Westbrook injury could sink Eagles

By John McMullen

(The Phanatic Magazine) - When I received a short, three-line press release from the Philadelphia Eagles informing me that Brian Westbrook would be undergoing surgery on Friday morning, it struck me that the organization was "depressed."

The release seemed to indicate fatigue and decreased energy. It was like the good folks at the NovaCare complex were having difficulty concentrating and
remembering details.

In short, clinical depression.

Understand, while the enigmatic Donovan McNabb might get most of the ink in Philly, Westbrook is the real superstar in the City of Brotherly Love, yet the
Birds treated his impending operation like Lorenzo Booker was getting cut.

Described as a "cleanout surgery" for bone spurs, the procedure on Westbrook is supposed to be "minor" and the Villanova product is expected back for training camp.

"We talked about it when he was at the doctor's office and went through the options and decided it was better to clean it up," Westbrook's agent Todd France told ESPN. "The ankle has been bothering him since last year."

Of course, that's all pie-in-the-sky, best case scenario stuff. It seems like that ankle...or a knee...or a calf have been bothering Westbrook since he left the Main Line. While it's true a veteran like Westbrook needs offseason mini-camps and OTA's like I need another doughnut, this is not exactly Brett Favre or Jim Marshall we are talking about.

In fact, durability, or lack thereof, is the only thing that has kept Westbrook from being mentioned is the same breath as players like Marshall Faulk and LaDainian Tomlinson.

Every time you turn around, Westbrook is hampered by some sort of nagging injury, making the Andy Reid critics look silly when they implore "Big Red" to
give him the football 30-35 times every Sunday.

As arrogant as Reid is, do you really think he would rather be giving it to someone else?

Problem is, Reid knows if Westbrook piles up 35 touches one week, he's likely not going to be 100 percent seven days later. Heck, he might not even make it to the field.

The Birds braintrust bends over backward to make sure they have the healthiest Westbrook possible for the stretch run each and every year.

When the 2009 season kicks off, Westbrook will be on the wrong side of 30 for the first time.

The NFL is littered with durable, big time backs that fell off a cliff when they reached that milestone.

And that thought is enough to make anyone depressed.