Donovan McNabb Will Retire As An Eagle, With Andy Reid In The House

The Donovan McNabb NFL saga will end where it began. Though Veterans Stadium is long gone from the corner of Broad and Pattison, McNabb's official exit from the NFL will take place at the new stadium on that streetcorner that became his home as a quarterback in 2003.

With a record of 92-49-1 with the Philadelphia Eagles, Donovan McNabb will officially retire from the National Football League on September 19. McNabb confirmed his retirement as an Eagle with the ESPN radio affiliate in his college town of Syracuse, N.Y.

After departing the Eagles in 2019, he spent the 2010 season with the rival Washington Redskins before leaving the NFC East altogether. McNabb later played six games as a Minnesota Viking before the NFC North team released him. He was relegated to sit on the sidelines the rest of that season, and later appeared as an analyst on the NFL Network.

Despite his abrupt exit from Lincoln Financial Field, McNabb told ESPN Radio that he had "nothing but love for the Philly fans, even the ones who were highly criticizing me or opinionated in any way." McNabb was speaking of the consistent love-hate relationship between the famously ornery fan base in the Pennsylvania city and the man who was likely their most consistent player.

Dogged since his selection by Andy Reid and the Eagles in 1999, some fans likely still wonder what would have been, should the Eagles have had the opportunity to select first-round bust Tim Couch, a fellow quarterback who was chosen by Cleveland; or the man the fans present at the draft really wanted: former longtime Miami Dolphins running back Ricky Williams.

Besides his on-and-off relationship with his fan base, McNabb was subject to criticism within his own 52-man ranks at times, most notably from reputably mouthy wide receiver Terrell Owens, who seemingly burned his bridge with the quarterback before the first pillar even hit the water. Nonetheless, a majority of Eagles fans loved the longtime face of their franchise, who led them to an unsuccessful Super Bowl bid against the New England Patriots in 2004.

Reid, who will debut as coach of the struggling Kansas City Chiefs this fall, will be on hand on the reported retirement date. The Chiefs will be in town to play Philadelphia that afternoon.

As McNabb leaves the Eagles, the Eagles organization said recently that they themselves would be parting with a longtime teammate after many years together. The 12^th man at training camp for the Philadelphia Eagles for more than a decade was the crowd that packed the Murray H. Goodman Athletic Campus of Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa., every summer.

Seen by many fans as a perfect location, at the foot of South Mountain, and miles away from Center City Philadelphia gridlock, Training Camp at Lehigh was a staple of many fans' summer schedules. McNabb himself likely signed hundreds of autographs during his summers in the Lehigh Valley. The Philadelphia Eagles organization, citing logistical issues over the hour-plus trip north, as well as better technological opportunities at their home NovaCare training complex, across Broad Street from the Linc, parted amicably with the staff at Lehigh University.

Philadelphia Eagles president Don Smolenski cited a major reason for the team to continue to commute to Bethlehem in the summer: their former coach enjoyed his time there. "I know Andy liked going to Lehigh; that I do know," Smolenski said when asked by the Philadelphia Inquirer about the change. New head coach Chip Kelly replaced Reid this Spring.

Donovan McNabb will reportedly also have his #5 retired from the roster of his alma mater, Syracuse University, this November.