The Eagles are heading to DC this week to face a Redskins team that has spent its bye week mired in controversy over Donovan McNabb’s last minute benching against Detroit. And now, the debate over McNabb has taken an astonishing and utterly unneeded detour into the land of racial flame warring.
Last week, both Mike Wilbon and David Aldridge essentially warned Mike Shanahan that they could pull the race card at any second in the matter. Former Georgetown coach and confused old man John Thompson also chimed in, saying he didn’t think of the situation racially until someone else did, which totally made him think of it racially. And now, the coup de gras: John Feinstein saying the matter should cost Shanahan his job. His job!
"I think there's racial coding going on here, and it's my belief that that kind of behavior is worth firing a coach for. Dan Snyder's not gonna do it, but I think it's out of control."
Sweet mother of mercy, what ever happened to a quarterback just sucking? Do none of these men understand that Shanahan TRADED for McNabb? That he thought highly enough of McNabb to bring him in? Maybe Shanny regrets the move now, working with McNabb for a few months and getting a closer look. And maybe Shanny is offering up some pretty lame excuses for benching a guy that he’s now decided he doesn’t really like. But are we really going to turn this into Race War 2010? Did none of these men factor in that McNabb has played really, truly badly? This is insane. Let’s take a look at the logic of Feinstein right here.
1. McNabb is benched.
2. McNabb is benched due to a failure to grasp the offense.
3. The insinuation of failing to grasp an offense is clearly because McNabb is black, therefore…
4. Benching him is racist! Which means…
5. Mike Shanahan is clearly racist, which means…
6. He should totally be fired after eight weeks, despite there being no proof at all that race had anything to do with this matter, and Shanny is guilty of little more than being a lousy communicator.
Again, this is lunacy. Why does this bizarre cloud follow McNabb anywhere he goes? It happened in Philly. And now it’s happening in DC. Why is McNabb, who is such an innocuous personality, always drawn into this kind of pointless, ugly argument? Wilbon has long disclosed that he and McNabb are friends (way to avoid conflicting interests, Wilbon). Maybe McNabb is secretly telling his friend in the media his theories as to why he got pulled. It’s as good an explanation as any for seeing one little benching turn the media into a brain dead firing squad.
