fan of his for a long time. A realistic fan, but still a fan. I don’t see any harm in cracking a joke about an Eagles player or players.

Some people made the case that McNabb should be in the Hall of Fame. I disagree. He is close, but I’m a believer that only the very best players belong in Canton. McNabb had a couple of great seasons, but didn’t sustain that level of play. He needed another few years of greatness or better overall numbers. I do agree he’s worth a HOF discussion and he certainly had an impressive career. I just don’t think it was special.

Some people asked how I know McNabb would play well in the third place games. Seriously? Again, it was just a joke. I had just read the section in Les Bowen’s book on the Eagles going to four straight NFC title games. Their postseason success and failures were fresh in my mind.

McNabb’s best season was 2000, when he was All-Pro and finished second in MVP voting. He threw for 3365 yards and 21 TDs. He ran for a career high 629 yards and 6 TDs. He averaged 5.4 yards per carry. That team had limited weapons, especially since Duce Staley only played in five games. McNabb had to carry the offense by himself. And he helped that team finish 12th in scoring. They won 11 games. McNabb was a true dual-threat QB who did whatever it took to move the chains and win the game. He might have put up better numbers at other times, but seeing him carry the team made you appreciate just how good he could be.

Donovan didn’t have to carry the load in 2001. He had Staley and Correll Buckhalter as his RBs and they combined for almost 1200 yards. His receivers, James Thrash and Todd Pinkston, were an upgrade and they combined for 12 TD catches. McNabb threw fewer passes than in 2000, but his TD total went up to 25 and his QB rating was higher for the third year in a row.

2002 saw McNabb take another step forward, but he also got hurt for the first time, missing the final six games of the regular season. He did make it back for the playoffs. You may recall a disastrous pass that Ronde Barber turned into an all-time pick-six. That was the first real disappointing moment for McNabb. He got hurt early in 2003 and struggled in a big way. Fans started to question him. It probably didn’t help that Andy Reid didn’t adjust the offense quickly enough or talk much about the injury. The offense picked up at midseason and helped the team go 12-4. Brian Westbrook got hurt in the finale and missed the playoffs. The Eagles scored just three points in a disappointing NFC title game loss to the Panthers.

Things really changed in 2004. The addition of Terrell Owens brought out the best in McNabb. He started 15 games, going 13-2. He threw 31 TDs and had a QB rating of 104.7, both career highs. The Eagles proved to be a juggernaut and finally broke through and made it to the Super Bowl. Life was good. Kind of. McNabb threw 3 TDs, but also 3 INTs in the biggest game of his career. He got some flak after the game for being exhausted late in the game as the Eagles were trying to come back.

That storyline really blew up in 2005 when TO started making comments about McNabb to the media. TO wanted a new contract, but the Eagles didn’t want to pay him more. He chose McNabb as a target and criticized him publicly. Because TO was such a star and had such a powerful personality, he ended up splitting the locker room. The Eagles had been McNabb’s team since 1999. Now there was competition. Things were never the same for McNabb after this.

Injuries limited him to 9 games in 2005, 10 in 2006, and 14 in 2007. Fans got excited by seeing Jeff Garcia and AJ Feeley start in his place for a couple of those years. McNabb didn’t love that, or seeing the team have some success without him.

McNabb led the Eagles back to the NFC Championship in 2008 and almost got them back to the SB. The season had some ups and downs, but he threw for a career high 3916 yards and mostly played well. 2009 was McNabb’s final season in Philly. He played pretty well, but the Eagles were shut out by Dallas in the regular season finale and then got blown out the next week by the Cowboys in the wild card game. That proved to be an ugly ending to an outstanding decade for McNabb and the Eagles.

The highs were high, but the lows can’t be ignored. Some will point out that McNabb didn’t have ideal weapons on a consistent basis, and that is true. But Hall of Fame players should be able to elevate the guys around them. Tom Brady made Troy Brown, Julian Edelman, Wes Welker, Deion Branch, David Patten and David Givens highly productive receivers. Drew Brees got great production from Marques Colston, Lance Moore, Kenny Stills and Willie Snead. Not exactly household names coming out of college. Brett Favre lost an elite WR in Sterling Sharpe after the 1994 season. Favre’s numbers actually went up over the next three years. McNabb just isn’t on the same level as those guys. There is a difference between very good and great.

