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Yeah, I know.
My wife has already cued this up in response to the thread title.
Sorry about that. A little backstory seems appropriate.
I am not a huge Star Trek fan. In fact, I'm not really one at all. But I love William Shatner. Why, you might ask?
Denny Crane.
One of the great, under appreciated shows of the last decade, in my somewhat humble opinion, is Boston Legal. My wife and I are watching them again for the first time since the show went off the air a couple of years ago; we are all but through season 3, and I am in awe of William Shatner.
Denny Crane. An extremely well-written character, perfectly acted by Shatner. More than a little crazy, able to play off the rest of the ensemble cast beautifully well, a person you find yourself admiring, laughing with, and genuinely caring for. His ability to step back from the limelight and allow James Spader, Christian Clemenson, Julie Bowen, Candace Bergen, et all to take over when necessary, but still able to steal the show when needed is fun to watch.
And so the comparison to McNabb.
Let's think back, shall we, painful though it may be. When McNabb first entered the league, he relied to his talent and charisma to get by. He could dominate at any point in a game or a season, simply because of his talent, which was evident to all.
(I still have nightmares about the Mark Carrier fake
)
You Star Trek fans can (and I'm sure will) tell me if I am wrong, but the replays of the old shows tell me Shatner was exceptionally talented, but not a great method actor. He relied on his charm and charisma more than anything else. Fair?
Then there are the middle years. Knight Rider? Remembered by most with a grimace and a shake of the head.
Middle years for McNabb? TO? Grimace and shaking head, anyone? Some success, but never the ultimate prize, forced to do things largely on his own.
So maybe now, McNabb is entering Denny Crane territory? Perhaps he has been there for a while, actually. The Iggles never bothered to even attempt to support McNabb with a quality running game or quality wide receivers until the very end. And then they shipped him off.
Ever think McNabb looks at the Eagles' roster today and bangs his head against the wall?
"Wish I'd had McCoy, Jackson, Maclin, Celek all those years I had... wait, aside from Westbrook, who were the receivers I had again?"
They finally stock the offensive side of the ball with an ensemble cast and... kick him out of town?
Nice.
Shatner blossomed with Spader to play off, and a full strong cast to take some of the spotlight away from him. He won two Emmy's for the role of Denny Crane, and should have won more. Could McNabb follow that trend?
He has a coach who will, shockingly, run the ball to take pressure off him, a defense that promotes turnovers, blitzing, and generally promises to be more aggressive than last year, and a head coach who is hungry to prove that his success in his last stop was not due only to John Elway and Terrell Davis.
Seems like maybe McNabb won't have to dominate every week, no? Maybe the running game will do it one week, the defense will take care of the next week, and he will have to provide only 3-5 spotlight performances this year.
Maybe our Tribbles will melt away.
<ducks>
Anyway, I will be watching this season anxiously to see how McNabb enjoys not having to carry the offense all by himself.
And who knows, maybe with an ensemble, hungry cast to help, awards or prizes could be in the offing?
My wife has already cued this up in response to the thread title.
Sorry about that. A little backstory seems appropriate.
I am not a huge Star Trek fan. In fact, I'm not really one at all. But I love William Shatner. Why, you might ask?
Denny Crane.
One of the great, under appreciated shows of the last decade, in my somewhat humble opinion, is Boston Legal. My wife and I are watching them again for the first time since the show went off the air a couple of years ago; we are all but through season 3, and I am in awe of William Shatner.
Denny Crane. An extremely well-written character, perfectly acted by Shatner. More than a little crazy, able to play off the rest of the ensemble cast beautifully well, a person you find yourself admiring, laughing with, and genuinely caring for. His ability to step back from the limelight and allow James Spader, Christian Clemenson, Julie Bowen, Candace Bergen, et all to take over when necessary, but still able to steal the show when needed is fun to watch.
And so the comparison to McNabb.
Let's think back, shall we, painful though it may be. When McNabb first entered the league, he relied to his talent and charisma to get by. He could dominate at any point in a game or a season, simply because of his talent, which was evident to all.
(I still have nightmares about the Mark Carrier fake
)You Star Trek fans can (and I'm sure will) tell me if I am wrong, but the replays of the old shows tell me Shatner was exceptionally talented, but not a great method actor. He relied on his charm and charisma more than anything else. Fair?
Then there are the middle years. Knight Rider? Remembered by most with a grimace and a shake of the head.
Middle years for McNabb? TO? Grimace and shaking head, anyone? Some success, but never the ultimate prize, forced to do things largely on his own.
So maybe now, McNabb is entering Denny Crane territory? Perhaps he has been there for a while, actually. The Iggles never bothered to even attempt to support McNabb with a quality running game or quality wide receivers until the very end. And then they shipped him off.
Ever think McNabb looks at the Eagles' roster today and bangs his head against the wall?
"Wish I'd had McCoy, Jackson, Maclin, Celek all those years I had... wait, aside from Westbrook, who were the receivers I had again?"
They finally stock the offensive side of the ball with an ensemble cast and... kick him out of town?
Nice.
Shatner blossomed with Spader to play off, and a full strong cast to take some of the spotlight away from him. He won two Emmy's for the role of Denny Crane, and should have won more. Could McNabb follow that trend?
He has a coach who will, shockingly, run the ball to take pressure off him, a defense that promotes turnovers, blitzing, and generally promises to be more aggressive than last year, and a head coach who is hungry to prove that his success in his last stop was not due only to John Elway and Terrell Davis.
Seems like maybe McNabb won't have to dominate every week, no? Maybe the running game will do it one week, the defense will take care of the next week, and he will have to provide only 3-5 spotlight performances this year.
Maybe our Tribbles will melt away.
<ducks>
Anyway, I will be watching this season anxiously to see how McNabb enjoys not having to carry the offense all by himself.
And who knows, maybe with an ensemble, hungry cast to help, awards or prizes could be in the offing?