After a frustrating first 11 games of the regular season, the Philadelphia Eagles have found a way to use quarterback Michael Vick effectively in the offense the last two weeks in wins over the Atlanta Falcons and New York Giants.
Prior to a Week 13 matchup against the Falcons, the only significant part about the Vick signing was a 34-yard run against the Chicago Bears in Week 11. In the first seven games of the season, he completed just 2-of-7 passes for a total of six yards. He also struggled to gain anything with his legs, running for just 27 yards on just 12 attempts. While it’s hard to criticize his performance because of the small amount of time he sees each game, these were far from the numbers expected from the once-dominant Vick.
Every time head coach Andy Reid called upon Vick at the beginning of the season, he just seemed completely out of sync in the Eagles’ offense. Players and viewers would hold their breath wondering if this would be the explosive play where Vick broke free down the field as he did a few years ago with the Falcons.
Instead, he appeared to struggle with helping the offense even gain just a few yards. After his signing was one of the most hyped-up stories at the beginning of the season, Vick was starting to be labeled as a bust by the media.
Now, Vick appears to be at a level where he can make major contributions to the Eagles offense after slowly progressing over the course of the season. In the wildcat formation, he has completed 3-of-4 passes for 80 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for two touchdowns as well.
With the playoffs quickly approaching, Vick has finally reached a playing level where Reid and the rest of the Eagles feel confident in his play-making ability. If he keeps this up for the rest of the season, he could make one dangerous weapon for Philadelphia come playoff time as he seems to progressively get better each week.
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