Eagles believe Shawn Andrews has no desire to play football

During week two of the 2008 NFL season the Eagles took on the Dallas Cowboys during a Monday-nighter. It was the game that offensive guard/tackle Shawn Andrews injured his lower back. Now, apparently that game will be the last game of Shawn Andrews career - at least as an Eagle.

This year Andrews got a clean bill of health by the Eagles back specialist and was cleared to play, all of a sudden began to have his back flare up again coincidentally prior to the start of the 2009 NFL season.

Now according to a league source of Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio, the Philadelphia Eagles were influenced by the perception they had that Shawn Andrews doesn't want to play football. So they granted Andrews his wish - a paid vacation - seeing as Shawn was already out prior to being put on injured reserve, it was an extension of his prior paid vacation which went all the way back to that week two Monday night game at Dallas.

Another concern that PFT was told from their source was that the Eagles didn't want Andrews and his mindset around the players on the Eagles roster who actually do have a desire to play professional football.

Apparently the move to keep Shawn away from active members of the team isn't expensive at all, at least by NFL standards. According to the NFLPA records it's only his base salary of $750,000.

Shawn Andrews could, if he wishes, fight the designation to the injured reserve list, since it seems to be less of an effort to rest him so he can eventually get healthy, and more of an effort at; pretty much suspended the guy with pay.

But why would he want to rock the boat?

Everyone and their Mom's pretty much know that Shawn is milking this injury and has no desire to play football again, maybe for the rest of his life. And if he actually did wish to play, there are plenty of things he could do in order to play. A lower back spasm can be dealt with through medicine, shots and exercise. Shawn apparently hasn't attempted to do much to play through the pain or to actually have the pain go away so he could return to the field.

So of course people are going to assume that there is no problem after all, and that he is just milking the injury for all that it is worth.

I even heard on 610 WIP, that former Eagles defensive tackle Darwin Walker reported seeing Andrews up and about walking and sometime jogging around their neighborhood without a care in the world. Last time I checked guys with severe lower back problems don't tend to run around town with a smile on their face.