The Eagles are a better team with McNabb under center.
If the Eagles can beat the Kansas City Chiefs without their starting quarterback, running back, and wide receiver, they should certainly be able to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with Donovan McNabb, Brian Westbrook, and Kevin Curtis.
Of course, as we all know in the NFL, you've got to actually play the games. Fortunately for the Eagles, however, Matt Bryant is no longer around in Tampa to kick a 62-yard fluke goal, field fluke... field goal.
Anyway, McNabb says that he's feeling good and is happy to be back out there and all of that fun stuff. Really, he wasn't going to say anything else. Quotes are useless 99 percent of the time, so go ahead and imagine the interview of a player returning from an injury and you've got the gist.
The most telling thing about McNabb's health is just the fact that he practiced on a Monday. It was only about an hour's worth of a 10-10-10 session, but he was out there anyway. Were he feeling any pain at all, there's no way he'd be out there for such a short, light practice.
McNabb will be back to play Tampa, and that's great news for this Eagles team looking to keep up with the 4-0 Giants.
Westbrook and Curtis should also be back as they were out there practicing as well, but if I were Andy Reid, neither of them would start.
LeSean McCoy looked good against the Chiefs, and would only get better against the Bucs, so really there's no point in starting Westbrook who's fragile to begin with, and allow him to get beat up in a game they could easily win without him. Now I don't mean to sit him completely, but maybe 8-10 touches and that would be plenty.
Allow the rookie to get some carries under his belt and let's see how he can play with an entire week preparing to be the guy. Like I said, B-West is certainly a weapon, but he's fragile and only a luxury in a game like this. Sit him, play Shady.
Curtis is a guy I'd like to see in a diminished role as well simply because he has not performed since 2007. Sure, he had over 1,100 yards and seven touchdowns that year, but most of that came against sub-par teams (remember the Eagles dismantling of the Lions that year in those ugly throwbacks).
Then in 2008 he misses the first six games, comes back, and still does nothing. He's just not a No. 1 receiver, and in fact is suited only to play the slot. Let DeSean Jackson start as the flanker, Jeremy Maclin start as the split end, and use Curtis out of the slot where he belongs.
With Jackson and Maclin using their speed to stretch the field, Curtis can get a lot of YAC running slants, digs, comebacks, curls, ins, outs, and every other intermediate route out there. That's what he does best, that's where he belongs, and that's where he can help the Eagles.
Does Maclin really deserve to start yet? No, probably not, but let's see what he's got. He was a first-round draft pick for a reason, so let's see if he can get his career started early. If not, then move Curtis back into a starting role, but he should only be in that role if he's there by default.
He's been dropping balls, he hasn't been getting open for McNabb (or Kolb, or anyone else), and has just been a non-factor all season long. Use him in his natural role and see how he does.
Either way, all three of these guys (pending a setback) will be out there this week against Tampa Bay in one capacity or another. Getting talent back onto the field is always a good thing, whether that's a special teams guy or a starter.
