McNabb-Vick showdown sparks ticket-price surge
Donovan McNabb may have Philadelphia fans more excited as a Washington Redskin than when he played for the Eagles.
McNabb, 33, returns to Philadelphia this weekend after he was traded to the Redskins in the offseason. The quarterback had an 11-year career with the Eagles that included five trips to the conference championship game and one to the Super Bowl.
The average ticket price for the Oct. 3 game has jumped to $250, almost 10 percent above the Eagles' season average, according to FanSnap.com, a Palo Alto, California-based Internet search engine that finds available seats on about 50 ticket- reselling websites. Last season, the average price for the Eagles-Redskins game at Lincoln Financial Field was $183.
"The return of McNabb is the hottest Eagles ticket of the year," FanSnap spokesman Christian Anderson said in a telephone interview. "Bigger than when Dallas, Indy, Minnesota and any of the others come to town. Eagles fans clearly want to be there for McNabb's homecoming."
The game has become even more appealing because of the resurgence of the Eagles' current quarterback, Michael Vick, said Joellen Ferrer, a spokeswoman for EBay Inc.'s StubHub ticket reseller.
A former No. 1 draft pick of the Atlanta Falcons, Vick, 30, has led the Eagles to consecutive wins since taking over as the starting quarterback and has the third-highest passer rating in the NFL.
"With Vick as the Eagles' starter, the interest level has risen higher than anything we've seen for this matchup in our company's 10-year history," StubHub's Ferrer said by e-mail.
Booing McNabbMcNabb's trade from Philadelphia ended an up-and-down tenure that began with Eagles fans booing when he was drafted second overall out of Syracuse University in 1998. He was selected to the Pro Bowl six times and had a 92-49-1 record as a starter, yet was often criticized by the city's fans for failing to win a Super Bowl.McNabb said he hopes to hear some cheers but realizes many fans probably won't be happy that he's now playing for a National Football Conference East Division rival, even if it wasn't by choice."We had a lot of great times, great moments, exciting plays and obviously some down times," McNabb told reporters after practice two days ago. "But there were more exciting things that happened in 11 years. You just can't forget about that."Redskins' SkidMcNabb and the Redskins have lost their last two games after opening the season with a win against Dallas. The Eagles began the season with Kevin Kolb as the starting quarterback and a loss to the Green Bay Packers.Vick, who was out of the NFL for two seasons and spent 18 months in prison for his involvement in a dogfighting ring, took over when Kolb suffered a concussion in the opener and sparked a second-half comeback that fell short. Coach Andy Reid later made him the starting quarterback.The Eagles have won two straight games behind Vick, who has passed for 750 yards and six touchdowns while running for 170 yards and a score. He hasn't thrown an interception this season.'Showcase Talent'"I'm happy Andy and the organization gave him the opportunity to showcase his talents," McNabb said of Vick. "I've moved on and I'm focused on the job at hand."Vick is projected to have a better statistical performance than McNabb this week, according to the Bloomberg Sports Decision Maker analytical tool, which has Vick ranked eighth among quarterbacks and McNabb 12th. The Decision Maker compares players and who is likely to have a better game.Las Vegas oddsmakers also side with Vick and the Eagles, who are listed as six-point favorites to win their third straight in the series."I think the world of Donovan," Reid said. "He did phenomenal things for this organization, and that's not forgotten. But at the same time, he wants to beat the Eagles. And we want to beat the Redskins."