McNabb did have a terrific career and he accomplished a lot in his time with the Eagles. He should absolutely be celebrated as a franchise icon. He wasn’t able to win the SB, but won a lot of games and gave us some great memories. Maybe some people don’t remember the Bubby Brister, Rodney Peete, Ty Detmer, Bobby Hoying and Koy Detmer years. Going through that gauntlet of mediocrity sure made me appreciate McNabb and the value of good QB play.

He was special at times. It probably hurts him that he followed Randall Cunningham and had Michael Vick come after him. Cunningham had some signature moments. Vick had the insane showing against Washington. It feels like McNabb sometimes gets lost in the shuffle.

I think McNabb’s Philly legacy suffers from his personality not being a great fit for the gritty city. McNabb is a happy go lucky type of guy. Philly tends to love grinders or big personalities. McNabb wasn’t either of those. It also doesn’t feel like he’s had much of a presence. You see some former players all over the media. McNabb might enjoy being out of the spotlight.

I hope over time people will start to embrace McNabb more and celebrate his career. He is an Eagles legend.

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Hurts – Good and Bad

Posted July 24th, 2026 | Comments Off on Hurts – Good and Bad

We are getting closer to the start of Training Camp, which will be an interesting time for Jalen Hurts. He is a veteran QB, but will be learning a new offense. He’s had different coordinators throughout his career. This will be different, as this is a new scheme and a new OC.

There will be ups and downs this summer and into the fall. It can take QBs about half a season to really adjust to a new scheme so everyone needs to be patient with Hurts. It will be up to Sean Mannion to mix in what Hurts does well now with new ideas and plays. Throwing the deep ball should remain a strength.

We know one change will be more playing under center. This isn’t just done for optics. The numbers show that playing under center leads to more efficient passing. Check out the stats.

Hurts was under center some in 2025 so this isn’t completely new. He’ll just be doing more of it. Hopefully that will make the transition to the new offense a bit easier. I think the two biggest challenges will be working the middle of the field and spreading the ball around.

The addition of WR Makai Lemon should help Hurts over the middle. Lemon knows how to work the middle and is able to make plays. That’s his specialty and he knows it. This is a role he will embrace.

As for spreading the ball, part of that will be on the coaches to mix in different receivers and looks. I think it will help Hurts that he won’t have the pressure of feeling he’s got to get the ball to AJ Brown. Yes, you lose a great target, but spreading the ball can also put pressure on the defense since you should be less predictable.

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Hurts came in at #56 on the list of Top 100 players.

We can argue whether he’s underrated, overrated or that’s about right. I don’t see that ranking as a big deal so it is what it is as far as I’m concerned. There is an interesting dynamic when it comes to Hurts and Nick Sirianni. I had never thought about it in these terms.

Sirianni and Hurts can’t both be overrated, right? How would the Eagles keep winning? I’m sure some will say that both are being somewhat carried by the defense, but that group has had multiple coordinators and players in the Sirianni/Hurts era. At the least, Hurts is a big game QB. He’s started 10 playoff games for the Eagles. The team has scored 28 or more points in 7 of the games. Hurts has a passer rating of over 100 in 6 of the games (11 TD passes, 3 INTs). He averages almost 5 yards per carry and has 10 rushing TDs in those games. By comparison, Dak Prescott has 7 playoff starts. Dallas had three games of 28 or more points. He’s thrown 14 TDs and 7 INTs. Hurts seems to be at his best when the lights are brightest. That should be hugely important when judging QBs.

One area where Hurts needs to improve is outside the pocket.

One of his bad habits is bailing to the right and throwing the ball way out of bounds. That is fine on occasion, but Hurts does it too much. We know he can make plays outside the pocket. He’s got some big time highlight moments. There is a need for more consistency.

This is an important season for Hurts. He’s won a Super Bowl for the Eagles, but Howie Roseman can’t entirely focus on the past. He’s got to think about the future and how Hurts fits in that. If Jalen can adapt to the new scheme and coaches, he could sign an extension in the future and stay QB for the foreseeable future. It will be interesting to see how this year plays out.

*****

Good stuff here from Doug.

It is always good to get some perspective from a national writer who covers all 32 teams and isn’t fixated on just the Eagles.

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