Between the Lines: What the Trotter Move Means About McNabb
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by JasonO
On Monday the Philadelphia Eagles announced they were releasing veteran LB Jeremiah Trotter. Though opinions about the move were mixed here on ArmchairGM and on some popular forum sites, Trotter's departure shocked many people including his teammates.
Trotter held a press conference on Tuesday, and the story has since died down- many are now in agreement that it was just time for Trotter to go. But Eagles QB Donovan McNabb does not feel this way, not one bit. Buried toward the end of an AP article yesterday was this quote from number 5:
"Here's a guy (Trotter) that was asked to slim down and he did that, a guy that came into camp in great shape, had a great training camp and also played well in two preseason games. It's something I did not expect, something that will probably take days for us to get over. Days or weeks."
This is far different from what might normally be said in this situation, something like "Trotter was a great guy and a great friend who played well, and we're sad to see him go. But this is a business and all of us players understand that things change."
McNabb's comment illustrates he no longer cares about putting things in the best light for the benefit of the organization or keeping team business "in house." While it is just my opinion talking now, it seems evident to me that this move was taken personally by McNabb, even more so than the team's drafting of QB Kevin Kolb with their first overall pick in April. If there was any idea in his mind that his place as Philly's lead guy was his to keep as long as he felt he could perform, that thought is gone now. Obviously he felt Trotter did everything the team asked of him and played well, and was very surprised to see the team dump him anyway.
Maybe McNabb was just being respectful to his friend, and deep down he too felt it was time for Trotter to go, and maybe he knows that someday he too will suddenly be cut loose when he feels he can still perform because that that's just the way the game works. But his words don't seem to suggest this.
Winning heals most wounds. But if the Eagles find themselves not winning as much as they expect to this year, McNabb may be jockeying for a departure ticket on a level that may almost make me believe the team would trade him to Chicago next off-season. The Eagles have demonstrated that they don't care who you are- if you miss a step and someone is laying in wait, you're outta here. Don't get me wrong, I like it this way. But I am sure that Donovan McNabb does not. And this may put an end to his tenure in Philly quicker than most people think, myself just a few months ago included.
(a brief note about the author JasonO: JasonO is Jason Opdyke, an avid football fan, a less-than-avid writer, and founder of and contributing developer to SearchQB.com, THE football search engine.)
