Well the long awaited deal is officially done, and Donovan McNabb is now a Minnesota Viking.
But the real question is whether or not there is any fantasy value in this deal.
McNabb, at one time, was an elite fantasy football quarterback. But last year, fantasy owners began whispering the notion of a decline.
The last great season McNabb had was in 2009—his last as a Philadelphia Eagle—where he posted 3,553 yards and a TD:INT ratio of 22:10.
In 2010 McNabb still threw for 3,377 yards, but that glamorous TD:INT ratio was a lot uglier with the Redskins (14:15).
So now he’s in Minnesota. Does that mean a reversal of fortunes?
Well to answer that, one has to have a general understanding of how football works, not just a fantasy opinion in an effort to formulate a quality decision here.
McNabb has never played in a system outside of the West Coast Offense since becoming a pro.
Minnesota DOES NOT run the WCO.
McNabb has roughly a month to learn an entire new system, along with becoming acclimated with an entire new staff of players.
Christian Ponder has already been steadily working on the playbook, and with the players since day one.
The deal here is this: McNabb has no draft value, but should be on everybody’s watch list at opening day.
Not to mention Ponder already played in a similar system at FSU.
Christian Ponder could still wind up struggling early on, and the Vikings may wind up pulling the plug on him in favor of McNabb if they feel he (McNabb) is ready.
But it's a big if.
If that happens, you have to remember that McNabb still put up over 3,000 yards with the abysmal receiving corp. the Redskins offered in 2010.
But again, it’s a big if!
The moral of the story is simple: Don’t draft McNabb, but keep a close eye on him and what happens in Minnesota, particularly in the first few weeks.
Better to be safe than sorry here.
