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      Michael Vick has matured as a quarterback

      November 7, 2010 /
      ARLINGTON, TX - JANUARY 9: Michael Vick #7 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks on from the sideline in the second quarter against the Dallas Cowboys during the 2010 NFC wild-card playoff game at Cowboys Stadium on January 9, 2010 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

      When everyone was drinking the Michael Vick Kool-Aid earlier this season, I told anyone that would listen to hold off on naming the Philadelphia quarterback Comeback Player of the Year. The reason being was that I was waiting for him to revert back to the quarterback he was in Atlanta (i.e. a player who would frustrate you with his poor decision making just as quickly as he would dazzle you with his highlight reel skills).

      But after observing him in the Eagles’ 26-24 win over the Colts on Sunday, the only thing I’ll say now is pass the Kool-Aid because I would love to take a sip.

      Vick is a different player now than what he was in Atlanta. Not only is he making better in-game decisions, but he seems more prepared, calmer in the pocket and is allowing the game to come to him. He used to try to get by on his God-given talent but he appears to be reading defenses better now than at any point during his tenure with the Falcons.

      Against Indy, he completed 17-of-29 passes for 218 yards and one touchdown while rushing for 74 yards and a score on 10 carries. But stats don’t tell the whole story. When he had time to throw, he went through all of his progressions before finding open receivers. When Dwight Freeney (who played an undisciplined game, might I add) would race up the field trying to crash the pocket, Vick would make one move before picking up first downs with his legs. Sounds simple enough, but these are things he would only do part of the time in Atlanta.

      The old Michael Vick may have found a way to lose on Sunday. He would have run too much, tired himself out and then fumbled with the game on the line when he could barely catch his breath. Or he would have forced a pass over the middle thinking the rocket launcher he has for an arm could throw the ball through any window.

      But not this year’s Vick. This year’s Vick is patient, smart, and he’s careful with the football. He’s a team player now and a different quarterback – a mature one.

      Maybe Vick will eventually revert back to the way he was in Atlanta and this fairytale will have a horrible ending. There’s still a lot of season left and Vick will have plenty of chances to either will his team to victory or succumb to failure. But if he continues to play like he has this season, the Eagles will be dangerous come January.

      External Sports, NFL

      Will the Lions ever stop torturing their fans?

      November 7, 2010 /

      Following yet another heartbreaking loss on yet another heartbreaking Sunday, my buddy Drew (a longtime Lions fan) said to me on the phone, “It’s almost like someone back in the day made a deal with the devil in order for the Lions go to the playoffs or something and now the rest of us have to live in misery for the rest of our lives.”

      Well said…and, ouch.

      The Lions had their third victory in their grasp on Sunday against the Jets. They led 20-10 with just over three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter and even after the Jets scored to make it 20-17 with 2:46 on the clock, Detroit was still in control.

      Of course, they had no kicker and Drew Stanton as their quarterback so I use the term “in control” loosely.

      In more misery for Lion fans, Matthew Stafford re-injured his right shoulder in the fourth quarter and was replaced by Stanton. Earlier in the game, the Lions had rookie first round pick Ndamukong Suh (a defensive tackle, mind you) kicking extra points because Jason Hanson injured his knee. He later returned to kick an extra point later in the game, but who knows what Hanson’s availability would have been if the Lions needed to attempt a long field goal in overtime.

      So there the Lions were, ready to collapse and once again shank their fan base. Stanton and the offense failed to pick up a first down and run out the clock, so the Jets took over and immediately drove down the field to kick the game-tying field goal. In overtime, Mark Sanchez hit Santonio Holmes on a 52-yard pass play to set up a Nick Folk 30-yard field game just 2:18 into the extra period.

      The come-from-behind victory was crucial for the Jets, who rebounded after they were embarrassed by the Packers lat week in New York. It wasn’t a pretty win, but it was key on a day in which the Patriots also lost.

      But for the Lions and their fans, the loss was yet another painful reminder of how doomed their franchise is. Jim Schwartz’s team has been in virtually every game this year but only have two wins to show for their efforts. Nobody expected Detroit to be good this season, but the way the Lions have toyed with their fans this year has been rough. At least when they were getting blown out in years past, fans didn’t have to watch the entire game in order to know what the final result would be.

      External Sports, NFL

      Brett Favre, in his 293rd career start, throws for a career high in yardage

      November 7, 2010 /

      Leave it to Brett Favre to swoop in and play hero when everything around him is falling apart.

      Lord Favre has stolen most of the headlines this season in Minnesota, from his Jenn Sterger junk mail scandal to his eroding play. But thanks to Brad Childress’ decision to waive Randy Moss before running the idea past his owner, as well as almost coming to blows with Percy Harvin on Friday, Favre had an opportunity to put the spotlight back on him (uh, in a positive way) and he ran with it.

      In his 293rd career start, Favre threw for 446 yards (a career high) and completed 77% of his passes in the Vikings’ 27-24 come-from-behind win over the Cardinals on Sunday. Trailing 24-10 with roughly three and a half minutes in the game, Favre engineered two touchdown drives to tie the score at 24-24 and then helped the Vikings win in overtime on a 35-yard Ryan Longwell field goal.

