I’m putting all my chips on one man and one team. I am boldly projecting the Philadelphia Eagles to return to a place of familiarity.
I am projecting the Philadelphia Eagles to make the NFC Championship game for the sixth time in the last ten years.
The team I am backing is of course the Eagles, but that afore mentioned “one man”, is their starting quarterback:
Michael Vick.
It’s a bold pick. Largely because the Eagles will be required to beat the Green Bay Packers this Sunday in Philadelphia. (4:15pm on Fox) Then they will be required to go on the road and defeat either the Atlanta Falcons or the Chicago Bears. From here on out, each team, in each potential game will be favored on paper over the Eagles. But with only two more victories, what was to be a rebuilding season will then be viewed as a tremendous success.
But it all starts and ends with Michael Vick.
Vick’s remarkable turn around story has been highly publicized since his return to the NFL last season. Signing with Philadelphia prior to the 2009, 2010 season, Vick was brought into the Eagles organization as a backup to quarterback franchise icon, Donavan Mcnabb. Watching primarily from the sidelines, Vick, would on occasion run a play out of the Eagles wildcat offense. Then when Mcnabb was traded to Washington prior to the 2010, 2011 season, highly prized rookie Kevin Kolb was scheduled to take over for the Eagles. Vick was to continue his backup role, with the occasional action as a running back / quarterback trick master. But a concussion suffered by Kolb in week one created an opening and an opportunity for Vick.
Then on Monday night, 11/15/2010, Vick scored a remarkable six touchdowns. He threw four into the end zone, and ran two in himself. (333 passing yards / 80 rushing yards) He flat out embarrassed the Washington Redskins. Looking so good in his victory, his performance propelled him into the League’s MVP conversation with Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.
A month later on Sunday 12/19/2010, at New Giants Stadium, with just ten minutes left in the fourth quarter, Vick led his team back from a three touchdown deficit. First he threw a 65-yard pass to tight-end Brent Celek. Then he ran a 4-yard touchdown in himself right at the two-minute warning. Lastly, a 13-yard TD pass to Jeremy Maclin, tied the game. That touchdown came just 15 seconds later, after an onside kick. In the end, it was Vick and the Eagles with a stunning victory and a NFL East division title.
Since the massacre in the meadowlands, the Eagles have not won a game.
Losing their last two home games (two weeks ago to the Minnesota Vikings, and last Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys) Philadelphia has frequently looked lost and shaken. Many fans, commentators, and analysts are projecting an Eagle collapse. They are claiming that the top defenses of the NFL have caught on to Michael Vick, and have figured out his mobile antics out of the pocket. They clam that the league has developed new and improved ways to isolate Vick. They also claim that Vick is hurt, that the hits are taking their toll, and that he is both physically and mentally depleted.
Personally: I don’t buy any of it!
Vick has made a remarkable comeback this season both on the field and off. It was just over three years ago, in the autumn of 2007, that the media world couldn’t get enough of Michael Vick and for all the wrong reasons. Vick was leading the news, and headlining the papers. After his trial and subsequent conviction for financing a chain of illegal and underground dogfights, Vick spent close to two years in prison. The criminal blemish shattered his reputation and destroyed his football career in the mists of his prime.
But Vick came back.
First he won over Commissioner Roger Goodell and the NFL. Next he won over Andy Reid and the Philadelphia Eagles. Then maybe most amazing of all, he has progressively begun winning over avid animal lovers in the Philadelphia area. (At least those who also double as Philadelphia Eagles fans.)
Bottom line- Vick has shown a dedication, determination, and most important of all, a resiliency over the last 18 weeks in the NFL. The playoffs, as they always do, bring out the very best of the very best in professional football. Michael Vick will be no different this Sunday in his first playoff game in over seven years.
