I am sure that by now you have read all of the stories, heard all of the interviews and maybe have even watched the Real Sports Interview with Philadelphia Eagles QB Donovan McNabb. Now that the story has been digested, regurgitated and digested again, I am going to add my two cents.

I have read everything from McNabb being a whiney baby to questions about him playing the “race card”. All of which I find quit ignorant. People, McNabb is one of the more intelligent QBs in the entire NFL. Do you really think would feel this way and make these statements just for the sake of publicity? I have never stepped foot on any level of football playing field, but I can sympathize with McNabb’s train of thought. Follow me.

McNabb’s key point in this segment of his interview simply dealt with the “fact” that black quarterbacks have to work harder to prove themselves. In my opinion, this is not only true in football, but in almost every walk of life. And the consensus amongst football America is that the quarterback position is by far the toughest position to play. It is the only position where you are judged not only by your athletic ability, but almost as equally judged on your intellect. My take from the interview is that he believes African American quarterbacks are generally judged as not having the “proper” mechanics to play quarterback and the oh so popular insult of not being “smart” enough to be a quarterback. So, McNabb’s take is that not only do African American quarterbacks have to prove that they can use their athletic ability to make plays, but they also have to prove that they are smart of enough. Thus, they have to work a little harder than their Caucasian counterparts.

Regarding athletic ability, the common assumption is that African American QBs can run around, but not make the throws. A prime example is Michael Vick. There is no questioning his ability to move around and run downfield, but he has had to answer questions regarding his accuracy throughout his entire NFL career. One of the most racist comments that I heard during an NFL broadcast involved the commentator talking about Byron Leftwich’s elusiveness because he dodged a would-be tackler to make a completion. Well, Leftwich is about as elusive as a rock in a mud puddle. Just because he is an African American QB doesn’t mean he is a fast runner. I remember back in 2002, the year that the Denver Broncos paid Jake Plummer a bunch of money to leave Arizona, Jeff Blake, a solid quarterback, vocally complained about Plummer getting paid a lot of money to be the Broncos starter and Plummer had more interceptions then touchdowns. 114 to 90 to be exact. At the time, Blake had a hard time landing a back up gig and stated that had Plummer been an African American QB, he would be out of the league.

Regarding the intelligence criticism, has it really been that long since the 2006 NFL Draft? Remember the headlines leading up to the draft? If you believe everything that you read, Vince Young would not have been drafted. Now do you remember? Yeah….wonderlic. In this USA Today article, the author is an example of a multitude of critical opinions regarding Vince’s intelligence and questioned his aptitude to succeed at the quarterback position. And yes, the article even talks about his questionable mechanics. Not only was Vince drafted #3, but he won Rookie of the Year honors and a trip to Hawaii.  How many Caucasian QBs coming out of college do you hear about that have their intelligence questioned?

Some reporters even try to disprove McNabb’s statements by stating that they are equally critical of Eli Manning, Chad Pennington and Rex Grossman. Well, people that is true, but guess what? THEY SUCK!!!! McNabb has been an elite quarterback, but whenever that conversation takes place, he is never mentioned among the likes of Tom Brady, Peyton Manning or Carson Palmer. And yes they are criticized, but the criticisms against these guys are usually statements like “He can’t win the big game. ” or “He over thinks the situation” ,etc,etc. McNabb has been to four NFC championship games and one Super Bowl. T.O. and Stallworth were by far his best receiving threats, but each only stayed for a year. (T.O.’s second year doesn’t count.) The last time I checked, Manning and Palmer have always been loaded on Offense. Tom Brady has had his share of weapons as well. Outside of the two that I mentioned, when receivers leave Philly, then end up bagging groceries because nobody wants them

So, to answer my question in the title, HELL NO!!! Donovan McNabb has been one of the elite quarterbacks in my book and hopefully he can fully recover from this injury to prove once again he deserves to be mentioned with the best names at his position. Get Well Soon Donovan.

Real Sports Interview Clip: