Still One Of The Best
Pete Prisco over at CBS.com published his list of the NFL’s Top 50 ballers. I consider lists like these an exercise in futility, but I don’t have much else to write on today, so I figured I’d offer my two cents on Prisco’s choices.
Donovan McNabb is the lone Eagles representative. No Westbrook. No Samuel. No Baskett. I can’t believe Hank didn’t make the cut. Anyway, I could care less about who didn’t earn a spot. I want to talk about Donny Mac’s #49 ranking.
If you assume I’m going to bash Prisco for not ranking him higher, you’d be incorrect. I think Don is fine right where he is. In fact, I’m surprised Pete included him at all. The easy pick would have been to peg Westy. Despite his injury woes, when healthy, Brian is one of the very best in the game. However, the uncertainty surrounding him at this stage is reason enough to leave him off what is essentially an arbitrary list. (To be completely honest, I find it inexcusable that he was omitted, but to unleash a tirade would divert me from my main point.)
Of the 50 players named, only five are 32 or older. Peyton Manning, Randy Moss, Kurt Warner, Tony Gonzalez and Donovan. We all know football belongs to the young, so these five are defying the odds by still being at the top of their games. McNabb’s inclusion on the list is all the more remarkable when you consider that he was dangerously close to being run out of Philly and the league last November.
Amidst all the drama and controversy and injuries and bad receivers and contract issues, he just keeps plugging along. He’s far from perfect. He’s made his share of mistakes, and he’ll make a lot more before he’s done. I just think we take for granted how consistently good he’s been since 2000. Five NFC title game appearances is nothing to spit at.
For Don to make a Top 50 list at age 32, after all he’s been through, shows you how much respect people who cover the NFL for a living still have for him. For all his faults, McNabb still provides the Eagles the best shot to win a Super Bowl. He knows it. The fans know it. The Birds’ brain trust knows it. And so do guys like Pete Prisco.
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Wow! Someone that is talking sense about Donnie Mac. That’s a rare thing these days Scott. But, I have found that our group is larger than I thought, we are just not as vocal is the other side.
June 30th, 2009 at 9:58 pmAnthony – Maybe if we shout loud enough it will… ah, who am I kidding? They will always drown us out.
July 1st, 2009 at 3:52 am[...] this week I posted this in response to CBSSports.com’s Pete Prisco’s list of Top 50 NFL players. I questioned [...]
July 3rd, 2009 at 12:30 pm