Former Eagles QB Donovan McNabb gave what was ostensibly his "exit interview" from Philadelphia to GQ magazine this month and among other things, blamed the Eagles for not supporting him enough as he was enduring criticism from fans and media.
I had a meeting set up with Andy and [owner] Jeffrey Lurie after the season. We sat down and talked, and I got everything off my chest from '99 on. It went all the way back to the T.O. situation, it went back to us not winning big games, me being criticized for whatever, leadership, whatever it may be, and how no one in the organization ever stepped up and said anything. They'll say something to you in the building, but not publicly. My feeling was, 'I'm out here getting cut up, where are you? I'm always defending and helping you guys, but where's that support?' I thought it was beneficial, because you can sit there and tell somebody you truly love them, you're a big fan, your family loves you, but what about when we're over here in the hot seat, where are you now?
McNabb went on to say that he got the impression that the Eagles felt "Oh, he'll be fine, he'll just blow it off," but as he said, "we all have feelings, we all have families."
It was interesting to hear McNabb appear far more vulnerable than he was ever in his time in Philadelphia. Never once did he let on that the media and fan criticism was getting to him. Quite the opposite in fact, he always maintained that he brushed it off. In fact, when Pam Oliver reported that McNabb had told her that he felt the organization was distancing themselves from his and that they were "overly concerned about the negative fan reaction to him" he categorically denied ever saying such things. For her part, Pam Oliver swore on her mother's grave that what she reported was accurate.
Do you think McNabb is right? Should the Eagles have done more to publicly support McNabb and defend him from criticism? Or do you think they did their part and he's just being overly sensitive?