McNabb is learning there are no shortcuts to success

Algebraically thinking, the equation for quarterback success in the NFL would be: ability + application + apprehension = 90 passer rating. Donovan McNabb had enough ability to entice the Eagles to use the second pick of the 1999 draft to select him.

McNabb added application this offseason, when he probably devoted more time to his job than any quarterback other than Peyton Manning. He's trying to add apprehension, but it's a slow process.

At a recent minicamp, McNabb had some difficulties executing when the Eagles' defense got tricky. He subsequently earned a stern, 10-minute sideline lecture from coach Andy Reid about the importance of avoiding complacency.

"I know I'm hard on him," Reid said in a reflective moment later that evening at Veterans Stadium. He paused as Phillies pitcher Robert Person threw to Cardinals slugger Mark McGwire. "But he's really a good kid."

McNabb scores high on the intangible charts. He has approached the mundane with enthusiasm, worked at building bridges to his teammates and put effort and thought into affecting the way he is perceived in and out of the Eagles' locker room.

He eagerly accepted Reid's offseason plan for him, knowing almost every day between February and July would be accounted for. McNabb figured freedom was a small price to pay for the same plan that helped make Brett Favre a league MVP and Manning an elite quarterback.

The plan had its roots in Green Bay, where Mike Holmgren and Steve Mariucci implemented it to develop Favre The Packers' quarterback passed along many of the concepts to Manning. And Reid Drought me program from me Packers, for whom he was an assistant coach

Because the, NFL limits the amount of time coaches can work with players in the offseason, Reid has set up a computer program that does everything a coach can except blow a whistle. The Eagles' entire offense is available to McNabb and his teammates via computer, and it also can be projected onto a screen.

In addition to studying the offense, McNabb runs, lifts weights, throws to receivers and watches game tape for roughly six hours a day, five days a week as part of the schedule designed by Reid. McNabb gets extra credit by bringing home tapes and also by playing basketball with teammates such as Charles Johnson, Na Brown and Luther Broughton. A former reserve guard for Syracuse, McNabb said he got the idea from Bills quarterback Doug Flutie that playing basketball would give him and his receivers a better feel for one another.

One of the best benefits of this offseason for McNabb has been forging a connection with Johnson that is similar to the connection between Manning and his primary receiver, Marvin Harrison. McNabb and Johnson have been partners though all of their offseason workouts.

In fact, the two of them even worked out together for a month and a half in Arizona, where McNabb moved in with Johnson and his family. Johnson has caught more than 5,000 passes from McNabb this offseason by unofficial count.

Last season, Johnson had a difficult time seeing and catching McNabb's hard-thrown passes. "Now," Johnson says, "my eyes have adjusted to his throws."

Together, they have gone over one pass route per day in the Eagles' playbook . They have run each route against man, bump-and-run, blitz, two-deep and three-deep, so McNabb knows exactly how Johnson will react and adjust against any defense.

McNabb says he now has a feel for when Johnson is going to make his move to get open deep based on his body position. Johnson says he now knows what McNabb is thinking on certain routes and when he can anticipate a pass when he is not the primary receiver.

It's like they have become two Foosball figures with the same pole running through them. Their feel for the other is so strong that McNabb might have to fight the urge to be overly reliant on Johnson.

On one play during minicamp, Johnson was the fourth read and was double-teamed, but he had a hunch McNabb would throw to him. McNabb stuck the ball between two defenders for a touchdown.

"We never had worked on it," Johnson says. "We just did it by feel."

Both are now aware that leaving their can of Hawaiian Punch in the vicinity of the other will result in a missing can. Johnson's 3-year-old son gave McNabb the nickname "DJ."

The boy calls his father "CJ." In fact, McNabb had to baby-sit little "Choo Choo" last week while Johnson was getting his physical exam at the team's practice facility. When he's tired, Choo Choo won't go to just anyone.

"Even the couple of days we've been separated, we're calling, checking with each other every day," says Johnson, who calls McNabb "He Man" because he's so strong in the weight room. "I didn't even realize we were doing it until my wife pointed it out."

Even with Johnson to lean on, McNabb has been somewhat erratic in the Eagles' minicamps, showing an improved command of the verbiage, though he still doesn't anticipate correctly enough.