PhiladelphiaEagles.com profiles the 2004 Eagles, player by player, as we prepare for the 2005 season. Current Profile: QB Donovan McNabb.

Donovan McNabb took his game to a new level in 2004. With record-setting numbers, he remained one of the game's elite quarterbacks. Week in and week out, No. 5 was brilliant in conducting his most explosive rendition of the West Coast offense.

The NFC's starter in his fifth straight Pro Bowl in 2004, McNabb led his team to Super Bowl XXXIX with a 15-4 overall record (2-1 in the postseason). With a 104.7 QB rating, fourth in the NFL, McNabb completed 64.0% of his passes (10th in NFL) for 3,875 yards (8th in NFL), 31 TDs (3rd in NFL) and just 8 interceptions (4th in NFL) in 2004.

QB Donovan McNabb

With a proven playmaker in Terrell Owens, McNabb directed one of the most explosive offenses in the league. Owens, who caught 14 of McNabb's TD passes, was just one of the many weapons McNabb used in keeping opposing defenses guessing.

"I think the biggest thing that makes McNabb so good is that as a defensive coordinator, you don't know if you should blitz the guy or sit back and cover the wide receivers," said Lions defensive tackle Dan Wilkinson. "When you blitz, you see guys falling off him, we can't get him down... we're putting our secondary on an island back there, and he knows where the open guy is."

He threw from the pocket, he threw on a rollout, and he improvised when needed. He also took his shots down the field.

A microcosm of McNabb's season was his 14 second sideline-to-sideline scramble and eventual completion to Freddie Mitchell against Dallas on Monday Night Football. McNabb dodged and danced his way around would-be tacklers, rolled left, and hit Mitchell in stride with a 60-yard reception. McNabb finished the contest with 345 passing yards and four touchdown passes.

That's a mere snapshot of a sensational season that included NFC offensive player of the month honors in September.

McNabb also continued to produce in the clutch. He led a 64-yard scoring drive to secure the win over Dallas in December, accounting for 54 of those yards (24 passing and 31 rushing). It marked the third fourth-quarter comeback he engineered in 2004 and the 10th come-from-behind win of his career.

McNabb posted four or more touchdown passes in five games during the 2004 season. Only three other players in the history of the NFL managed that feat.

And with Brett Favre on the opposing sideline, McNabb was at his most brilliant. McNabb completed his first 14 passes, a franchise record. He was accurate on 32 of his 43 throws for 464 yards and five touchdown passes, with no interceptions. His five TD passes were a career best& and he had them before halftime. The 464 yards bettered Randall Cunningham's franchise record of 447

With the club record 14 consecutive passes to start the game combined with 10 consecutive passes to end the game at New York the week prior, McNabb set the NFL record with 24 consecutive completions.

QB Donovan McNabb

In the 2004 postseason, McNabb completed 62.2% of his passes and registered a 94.6 QB rating. He posted 7 touchdowns and just three interceptions. Unfortunately, all three miscues came in the Super Bowl.

Still, McNabb helped get the Eagles over the hump as the team finally cashed in with a win in its fourth consecutive trip to the conference title game. In that win over Atlanta, he passed for a pair of scores and 180 yards. His 111.1 QB rating was the 2nd-highest postseason mark of his career

In the Divisional Playoff, he passed for a playoff career high QB rating (111.5) on his way to earning NFL offensive player of the week honors.

Spadaro Analysis: "I'm not sure what else there is to say about McNabb. He's one of the best quarterbacks in the league and as long as he's around, the Eagles have a chance to win the Super Bowl.

"Last year was his best season statistically and from a consistency standpoint it was also probably his best. He is a complete quarterback with great leadership, great technical skills and the kind of intangibles that win championships. Now is the time to go out and win that championship."

Note that players who are unrestricted free agents are not included in the PhiladelphiaEagles.com player profiles.