Why Donovan McNabb Should NOT Be A 49er

If you've been paying attention to the NFL lately (and if you have been, the NFL is pretty happy about that since it's months before camp even begins), you've heard the rumors -- the Philadelphia Eagles are shopping franchise QB Donovan McNabb. There are more than a few teams that could use a real upgrade at QB, though it's far from clear that McNabb would permit a trade to most of them. Others, like Seattle, have made moves to upgrade already - and others like St. Louis and Washington are likely to do similarly in this months draft.

An Eagle, not a 49er.

Both Bay Area NFL teams have, shall we say, issues at QB. Both Alex Smith and JaMarcus Russell are failed overall #1 picks, and Smith has to be happy that there's such an obvious worse case in Russell than him. While Smith has struggled, nobody cares less than Russell, and while folks debate the issue of whether Smith can still succeed, I'm not sure anyone thinks Russell has a chance left besides Al Davis.

The early rumors locally were related to Oakland, but I just can't see McNabb doing that to himself. Many folks have suggested that San Francisco is a much more logical destination -- Alex Smith has yet to prove himself, and the teams defense and improving offense have the organization poised to take the next step. It would be nigh impossible to believe it couldn't take a bigger step forward with McNabb behind center than Smith.

So, if that's the case, why are the 49ers openly saying they aren't interested? I can't say for sure ... but I'm on board with that.

I like McNabb - quite a bit, actually. He's still a top-ten QB in the league, and the Eagles must have truly been convinced that Kevin Kolb is ready (I'm not quite as sure, though clearly I'm not actually involved with the decision.)

Five and growing?

But here's the deal - McNabb isn't going to play for another five years. The 49ers should make the playoffs next year, but I wouldn't argue that even with a sizeable upgrade at QB that they're ready to challenge for the Super Bowl. The Vikings and Saints - let alone some others - are more than just one guy ahead of a team that last year avoided a losing record for the first time in a long, long time.  And if McNabb is going to take off in a year or two - both because of his age, injury risk and contract - then it just means the organization is going to be starting over in 2012 at QB, whether that's with Nate Davis or someone else.

They can make that decision after this season, for a lot cheaper. The team doesn't need to sell tickets, it needs to make decisions based on what will help them win more games and get the organization back to a long-term winning franchise. McNabb helps with the first part, but not the second.

I say pass.