FanPost

My case for Donovan McNabb to the Hall of Fame

I saw several comments yesterday that show some members do not think McNabb will be elected to the Hall of Fame. That surprised me, as I am of the case that if his career ended today, McNabb is a sure Hall of Famer. I am unsure what the case is against him, so I will present my case and hope to generate some discussion about why he is or is not a Hall of Famer.

Without speaking directly for some people who are against McNabb to the Hall, I feel as though we, as fans of the Eagles, are too close to this situation. We need to step back and forget how we felt after the post season losses but remember what McNabb did to lead us there. We need to forget the controversies the team went through when he was here, forget about how we thought of him as a person and respect him for what he did on the field.

First, I want to put some out some stats that the voters will certainly be looking at as they weigh the case for McNabb.

- 97-57-1 record

- 6 Pro Bowls

- 9-7 record in the playoffs

- 36,250 passing yards (15th all time, ahead of Jim Kelly, Tom Brady, Troy Aikman and Steve Young, to name a few)

- 230 TD passes (23rd all time, ahead of Hall of Famers Terry Bradshaw, Bob Griese, Troy Aikman and Bart Starr, again to name only a few)

- Only 115 interceptions (behind Brett Favre, Troy Aikman, Joe Montana and Jim Kelly, to name a few)

When you look at his percentage stats, his INT% (INT/Pass attempts) puts him 3rd overall at only 2.2% of passes intercepted. His TD% drops him down a bit, as he is 81st all time in TD% at 4.4%. However, I feel as though voters will look more at the raw data then the percentage stats.

You also have to account for his rushing yards. He has 3,400 yards rushing, which puts him around #7 on the All-Time QB list. To go along with that, he rushed for 28 touchdowns, which means he had a direct hand in 258 total touchdowns.

In 2004, the one year he had a dynamic receiver, he put up his best numbers with 3,875 passing yards with 31 passing yards. He led the Eagles to a Super Bowl before losing to a very good New England team. Imagine if he played with serviceable wide receivers his entire career?

Yes, McNabb never won a Super Bowl. That didn't stop Kelly or Marino from making the Hall. It seems that people that are arguing against him only seem to remember the passes that bounced before the receiver or the team's inability to win a Super Bowl. They don't remember the incredible stats he put up in the regular season with limited weapons.

Football is a team game. The QB has probably the greatest role in the team's success but he can't do it all by himself. You can't automatically rule McNabb out of the Hall of Fame simply because he did not win a Super Bowl. The one year he had weapons, he led the team to the Super Bowl, where a one game sample size is not large enough to generate an opinion.

I fully support retiring Donovan McNabb's jersey and his Hall of Fame candidacy. I would love to hear why he shouldn't make the Hall of Fame.