Dear Philadelphia,

Lend me an ear for moment and please at least think about this-

Be careful what you wish for. As they say, you just might get it.

Where were you when Donovan got drafted? Even though I can't hear you answer that question, i know that if you have a functioning brain you thought of something. You know the moment, ostensibly at worst. I know where i was, but those details are quite inconsequential. The point is, either you are intelligent or you boo'd the man when the Eagles selected him over Ricky Williams. Just so we're on the same page I'm talking about the same Ricky Williams that missed multiple seasons because he liked smoking grass more than he liked running wild on it. (Editors note- he was also on MTV Cribs once and showed off his picture of Madonna, in the flesh, hailing a cab, which he hung right next to the front door. I think there's a clip of him on the cutting room floor saying "This makes me not gay.") But like I didn't say, I'm not here to cut up Ricky. I support Ricky. I'm glad we didn't draft him, but I support him. How many times have you heard about old RW going out and raping chicks while he's got a gun to his own mother's head? Has he ever robbed a bank wearing a mask in the likeness of your own mother? No. Quite simply he's way too high to do that. He's also probably not that bad of a guy. My point is that he lives a certain way, and many of us I'm sure have been in Ricky's living room, metaphorically. None us us have been on that field on Sunday's though, except for Sean Scott who i highly doubt it reading this - but if he is, I'd like to say thanks Sean. Because of your highflying acrobatics Saint Thomas-Good Counsel finally realized that iron fences built in 1957 are dangerous to young children. Also in my prime i was better than everyone but you in ultimate frisbee. (Editors note - I was in my prime at 12-13 years old. ) I became the Matt Cassell to your Brady.

The point that I'm really trying to make is that the day we drafted Donovan the atmosphere in this town changed. He's a lot like Pat Burrell. Except that Pat now has a ring and because of that you're his biggest fan and you'd never admit to once saying that the first time you had sex was more graceful than watching him leg out a close double. Whether you loved Donovan from the jump or hated him, it was still obvious that he was the future of this Eagles team. I dare you to go back and look at film of him at Syracuse, and I double dare you to tell me that the footage isn't awesome. And as you're reading this do yourself a favor and think about how much better you felt at 19. Try not to forget that you've gotten older too. I was bold enough to tell you that I was in my prime at 12, all im asking is for you to be honest with yourself. Maybe I'll eat crow someday on this one but I'm willing to bet a mil that you'll never hear me say that Ty Detmer and Doug Petersen were "the shit." Love him or hate him he started producing and making plays unfamiliar to this town. There was the infamous juke job of a Redskin cornerback and the time he threw for 4 touchdowns on a broken leg against the Cardinals. Oh excuse me, he was wrong the play on that broken leg because he was jeopardizing the teams chances. Seriously? You really have that much of a problem with a guy having heart? I know it no longer feels like yesterday but remember the days when he led us to 4 consecutive NFC Championship games and one Super Bowl appearance with a surrounding cast of guys like Thrash, Pinkston, FredEx, Na Brown, Billy 'best hands ever' McMullin, and the indispoable Brian Finneran. Yeah, yeah, yeah he got tired in the Super Bowl. He threw up, blah blah blah. I've been sick before in the middle of a game. It sucks. It cannot be controlled, but you do your best to overcome it. I could have sworn the Birds lost 24-21 and weren't out of it until the final whistle though. It takes a team to win a Super Bowl and it takes a team to lose one. It's time to spread those ashes and say good bye. The pain will go away, but the memories won't.

This is about the point in the story when you come home from your friends house a little early and you walk in on mom and dad discussing how to tell the kids that they cannot find a way to work things out. The things you ignored in the past come rushing to the forefront of the mind. You remember that time that dad turned his back on mom while she was talking. You remember the time that mom didn't eat dinner with the rest of the family. You curse T.O. and Donovan for bringing the memories back. They took a vow and led us believe it was til death do them part. Then they started the whispers. The whispers became softer whispers, which became the ink that the divorce papers were signed with. If you bought either of their jerseys in that time frame, broken wedding rules should apply and you should receive compensation for the money you spent as if it was a gift for their matrimony.

Since then its been like watching the parent you chose to live with piece their life back together. Donovan tried to get back out there and in to the game but he ran into a world that was too fast for him. He was like Brooks being released from Shawshank after spending most of his life inside those walls. All of a sudden automobiles were faster and they had names like DeMarcus Ware, and Keith Bullock. Let us not forget that over that time his suitors were not great. If they weren't old and run down they were too young and inexperienced. The balance was not there. Still Donovan has always put the effort out there. He smiles too much? Is that really the worst thing that happened to you this week? Seeing a man smile is a bad thing? Think about your bank account right now and the bank accounts of the ones you love. Think about police officers being gunned down, regularly. I personally can deal pretty well with a smile, especially when i know the guy is doing his job the best way he knows how.

I hope that never in this diatribe have I let on that I don't feel like he's lost a step or a 7 step drop to boot. He has. In the past two weeks he has turned the ball over seven times. Both games resulted in losses. I'm kidding actually, one of them ended in a tie, and Donovan admitted to not knowing that a tie was possible. Being bigger than Jesus, i have never personally felt the way he must have, but for the readers sake I have to say he must have felt like he was being crucified for accidentally walking an old lady across an empty intersection while the do not walk light was flashing. If you gave him shit for not knowing that, then you're the same person that would pull your crossing guard pass on someone who is J walking his crippled neighbor across the street. Tie's are insane in football It's a dumb rule, it shouldn't exist. Was it interesting that he didn't know? Very. But should a man playing his sport at the highest level possible really ever think about the possibility of a tie? Not if you're Donovan McNabb. He's a gamer. He's all wins or losses, and I'm sure he could tell you about every loss he's ever been part of because the list is short compared to the amount he has won.

I agree with most, he played a terrible game today. Excuse me, he had a terrible first half today. It wasn't even the worst first half I witnessed though. . I saw a friend at the bar tonight with a girl that i thought he was dating. Hand up her leg while she was practically saying 'i won't call the police', and then her boyfriend walked in. All of a sudden my buddy had his Donovan face on. Smiling... but only because he just found out he was playing against the defending champ so to speak. I'm still waiting to hear about his second half. Last time i saw him he was polishing off a Bud Light and disappearing into the corn like James Earl Jones in Field of Dreams.(James Earl by the way, once spoke, yes i said spoke, the national anthem at a phillies game i was at when i was an impressionable youth. If you were there, we need to speak about this.).

I just don't understand the yank at the start of the second half. It's a must win situation, as every other game would have been had the Eagles come other victorious, but this was the start of a run they had to make. Flat out, they blew the chance by talking out the one guy who could have made the big play. He's been the starter for almost 10 years now, do you really pull the plug on him even though it's not yet officially terminal? Isn't he the only guy we've been able to rely on year in, year out for a decade now? I get it, the legs are gone, as is a lot of the arm. But if a man's life is in your hands you have to do the honorable thing. Call in a Priest for last rights, let him check off his bucket list. I guess I always thought Donovan's career with the Eagles would die in it's sleep. Peacefully. I never thought it would happen on a Sunday afternoon when i had to go to work after. May your career in Philadelphia rest in peace Donovan. I wish you would come back but it looks like the diggers have their shovels ready. May you win a Super Bowl in your afterlife.

They say God always has a plan though... So i figure I'll ask him.

What's your plan, Andy?

... You smug S.O.B.