I received a text from my cousin tonight at 8:49pm that simply said "VICK!" and I immediately knew....My Philadelphia Eagles had just signed Michael Vick - an athlete who was once the greatest one-man show I have ever seen.
Now, I really don't remember watching Bo Jackson. Oh, I remember the commercials and his days as a DH with the White Sox, but I just didn't pay attention to sports outside of Philly in the late 80's when Bo was scaling walls in Kansas City and running over linebackers in Los Angeles, so maybe he was a more spectacular athlete, but from 2002-2006 Mike Vick was SICK.
Some highlights:
When Mike was doing his thing in the Dirty, Dirty South, I was stuck in Indiana, watching my beloved Eagles at the local Buffalo Wild Wings. Every Sunday, I'd show up well before gametime so I could pick a spot in front of two TV's and instruct the waitress to turn the channel to my Eagles, of course, on one monitor and the Falcons game on the other. And you know what? I was probably slightly more fascinated in the Falcons game. It's just that I knew every time I would watch the Falcons, there was a phenomenal chance I was going to see something I had never witnessed before. Vick was faster than linebackers, stronger than defensive backs and could juke like Barry Sanders. And good God did he have a golden left arm. He could throw a football through a brick wall and no point on the football field was out of his reach. Vick was special, he was magic - the kind of player that you could not take yours eyes off because you didn't want to miss a chance to see something truly great.
Now, Vick is probably not the same player. I don't doubt that his arm is as strong as ever, but his speed, athleticism and awareness on the football field might never return after a two year sabbatical from the game thanks to his much-publicized dog fighting ring. But you never know. If he could show flashes of his old talent in special Vick-tailored packages for 5-8 snaps per game, then he is well-worth the 1.6 million dollar gamble the Eagles have made. I don't doubt that half of the fanatical dog-loving fans in Philly will cry foul and scream and pout until their recyclable panties are in a bunch, but I can guarantee you the other half are ecstatic about the possibilities the Eagles now have on offense. Speed kills, and an offense already loaded with burners Jeremy Maclin and Desean Jackson at wideout and Mcnabb and Westbrook in the backfield have just added a quarterback who could run a 4.30 40-yard dash and has more moves than any running back currently in the league. Can you imagine the possibilities in a redzone offense with Vick in the shotgun behind the biggest offensive line in pro football and two sub-4.4 receivers lined up wide with Westbrook in the slot? I'll bet you Andy Reid can.
