Whacked

By John McMullen
The Phanatic Magazine

If you are a fan of HBO's The Sopranos, you know the show is gearing up for the series finale and much of the final season has centered on the back-biting of some of Tony Soprano's most loyal lieutenants.

Christopher Moltisanti, Bobby 'Bacala' Baccalieri and Herman 'Hesh' Rabkin are just a few of Tony's inner circle that have pondered what life would be like without the skipper of North Jersey's most notorious crime family.

It's an age old story -- in life and in art, a lot of people think the grass is greener on the other side.

Take Andy Reid and the Philadelphia Eagles, who are ready to move on -- with or without their franchise quarterback.

Revisionist historians may disagree but the Birds were a bit of a laughing stock when they hired Reid all those years ago. He had no experience as a coordinator and wasn't even a blip on the NFL head coaching radar.

But, despite a rocky beginning in which Reid inexplicably handed the keys to the woefully overmatched Doug Pederson, Andy persevered and made Philadelphia's braintrust look great. In fact, he became the most successful mentor in franchise history thanks, in large part, to one move.

Reid ignored the merry band of stereotypes Angelo Cataldi dragged up to NewYork and selected Donovan McNabb over Ricky Williams. Four NFC championship games later, McNabb has also solidified himself as the best quarterback in Eagles history.

But, thanks to a bizarre personality featuring bouts of stunning immaturity, McNabb has never really clicked with the fans that follow his team. And now, McNabb is a broken down veteran, evidently stunned that the Eagles would dare try and plan for a future without him.

He shouldn't be. Much like the mafia -- there is no loyalty in the NFL and your career can be "whacked" at any time.

If Reid is Tony Soprano in the world of the Eagles, McNabb is his best earner who has seen better days. And, both sides are now pondering how much better life would be without the other.

Of course, in the end, Andy is the boss and as DMac becomes less and less useful, it will be Reid that gives the order. It won't be a bullet behind the ear but make no mistake -- Andy will "whack" McNabb's career in Philadelphia.

First the boss will order his soldiers (think Dave Spadaro and Howard Eskin) to disseminate some unflattering talking points about McNabb. Then, when Reid has convinced enough of his constituency that Kevin Kolb is the answer, he will pounce and jettison McNabb.

The sit-down has already taken place and there's no going back.