Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports
How did the Philadelphia Eagles celebrate a guy who had played 11 of his 13 years in the NFL with them and passed for over 32,000 yards and 216 touchdowns with the organization? Oh, and you can’t forget the numerous times he led the Eagles to the playoffs, although he never won a Super Bowl ring. Well, the Eagles organization honored Donovan McNabb in a way that demands respect — they retired the No. 5 jersey of the great quarterback.
People in Philly seem to have short-term memories, however, because some fans took the retirement celebration that night as an invitation to have their own retirement “ceremony” prior to Thursday night’s game.
Some angry fans — apparently McNabb haters — took to the parking lot before the game with a pole, a McNabb jersey, lighter fluid and some matches. What happens next is just disgraceful and extremely tasteless.
Check out the video here:
As you can see, there was a sign under the burning jersey that said “McNabb Retirement Ceremony”. I want to give these fans a break because they are obviously upset that he didn’t end his career with the Eagles, but burning the guy’s jersey on a night that is supposed to celebrate everything he did for the organization is just classless and stupid.
Also, this was the guy who was so celebrated as being one of the best quarterbacks in Eagles’ history during his playing days and he was everyone’s favorite player — along with Terrell Owens — but apparently people forgot about the past and just acted like he was an enemy by lighting his jersey on fire.
Class move, Philly. You’re better than that.
Connor Muldowney is a columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Connormuldowney, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google. You can also reach him at .
