Eagles paint themselves into corner with Vick

Sponsor

Home > Columns > Lombardis Way > Eagles paint themselves into corner with Vick

Columns

Lombardi's Way - Eagles paint themselves into corner with Vick

Posted On: 8/30/11

Written By:

Tony Lombardi

Eagles paint themselves into corner with Vick

The moment that the Eagles contemplated trading Kevin Kolb you just knew a big pay day was in store for Michael Vick who yesterday agreed to a six year, $100 million deal that includes $40 million in guarantees.

What other choice did they have? The club lost all of its bargaining power the moment Kevin Kolb became an Arizona Cardinal.

Vick dazzled the NFL and captivated Eagles fans in 2010.

And now he has the club and those who bleed green by the short hairs.

It’s easy for a player with a checkered past to walk the straight and narrow, to talk the talk and to toe the line of conformity when the personal stakes are high. Just two years ago Vick left a federal prison. He paid dearly. He did the time and his financial bleeding was significant.

He had no one to blame but himself for the butchered dogs and a shattered career.

Then like Mighty Mouse, along came Andy Reid to save the day for Vick once he was released from the pokey.

Vick’s journey since he again joined the ranks of the free has been fairly predictable. And now that he’s successfully executed with razor sharp precision a plan to restore his status in the league and his personal balance sheet, we’ll find out just how sincere and remorseful he is.

Apparently Reid believes he is.

"I'm very proud that [Michael] has been able to achieve success again in this league”, said the Eagles skipper. “But he'll be the first one to tell you that there is a lot of work yet to be done by him and this team as a whole.

"There's no doubt in my mind that he will continue on that path."

C’mon Andy, there has to be a little doubt.

This contract is a big risk for the Eagles. Not only should they at least be partially haunted by Vick’s checkered past, there has to be some concern about what they will get between the lines from the gifted QB and just how long he’ll deliver it.

Only once during his eight seasons in the NFL has the 31-year-old Vick played in all 16 games. The strength of his resume lies primarily in his legs and given the Eagles suspect offensive line the odds are against 2011 being Vick’s second complete season.

Vick has won 8 games as the Eagles starter – EIGHT GAMES!

Are Reid and the Eagles’ ivory tower as enamored with Vick’s brand of football as the rest of Vickadelphia? Or did the Eagles simply paint themselves into a corner?

Vick’s new deal places him in elite company – above the likes of Ben Roethlisberger and Drew Brees and just beneath that of Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. But none of those quarterbacks is so heavily dependent upon their legs and therefore it’s safe to say their career longevity will outdistance Vick’s and they’ll perform to the level of their respective contracts.

Will Vick ever do what Donovan McNabb couldn’t? Will he even match what McNabb accomplished?

Did the league figure Vick out towards the end of the 2010 season?

Could he revert back to his thug-like ways?

These are all legitimate questions that must be lingering in the halls of 1 NovaCare Way. Time will tell if Vick will deliver the way Andy Reid expects. We can only hope.

But if he doesn’t deliver Jim Mora, Sr.’s description of Vick back in 2006 could prove to be prophetic.

“Coach Killer.”

Post your comment

Tom P
Posted On: 9/2/11 4:58 pm

Chris,

Good for you that you understand thuggery. I skipped that class, opting instead for Table Manners in the Suburbs. Look if Vick did what he did while working at McDonalds I bet he doesn't get hired by Burger King. Why? Because milk toast employers who live in Sparks think he's a thug and perception is their reality.

Chris
Posted On: 8/31/11 12:29 pm

I feel like I'm forced to assume people like Tom live way out in Sparks or Mt. Airy and have never met real, actual thugs.

Eddie
Posted On: 8/31/11 7:12 am

Tom the world and people aren't static. Things do change and so do people. Sometimes for worse, sometimes for better. I'm hoping Vick's troubles are behind him and he mends his prior thug ways.

Tom P
Posted On: 8/30/11 11:32 pm

By definition a thug is: a cruel or vicious ruffian, robber, or murderer.

Vick robbed the Falcons and killed dogs. I think he qualifies as a thug.

Chris
Posted On: 8/30/11 4:07 pm

Luigi,

I thank you for your words. I agree that the flipping of the bird and the water bottle and the Ron Mexico incident are causes for concern, albeit small, but not necessarily thug behavior. Players of all kinds have flipped the bird and such to fans at home and on the road.

