Most notably, Lurie is "pumped" about what the Eagles can do in 2008 after finishing last in the NFC East with an 8-8 record a year ago.

"We approach every season with very high expectations," Lurie said. "This isn't about rebuilding, retooling or anything. We're going for it. That's what every move is based on."

The good health of quarterback Donovan McNabb is a primary reason for Lurie's optimism.

"Part of the reason I'm real pumped up about this season is finally we have a real healthy Donovan McNabb, who looks great out there," Lurie said.

"I think Andy [Reid] and the personnel people have done a great job of retooling the defense with young, fast players to go along with the veteran mix we have. We're much more athletic on offense."

Lurie said he still thinks McNabb is the best quarterback in the NFC, a conference that includes Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning of the New York Giants and Pro Bowler Tony Romo of the Dallas Cowboys.

"He's right in his prime," Lurie said of McNabb. "We've had the best quarterback in the NFC for quite a while. That's not the case when he's not 100 percent or not there. When he's healthy, we have a terrific record."

Lurie also has one of the best running backs in the league in Brian Westbrook, but it has been well-publicized that he is not the happiest player because of his contract. The owner conceded that Westbrook has outperformed the five-year, $24.9 million contract he signed in November 2005, and he is hoping a new deal can be agreed upon.

"My philosophy . . . is to try to always be fair," Lurie said. "Adapt to where things are at. You try to be fair and do contracts when they make sense for the team. You're trying to spread it out the best you can so you have the best possible roster.

"I think you want every player to be happy, especially a professional like Brian. He's great, one of my favorites. You just need two reasonable sides and usually these things do have a way of working themselves out. Hopefully this will play out well."

The owner seemed much less sympathetic to cornerback Lito Sheppard's plea for a new contract, which was made over the Internet by agent Drew Rosenhaus last week.

"I'm not even going to address that," Lurie said. "I will say that I'm very hopeful that Lito will have a terrific season. He'll show us and the league that he's back to the old Lito. That he's healthy, that he's got tremendous playmaking ability and certainly a lower YPA."

A lower YPA? That's an acronym for yards per attempt, an obscure statistic on NFL cornerbacks that reflects how many yards they surrender per pass thrown in their direction. It is probably not a good sign for Sheppard that the owner did not think his YPA was good enough a year ago.

As for the Pro Bowl guard who upstaged the owner yesterday, Lurie said he was disappointed that Shawn Andrews was not in attendance.

"It's certainly disappointing," Lurie said. "Other players get reps and improve because that's the game of football. You've got to prepare. He's been hurt before, so we've had to prepare anyway. Any time a player misses the work that's being done and the bonding with teammates, even though he's a veteran and a very good player, it disappoints me."

Extra points