Former Seattle Seahawks fullback Leonard Weaver surprised Birds fans a year ago by exhibiting exceptional running ability and passing catching skills as a fullback in the west coast offense.  It was easy for fans to get used to having another weapon in the offense at the fullback position.
Head coach Andy Reid and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg didn’t have any problem with finding ways to get Weaver the football.¬† He became a Pro Bowler in his first year as an Eagle but this year he will be counted on even more because of his experience in this offense.
It’s going to be very important with a youngster like Kevin Kolb taking over at the starting quarterback position that the Eagles have some veterans in the huddle who will keep this group steady through the ups and downs of a complete season.¬† Weaver will be one of those guys and although he was a big supporter of Donovan McNabb, he’s knows it’s time to move on from that era.
“One thing we understand in the league is that it’s a business”, Weaver told me during the OTA’s.¬† “Guys have to move on.¬† It’s unfortunate that Donovan and the Eagles had to part ways, but they did.”
“We as Eagles players and teammates and me as a friend, I miss him and I love him, however now we’re going to playing against him.¬† The job for me is to play for the Eagles, not for the Washington Redskins. His job is to play for the Redskins. So we’re going to go out there and compete.”
Weaver was impressed by Kolb’s performances against the Saints and the Chiefs a year ago.¬† He’s confident that the young quarterback can step in and do the job.¬† The veteran fullback sees no reason why Kolb won’t be able to be on the same page with the other players in this offense, from day one.
“It’s definitely important.¬† That’s a concern for everybody on the outside but one thing we understand that we played with Kolb.¬† We had two games with him.¬†¬† We practiced with him. It was real good for us. I think for those guys to communicate is very important.”
He’s eager to see this young group take on the challenges they will face in the tough NFC East.
“It’s going to be real tough. Shanahan is looking good over there.¬† Giants are looking good. Dallas is coming back re-upping. It’s going to be tough, man but it’s going to be fun”.
I think one of the keys to Kolb’s success will be his willingness to take what’s there in the passing game and not try to force the football upfield.¬† He must able to get the ball to Weaver and tight end Brent Celek on short throws when nobody’s open downfield rather than taking too many chances with risky throws or scrambling with the football.
Weaver will also be very important as a runner on short yardage and goalline.¬† He’ll also play a key role as a pass blocker.¬† Weaver will get the chance to keep drives alive on 3rd down and short with plunges up the middle or off tackle.
This is a very talented offensive group, but they’re going to have some ups and downs, and likely turn the ball over at times but they’ve got to stay calm and focused. ¬† Weaver will be called on to provide leadership during those key moments when this group is tested.
im not trying to be smart but i hate these politically correct answers i mean do you expect weaver to come out and say i dont have confidence in kolb and find himself in the doghouse or cut and other teams now saying he is a problem. i mean he may really be confident in him but if he wasnt that would be something he’d disclose to his friends not the media
bet he told d5 like man we stink now lol
Gotta agree with PW here. NO ONE currently on the team is going to say anything bad about the current starting QB unless their next word are “I want to be traded.” It’s not going to happen. Also, Reid has done a good job of getting guys that are competitors and honorable for the most…none of them will except the idea of being mediocre without having it beat into their minds through the course of a season.
PW / Butch….then why believe ANYTHING that ANYONE has to say??
I can see where a player will use the old “player-speak” and not say anything controversial, but because you hate Kolb you will choose to discredit the comment….and then when a teamate of McNabb makes a positive comment about him you will choose to point to that as proof that #5 is a savior. Give me a break, you don’t like what he said so you say that he said because he “had to”…that is why we should all just wait until the season actually begins and we can judge things by wins and loses instead of lame-ass predictions and moronic spin attempts
thats not true at green
last yr djax would say politically correct stuff when asked about d5 and it was obvious to me he hated d5
like i said no1 is gonna say kolb stinks even if he is ryan leaf
like coaching staff and players stood behind jamrcus bum ass russel all yr in the media when they obvioulsy knew he stunk
so if everyone lies, why even pay attention to anything they say???
i dont really pay attn to when they do interviews i hatem i hate that people actually use these as sources for what they r saying like dont get me wrong i love d5 on the field i hated him more than u eagle fans when talking though
same with lebron like him on the court hate his interviews kobe too they r so fake
ai gave real interviews and was great with the media
haha never forget when he told phil jasner what league do u play for and phil said none so ai was like stfu then how u gonna tell me about basketball lmao something i did my entire life how tf r u gonna tell me about this do i tell u about ur articles and reporting
I am actually agreeing with PW for once. PW’s usual dialogue is complete nonsense with a barely a hint of English but he does bring up a good point here, which is also true for all media outlets. Case in point, General McChrystal, guy lost his job for speaking on his true beliefs. I bet everyone on this team questions Kolb, as we all do, but we don’t get paid to support him. This is a wait and see scenario b/c no one know show will respond with the team on his shoulders judging from only two games. its impossible, not one person can say he’s going to light it up or that he will stink.
PW one point I would agree…there has probably never been a less sincere speaker than #5. I too was a fan of what he would do on the field most times, and his overall success, but whenever he would open his mouth it was usually insincere, back-handed, passive-aggressive or over-sensitive response. Like I said previously, the talk is cheap, I would rather discuss an actual play on the field or the result of a game instead of a comment by a teammate in June. But it is June, and that is all we have, I get it.
d5 1 of the worse speakers of all time
no good ever came from it
haha ktw complete nonsense with barely a hint of english. trust me my english is stellar my typing may stink. im also very lazy and dont feel the need to punctuate use capital letters for this sportsite. u understand exactly what im saying though i dont even have to say it watch
kevin kolb………….
u know exactly what im thinking
I feel confident that I am sceptical about the success of the team this coming season.
I too am confident that bigge is sKeptical about the success of this team this coming season.
chiller, schille, siller, shilly,
“Sometimes life doesn’t work out,the way that you had it planned.
The only thing we knew for sure was that Henry Porter’s name wasn’t really Henry Porter…”