Columnist Sal DeFilippo: Sacking McNabb not as easy as 1-2-3 Mississippi

Sal DeFilippo

Friday, Nov. 22, 2002 | 10:11 a.m.

Sal DeFilippo's pro football picks column appears Friday. Reach him at sal@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4076.

Anyone watching the Eagles-Cardinals game last weekend had to be in awe of the gutty performance of Donovan McNabb.

On the third play of the game, the Philadelphia quarterback was tackled and rolled over on his ankle. He was taken out of the game for a series, taped up and returned to throw four touchdown passes -- in the first half.

After the game, the Eagles learned that their star signal-caller's ankle was broken, and he will likely miss the rest of the regular season.

McNabb's heroics should not be overlooked, certainly. He has developed into one of the league's best quarterbacks and is a true team leader.

But here's what I'm dying to know. Why couldn't the Cardinals stop this guy?

It wasn't as if McNabb was hiding the injury, even if the severity of it wasn't yet known. He was limping noticeably on every play. In 53 regular-season starts, this was the first time McNabb didn't have a rushing attempt.

Other than to blindfold the guy, the Cardinals couldn't have asked for much more. But there was McNabb, moving the Eagles down the field at will, even though he took a little longer than usual to reach the huddle.

Apparently nobody has informed the Cardinals that you don't have to count to five Mississippis before rushing the quarterback. A few blitzes here and there could have disrupted things. Arizona's porous run defense didn't help the cause, either, as Philadelphia piled up 213 yards on the ground. Only two teams in the NFC have worse run defenses than Arizona, and the Cardinals rank 29th in total defense.

Of course, bad defense is expected in Arizona, perhaps even encouraged. Case in point: Dave McGinnis became defensive coordinator in 1996. In 2000, he was promoted to head coach. The Cardinals had one winning season in that span (9-7 in 1998), and none since. The '85 Bears they are not.

The offense deserves its share of the blame. Jake Plummer continues to force passes every week, although sometimes his team falls so far behind he has no choice. Only Daunte Culpepper has more interceptions. Culpepper, David Carr and Quincy Carter have higher passer ratings.

After holding the not-so-potent Dallas attack to six points in a thrilling 9-6 win to move to 4-2, Arizona has lost four straight and appears well on its way to securing another losing season. The schedule-makers didn't do them any favors -- the Cards have games left with Oakland, Kansas City, St. Louis, San Francisco and Denver.

And those teams likely won't have QBs with broken ankles.

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