Donovan McNabb's fractured rib could give NFL bettors an extended look at the "other" quarterback on the Philadelphia Eagles.
With McNabb injured and Michael Vick ineligible until Week 3, the Eagles may have to start Kevin Kolb in next week's home opener vs. the New Orleans Saints, who rang up 45 points in their opener.
The Las Vegas Hilton and some offshore books opened with the Eagles as 3-point home favorites, but just about everyone took it off the board pretty quickly.
Dan O'Brien, a senior oddsmaker with Las Vegas Sports Consultants, predicts a "monster drop off" to the original pointspread if Kolb is under center.
"I don't think you could make the Saints road favorites, not with how much the bettors like the Eagles this year," O'Brien told Covers.com Sunday night.
O'Brien says McNabb's value (3.5 to 4 points) gets shorten in this situation because of the aprehension of making a popular Philly team a home underdog.
McNabb suffered the injury in the third quarter of Philadelphia's 38-10 win at Carolina and was replaced by Kolb, who was 7-of-11 for 23 yards but did not direct a scoring drive.
Eagles coach Andy Reid said McNabb would be re-evaluated in Philadelphia on Monday and there was a chance he could play.
McNabb played in all 16 games last season but missed 15 games over the previous three years. In those games, the Eagles went 7-8 straight up and 7-7-1 against the spread, with a 10-4-1 mark over the total.
Kolb played in six games last season, completing 17-of-34 passes for 144 yards. Most of his action came in a mop-up role in a loss at Baltimore where Reid benched an ineffective McNabb.