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Imagining Donovan McNabb or Randall Cunningham in Chip Kelly's offense

One can dream.

Nick Laham

Part of a new campaign the SB Nation NFL blogs will be participating in during this 2014 season involves answering questions posed by Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk. Faulk, who is also an analyst at NFL Network, asked his latest question in the video below:

Being GMC Professional Grade is about recognizing those who changed the game. Go back in history and select one former great—just one. Now add him to your team’s roster right now. Who would it be—and why? And how far does your team go this year, with that one player?

There are a number of Philadelphia Eagles greats that immediately come to mind, especially on the defensive side of the ball. How about adding the late Reggie White to this Eagles defense? Imagine the kind of pass rush Philadelphia would generate. Or how about adding Brian Dawkins on the back end to fix the Eagles' secondary issues? A combination of Dawkins and Malcolm Jenkins would be pretty fun. I'm sure a number of fans wouldn't mind seeing Cary Williams replaced by Eric Allen, Bobby Taylor, or Troy Vincent.

But despite Philadelphia's defensive woes, the biggest issue with the Eagles right now involves the quarterback position. Nick Foles just isn't playing very well. He's only completing 59.2% of his passes and he has turned the ball over as many times as he's scored a touchdown: 12. It's easy to believe the Eagles could be looking like a 7-0 juggernaut with some semblance of above average quarterback play.

So with that in mind, I can't help but think back to some of the great quarterbacks in Eagles history. I can't help but wonder... how would the Eagles look with Donovan McNabb or Randall Cunningham out there on the field? It's fun to think about what Chip Kelly could do with these special talents.

I'm comfortable saying that either of these two players would make the Eagles an instant Super Bowl favorite. Not only would their passing prowess be an upgrade over Foles' current performance but think of the added value they could add as rushers. While last season further proved that Chip Kelly doesn't NEED a mobile quarterback, it's ridiculous to think there isn't extra value to be had by a quarterback who can move the ball on the ground. The threat of a mobile quarterback would also force defenses to be more honest before crashing down on the Eagles' run game.

Bringing back these players would also give themselves a chance for redemption. Cunningham would have the opportunity to tap into his unfulfilled potential. With a decent supporting cast to work with along with a bright, offensive-minded coach, The Ultimate Weapon could operate at maximum capacity. McNabb could right the wrongs of his Super Bowl loss by bringing Philadelphia the championship they were so close to achieving back in 2004.

But since Faulk says one player can return, I'll leave the debate up to you. Who would you rather see in Kelly's offense: Cunningham or McNabb? Or would you rather the Eagles pick a different player entirely?

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Join the #GMCPlaybook discussion at sbnation.com/sponsored-gmc-playbook and on Twitter by following @thisisgmc & @marshallfaulk.

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