Rex flipped the bird to the fans in Miami and it wasn't even at a football game, but that wasn't characterized as thug behavior. In that case, it was characterized as him being boorish and/or uncouth. In fact, same with his Hard Knocks tirades. I'd characterize Vick's bird and bottle flipping behavior the same way that I characterized Rex's as uncouth and boorish (there are probably lots of uncouth and boorish football players out there), but not thug. Otherwise, I think we may be setting a dangerous double standard or Rex is a thug, which I don't think he is.

The Ron Mexico thing, I wouldn't characterize as thug behavior either. Guys of all kinds, once they get into high positions, try to get alot of sex, even passing "things" onto their partners. I'd say that's just how men in positions of power sometimes behave, not necessarily just thugs.

Is he innocent of those things? No. Were those things good? Not necessarily. I don't think those things rise to the level of the dog fighting either, so if he flips the bird at the fans again, I won't get that upset. We ask players to care as much as we do and play with emotion and gusto and passion. We shouldn't get too upset when they get angry and flip the bird once in a while, I think.

Luigi
Posted On: 8/30/11 2:57 pm

Chris,

Very thoughtful reply and I agree with most of what you said but to that I'd caution that Vick has shown thuggish behavior other than dog murdering. I'd like to remind you of the water bottle, flipping the bird to the hometown crowd in Atlanta and the Ron Mexico incident. And those are just the ones we know about.

But a very thoughtful response just the same.

Chris
Posted On: 8/30/11 2:02 pm

The issue is whether they really think he'll be able to continue to produce in the same manner for a sustained period of time. His injury history suggests otherwise. But if he's healthy enough, then he'll probably be able to give the Eagles what they're looking for in terms of productivity and leadership. And in which case, he'll be valuable as a player.

I've seen him get injured alot and as much as any team needs a playmaker, they need stability under center and that means he needs to radically change his game soon.

The off-the-field stuff? I doubt any owner would commit that much money to any single player without not just some sense that the player won't go nuts, but also without a structure in place to support the player and keep them on the right path if they suspect in the least that he needs it.

The whole point of Vick's resurrection wasn't that he said "I won't do it again" and everybody took him at his word. He had to get mentored by people like Tony Dungy and prove himself to even get the chance to get back in the league. So saying there's a chance he might revert back to his "thug ways" means that not only did he decide to fall backwards, but none of the people who were there (probably Andy Reid and Luria himself) to help rehab him were there to help keep him from falling. I really doubt that. Luria's not in there to throw money away. Vick is an investment, not a charity case. But if he does --and I have to volunteer that he may very well fail-- the failure won't be just on Vick's head.

As far as reverting to "thug-like" ways, was he out there shooting at people like Aqib Talib is accused of doing? Was he killing his ex-girlfriend to keep from making child support payments like Rae Carruth was convicted of? What about transporting large quantities of weed? That is the kind of behavior of real thugs and Vick wasn't doing any of that (and for that matter, when I hear people accusing the Ravens of being a thug team, I get pissed because one never hears of any Ravens player doing anything of the sort).

It's not to make light of torturing and killing animals, but if Vick went within 100 yards of a Petsmart, everybody would know about it and I doubt he'll be willing to give up this chance just to be able to fight dogs again. Which was about the only thug behavior that he was engaged in.

Tony Lombardi
Posted On: 8/30/11 11:05 am

Philly, I'd welcome the egg on my face but it's a HUGE gamble on the part of the Eagles. Vick is a player who was under Goodell's watchful eye and not out of the NFL doghouse yet (pun intended) but still managed to place himself in a dicey situation while celebrating his birthday at a strip club.

"C'mon son!"

Six years is a long time, particularly as Chris states for a 31 year old QB depending upon mobility.

Philly Phil
Posted On: 8/30/11 9:18 am

Vick is a beast and he'll make you look like a fool with this blog and when he does I'll be back to rub it in.

Chris Johnston
Posted On: 8/30/11 9:07 am

Great take on the Vick contract, Tony.

In my opinion, there is no question Kevin Kolb represented both depth and leverage for the Eagles while a member of their roster - and both are now gone.

I really cannot speculate re: Vick's potential behavior in general, but a long-term investment in a 31-year-old - whose skill set relies so heavily on mobility - is certainly a leap of faith!

Long-term health for Vick will be tied to how rapidly he can continue his transformation to someone who is comfortable spending time in the pocket.

Great article, Tony.

Chris Johnston
Complete QB
24x7 Contributor

Eddie
Posted On: 8/30/11 9:07 am

You know at first I wanted to absolutely trash this article. But you have a point and I can see it as a risk now that I've set aside my green colored glasses. Let's hope that his remorse is genuine. Check that, let's pray that it is.