      In typical Favre fashion, there were plenty of fist pumps, hugs and “He sure does have fun out there, doesn’t he!” moments. I’m not the biggest Favre fan, but it’s hard not to be impressed when he puts together one of these performances. Given his age (82) and the amount of issues he’s had this season with injuries and poor play, it’s still amazing when he does what he did on Sunday.

      Of course, not even a little Favre magic will save Childress’ job. He’s fortunate his team rallied for victory against a bad Arizona team, but he’s not out of the woods yet. Zygi Wilf isn’t pleased with Childress in wake of the Moss fiasco and once the euphoria from the come-from-behind win wears off, he’ll remember that he still has a clown for a head.

      External Sports, NFL

      Asante Samuel complains to refs while Austin Collie lays motionless on the field

      November 7, 2010 /
      PHILADELPHIA - DECEMBER 15: Asante Samuel #22 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrates with Quintin Mikell #27 and Trent Cole #58 after an interception for a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns on December 15, 2008 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

      Football is an emotional game and emotions are bound to come out following big plays, nasty hits or yes, when players feel that an official missed a call.

      But to watch Asante Samuel dance around the field in disgust over a call that a ref made during the Colts-Eagles game as Indianapolis receiver Austin Collie lay motionless on the field was, for lack of a better word, unfortunate.

      Collie had been knocked unconscious after three Eagles defenders sandwiched him following a reception (or what was perceived to be a reception) late in the second quarter. As trainers attended to Collie, Samuel began hopping up and down in protest of the call (either the unnecessary roughness penalty that had been drawn or the call of an incomplete pass when it looked like Collie had secured the catch and then fumbled, which resulted in a recovery by Philadelphia).

      I realize that helmet-to-helmet hits are a sore subject between the players and the league right now, but Samuel could have handled the situation with more class. There was Collie lying motionless on the ground and Samuel picked that moment to bitch at the official. I wonder how he would have felt if one of the Falcons players did that while his teammate DeSean Jackson was knocked out following a big collision a couple of weeks ago. Again, emotions come out in football but Samuel should have held his in check right before Collie was carried off the field on a stretcher. There were more important things at hand than whether or not the official got the call right.

      Hopefully the reports on Collie will be positive. I’ll update this post when I hear more.

      Update: Collie is said to be “sitting up and responsive” in the Colts’ locker room, which is great news.

      External Sports, NFL

      Bucs may not be the best in the NFC, but they continue to compete

      November 7, 2010 /

      I didn’t believe Raheem Morris when he said the Bucs were the best team in the NFC. I don’t even think he believes that the Bucs are the best team in the NFC.

      But if they play every week as hard as they did in Atlanta on Sunday, then they’re going to stay in the thick of things in the conference.

      The Falcons beat their division foes 27-21 to take sole possession of first place in the NFC South, but it wasn’t without a couple of close calls. After Atlanta took a 27-14 lead late in the third quarter on a Matt Bryant 41-yard field goal, Michael Spurlock returned the following kickoff for an 89-yard touchdown to cut the Falcons’ lead to 27-21. Tampa Bay’s defense then shut down Atlanta’s offense after a failed onsides kick and following a Josh Freeman interception in the fourth quarter.

      But in the end, the Falcons’ defense saved the day by stopping LeGarrette Blount on 4th-and-1 from the Atlanta 2-yard line. Blount thought he had picked up the first down, but it was clear that he was stopped short and with the Bucs out of timeouts, the Falcons were able to run out the rest of the clock (roughly two minutes) after picking up a first down.

      Sunday showed that the Bucs are moving in the right direction but they also still have a ways to go – especially Freeman. He made a couple of great throws in crucial moments during the game, but he threw an interception after locking onto receiver Mike Williams early in the fourth quarter and he also mismanaged the play clock (not totally his fault, as the Bucs were having issues getting the play into him) on Tampa’s final drive. Because of that, Morris had to call the team’s last time out and therefore wasn’t able to challenge Blount’s play on 4th-and-1. (The call probably could have stood anyway, but it would have been nice had the Bucs been able to challenge.) It’s games like these that remind fans that Freeman is a talented kid but he’s just that – a kid. He should continue to get better though.

      Tampa’s run defense needs to improve as well. Atlanta is going to get its yards on the ground with Michael Turner and Jason Snelling, but the Bucs need to improve in that area if they’re going to compete down the stretch. The Falcons rushed for 130 yards and because of that, they controlled the game throughout (even the Bucs gave them a couple of scares in the second half).

      That said, Morris has something brewing in Tampa. He has his team believing that they can win every week and even though they’re often dominated in terms of time of possession and total yards, they’re rarely dominated on the scoreboard (where it counts). They produce some big plays and have that gnat-like ability to hang around late in games.

      Maybe they’ll hang around all year, too.

      External Sports, NFL

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