Michael Vick will have minimal impact on the Eagles, so why do we all care?

Matt on 08 16, 2009

Vick this. Vick that. Finally, he’s signed with a team: the Philadelphia Eagles. So what? He’s suspended for probably the first 6 games of the year. Donovan McNabb is clearly the starter, and even though he’s been injury prone the last few seasons, do you really think there’s any chance he’s going to let Michael Vick take the spotlight from him? They’d have to cut McNabb’s legs off to keep him off the field this year. McNabb would rather film another chunky soup commercial with his mom than let Vick take his starting gig.

Is there even any room for Vick on the field? The eagles have quite a few weapons these days: Brian Westbrook, LeSean McCoy, Jason Avant, Hank Baskett, Reggie Brown, Kevin Curtis, DeSean Jackson (who some think is going to explode this year) and Jeremy Maclin. Where does he fit into the equation? Now Vick is 29 years old, isn’t in football shape, and is going to have to reinvent himself if he wants to sniff the field. This whole thing could just be a ploy to increase attention to the Eagles.

Is anyone going to draft Vick in fantasy football? No way. Is he going to have any kind of impact in reality? I doubt it. Vick’s back in the NFL as a benchwarmer. Philadelphia PETA people are going crazy, but no need to worry; you won’t be seeing Vick on the field much, if at all. What’s the biggest impact he can have this year, the best case scenario? Granted he stays healthy, Andy Reid throws him on the field twice a week during the latter part of the season? He gets a touch or two per game? In his later Falcon days when he scrambled out of the pocket, he was always getting hurt.

I can see it now, on ESPN’s ticker: McNabb: 24-32, 257 yards, TD. Vick: 1 reception, 3 yards. The following week: Westbrook: 22 carries, 116 yards, TD. Vick: 1 carry, 2 yards. Maybe they’ll do some direct snaps to him, or split him out wide as a diversion. By the way, if I have to hear “wildcat offense” one more time, my head will explode, but I’m sure that’s all I’ll be hearing out of Ron Jaworski’s mouth this year.

They’ll probably find ways to get Vick the ball here and there, but his impact will be insignificant. Vick’s days as a big time football player are over. You can’t just sit out 2 years and expect to come back to the NFL and be good again. No way. Aint happening. Maybe if a team that needed a starting quarterback had signed him, he would’ve had a shot to be a starter again. Now, odds are he’ll never start again in the NFL. There will continue to be hype surrounding him, and we’ll hear his name every Sunday, but it’s going to be for nothing. Vick’s impact will be minimal. The most significant part of this whole ordeal is that Vick now has money again to fund his passion for dog fighting. I kid, I kid. Don’t buy into all this garbage. Vick won’t help the Eagles. Michael, suck my Vick.