As an avid fisherman, Kevin Kolb understands the need to be patient.
He doesn't know when -- or where -- he will return to his day job as an NFL quarterback because of the league lockout and his return to backup status after Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid made it clear Michael Vick will be the starter.
Wyche: Kolb takes correct approach
Kevin Kolb is saying all the right things as trade rumors swirl, and that might make more teams interested in him, including his own. It's not impossible to see the Eagles keeping Kolb. **More...**
"I want to be starting somewhere next year. I really want to be," Kolb recently told the *Fort Worth Star-Telegram*. "I'm in my fifth year now, so it's time to prove myself as a starter. Andy and I have a great relationship. It's always, 'You tell your side, and I'll tell mine, and hopefully we can make this thing work.' That's usually what happens. I know he'll do the right thing here."
Kolb waited behind Donovan McNabb for three seasons before being anointed the Eagles' starting quarterback for 2010 after McNabb was dealt to the NFC East rival Washington Redskins. But Kolb sustained a concussion in Week 1, opening the door for Vick's compelling re-emergence as a Pro Bowl quarterback.
So Kolb, who has made seven starts in his first four seasons, waits and works out four days per week at a Texas high school in anticipation of the NFL and the players reaching an agreement, which would open the door for the Eagles to trade him so he can begin the next phase of his career.
Until the lockout is resolved, Kolb's main competition will come in a weekly fishing tournament.
Reports surfaced last week that the Eagles' asking price is a first-round draft pick -- and rising -- and that Kolb's agents plan to ask for a multiyear deal from any team that acquires the quarterback. The Eagles gave Kolb a one-year, $12.26 million extension that included a $10.7 million signing bonus before the 2010 season, and his base salary for 2011, the last year of the deal, is scheduled to be $1.392 million.
Yet the possibility exists that the lockout will last an extended period of time or the Eagles won't find a trade to their liking, events Kolb has considered.
"I'll go to work as a backup if that happens," Kolb said. "That'll be my job. That's a possibility. I hope it doesn't happen."
