I understand you have a lot of questions about the Donovan McNabb trade and luckily, you have me around to tie up some loose ends.

1-      What were the Eagles thinking?

The reality is that from the time the Eagles lost to the Cowboys in the playoffs, one of their three quarterbacks was going to get traded and McNabb was the obvious choice.

Kevin Kolb is the future (more on him in a minute) and the market for Michael Vick is slim to non-existent (more on him in a minute as well).

McNabb was their most valuable asset and, to be honest, his time in Philadelphia had run its course.  They used a high draft pick on Kolb and it was time to see if that pick was justified.  I don’t speak in absolutes, but by all appearances McNabb had taken the Eagles as far as they were going to go with him.

It was a sound business decision especially with McNabb wanting a long-term extension.

What I don’t understand is why the Eagles would send McNabb within their division and make a bitter rival stronger.

Either the Eagles didn’t have any offers, they think McNabb is overrated, McNabb somehow dictated where he was traded, or they were smoking weed.

Whatever the reason, the gamble the Eagles are taking has less to do with their team, and more with how much McNabb will effect the Redskins.

To me, it is a bit of a slap in the face of McNabb.  They are essentially saying, “We don’t think you are good enough for us or good enough to beat us, so what are you going to do?”

Huge gamble by the Eagles; they are praying they don’t crap out.

2-      What were the Redskins thinking?

The Redskins and new head coach Mike Shanahan simply were not satisfied with Jason Campbell and his mustache at quarterback.

Giving up a second round pick for a Top 10 quarterback who has at minimum three good years left is a no-lose situation for them.

McNabb has his flaws, but he is still one of the best quarterbacks in the league and if you look at the NFC East as a whole, who would you regard as the best quarterback in that division?

Tony Romo and his backwards hat?  The Eli Manning face?  Kevin “Corn” on the Kolb?

To be a good team in the NFL you have to stability at the quarterback position and the Redskins, who have been a very unstable franchise for a long time, now have that stability.

I have been critical of a lot of the Redskins personnel moves over the years; I see nothing wrong with this one.  It was highway robbery.

3-      What does it mean for Donovan McNabb?

McNabb should be happy.  He is going to get his extension and get paid.  He is going to a franchise that is in desperate need of a franchise quarterback. He is the undisputed starter; no more looking over his shoulder.  He is staying in the NFC East so he will have the opportunity to burn the team that traded him.  He is playing for a coach whose resume is as strong as, if not better than, Andy Reid’s.

All things considered he made out pretty well in this trade.  The Eagles swear he had nothing to do with the process; if that is true, he has to be pleased.  Much better situation than getting traded to the Raiders, Rams, or Bills.

He will be highly motivated not to just prove the Eagles wrong, but everyone who says he is too old, he is a choker and he is overrated.

4-      What does it mean for Kevin Kolb?

He has the keys to the castle and I, for one, think he will be fine.  Andy Reid is a very good offensive coach (except when he forgets to run the ball) and any time that McNabb was hurt for any period of time he was able to plug in a quarterback and they had success.

Kolb has been in the system for a long period of time.  He showed in limited action he can play.  He is the undisputed starter.

With all that being said, if the Redskins get off to a hot start and the Eagles struggle, we are going to see what type of resolve Kolb really has.

For now he is the man and the Eagles believe he can take them farther than McNabb, so he should embrace the challenge.

5-      What does it mean for Michael Vick?

Vick is scheduled to make over five million dollars this year, which is a steep price to pay for a backup quarterback.

Out of all three of the Eagles quarterbacks Vick wanted out the most, but it appears he got the least interest.

I find this shocking, honestly, when the likes of Jake Delhomme and Charlie Whitehurst are getting big money deals based off of absolutely nothing.

Vick knows that his clock is ticking; he needs to be in a situation where he can be the starter.  The reason is more financial than anything else.  He has a lot of creditors and he needs a long-term deal to pay them off and financially set himself and his family up for the future.

In theory he can pray for Kolb’s downfall, but it is unlikely the Eagles will have a short leash considering that they just traded a borderline hall of famer because they believe in Kolb.

A trade is still possible, but he might just have to grin and bear it for another year.

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My final thought is that the Eagles will be fine with Kolb.

Even though I don’t agree with trading within the division, I feel they won’t skip a beat and it was time to trade McNabb.

As far as the Redskins are concerned, we know that at least for one year they are going to get the best Donovan McNabb.  Players use trades as motivation, especially when they have a chance to stick it to their former teams.  I think McNabb has a very good year.  The problem with the Redskins is that they have a lot of holes and are in a tough division, but they are better than they were yesterday.

I know the Redskins vs. Eagles games are now must see TV.