By FRANK WARD
DailyPhiladelphian.com Editor
Ambivalent.
That’s the only word that comes close to describing how I feel about the Eagles decision to part ways with the best all-around running back in franchise history on Tuesday.
On one hand, the Eagles offense will no longer take highway BWest 36 to the end zone and the win column. That road will no longer save a season as Brian Westbrook did against the Giants in 2003 with that miraculous 84-yard punt return. The memories will forever live on in our hearts and minds.
BWest was the protatypic blue-collar, do-it-all back that Philadelphians could relate to. The eagles will eventually produce other Pro Bowl caliber backs — maybe even LeSean McCoy — but there will never be another Westbrook. He became a man in Philly between his time at Villanova and with the Eagles.
On the other hand, concussions aside, Westbrook’s time was up and we all knew it. He was due to earn $7 million this season and the Eagles weren’t paying that, even in an uncapped year.
The Eagles did the right thing football-wise and business-wise. The also did the right thing by Westbrook.
First, he at least has a shot to get picked up by another team. The Eagles could have either had him restructure his deal and/or brought him to minicamp before making a decision. Now, he will hit the market immediately.
Second, the Eagles paid Westbrook for his production. They ripped up his contract when he was about to turn 30 and paid him for two years as a premier back. The team never redoes deals. They knew Westbrook had earned it, and saw it was a unique situation. They knew, as did BWest, that he would not have gotten a big-time deal after he hit 30. They spent the money when they didn’t have to.
The bottom line is Westbrook’s body is starting to fail him like Marshall Faulk’s, and he just wasn’t going to help this team, this offense, as we’re accustomed to seeing. He’s been taken care of financially and this was just the right time for BWest36 to turn in the Eagles playbook.
