Only 18 months ago, through the cold, steel bars of a jail cell Michael Vick was on the inside looking out. Even when Vick was released from federal prison he was confined, to his home, serving two months of house arrest.
This season, when healthy, Vick is making NFL defenses wish they could confine him in some way, shape or form.
The Washington Redskins are the most recent Vick-tims. In the Monday night match-up, the news heading into the game was the new contract former Philadelphia Eagles QB Donovan McNabb signed. A $78 million deal. By the end of the 1st quarter, it was Vick who looked to be worth $78 million, not McNabb.
On the very first play of the game, Vick launched an 88-yard bomb to the streaking DeSean Jackson for a touchdown. 18-seconds into the game, the Eagles had the lead, and there was no looking back.
The second touchdown pass from Vick came with 5:02 left in the 1st quarter. Vick added another TD on the ground and Jerome Harrison poured salt on the wound with a 50-yard touchdown scamper with just under 2:00 left in the quarter.
The Washington Redskins put up 28 yards in the first quarter. The Eagles put up 28 points.
The Redskins scored when Darel Young caught a 3-yard touchdown pass from McNabb. However, that score came after Vick hit Jeremy Maclin for a 48-yard touchdown. Eagles continued to pour on the offensive assault and led the Redskins at halftime, 45-14.
Vick had accumulated statistics that some quarterbacks don’t achieve over the course of two games. Three passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns.
The second half was much of the same, a meticulous dismemberment. And a less than stellar showing by the Redskins offense. The Eagles would win the game 59-28. The 59-points are the most ever given up by a Mike Shanahan coached team. McNabb finished with a mediocre game, completing 17-of-31, passing for 295 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions.
Vick finished 20-for-38, with 333 yards and four touchdowns. Adding another two touchdowns on 80 yards rushing.
His days behind bars are history and, on Monday night, from behind bars to the NFL helmet, Vick made history.
Vick became the first player in NFL history to throw for at least 300 yards, rush for at least 50 yards, throw four TDs and rush for two. The Eagles, as a whole, set team records for total yards in a game (592) and points in a half (45). With the win, the Eagles moved into a first place tie with the New York Giants atop the NFC East. The Eagles are 4-0 this season when Vick starts and finishes the game.
Vick has a total of 1,350 total yards passing this season, with 11 throwing touchdowns and four rushing touchdowns. As an aside, Vick hasn’t thrown an interception or lost a fumble this season.
Unfortunately, Vick hasn’t been a staple part of the Eagles offense all year. He missed three games due to injury. This may become a factor during NFL MVP discussions.
He seems to have newfound prospective on and off the field, and better vision passing. His scrambling ability is still as dynamic and electric as ever. Against the Redskins, Vick moved past Hall of Fame quarterback Steve Young, for second all-time for yards rushing by a quarterback. Vick now trails Randall Cunningham by roughly 700 yards.
Only time will tell if Vick can scramble his way to an NFL MVP, despite everything he’s been through. If he does, it would be the ultimate Vick-tory.
Leave a Reply