Tag Archives: Michael Vick
2012 NFC East predictions: Are the Cowboys playoff bound?
Can the Dallas Cowboys make the playoffs in 2012? Historically the NFC East has been one of the toughest divisions in the NFL and that tendency should again hold true in the upcoming season. Last season, the New York Giants won the NFC East with a 9-7 record on the last week of the regular season with a win over the Cowboys. With the offseason upgrades of the Washington Redskins and the way the Philadelphia Eagles ended 2011, any of the four teams are capable of becoming division champs in 2012. Here are the 2012 NFC East final standing predictions and team records.
Eagles draft QB Foles: Trade bait or Vick’s replacement?
With the 88th pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, the Philadelphia Eagles selected Nick Foles, quarterback out of Arizona. For some this came as a surprise. Why would the Eagles take a QB in the third round? They already have Michael Vick and a capable backup in Mike Kafka? Was Foles taken as future trade bait or could the Eagles be eyeing him as the eventual replacement for Michael Vick?
Can Eagles’ Mike Vick make up for the loss of Jason Peters?
It’s always sunny in Philadelphia , RIGHT ? Well that’s what the show says but so far they havent included the Philadelphia Eagles in that show . The clouds rolled in again this week when news broke that Jason Peters had torn his Achilles tendon . Football injuries in march are bad breaks . When its a player like Peters and you’re preparing for an “all in ” run at a championship they can be devastating.
NFL Week 16 picks, predictions: Vick, Eagles ready for dogfight?
Week 16 in the NFL is sure to bring good tidings to some teams that are jockeying for playoff positioning while leaving others with the dreaded re-gifted fruitcake also known as another season without a playoff appearance.
Eagles Road to Super Bowl XLVI is Improbable not Impossible
If someone were to say today that the Philadelphia Eagles are going to the Super Bowl this season most NFL fans would laugh and who could really blame them. After all just two short weeks ago the Eagles were all but eliminated from post season contention with twice as many losses as wins with their abysmal 4-8 record. Now, after back-to-back impressive outings in which the Eagles have outscored their opponents 71-29 things are a bit more interesting for Philadelphia as their playoff hopes are very much alive, making a trip to Indianapolis and Super Bowl XLVI improbable, but not impossible.
First things first. If the Eagles are to get to the Super Bowl they have to make the playoffs and in order to that they have to win the division; and yes, they still can. The Eagles currently trail both the 8-6 Dallas Cowboys and the 7-7 New York Giants in the NFC East standings. Despite their current divisional ranking, if all three teams finish the season at 8-8 the Eagles will win the division by virtue of owning the tie breakers. Thanks to the Eagles friendly schedule, they have the inside edge to win the division.
In Week 16 Michael Vick and Eagles will take on the NFC East leading Cowboys and Tony Romo in a Week 8 rematch. If you’ll recall, the Eagles dominated that Sunday Night game 34-7 as Vick completed 21 of 28 passes for almost 300 yards and a couple of touchdowns. Additionally LeSean McCoy broke loose early and often carrying the ball 30 times for 185 yards and two scores of his own. The Cowboys come into their Week 16 rematch without DeMarco Murray who is out for the season and a hobbled Felix Jones — hamstring injury. This puts all the pressure on Tony Romo and everyone knows how Romo usually performs under pressure; especially in December. The Eagles should have no problem running away with this one.
The other team in the NFC East chase is the New York Giants. Week 16 has the Giants battling their in-state rival New York Jets. Both teams are coming off subpar performances that yielded a loss in Week 15 so look for stronger showings this week with the edge going to the Jets because of their ability to run the ball and control tempo.
So, if the Eagles beat the Cowboys and the Jets beat the Giants the standings going into Week 17, the final week of the NFL regular season, would look like this. Cowboys 8-7, Eagles 7-8, Giants 7-8. Then it gets interesting.
In Week 17 the Eagles will host a tough Washington Redskins’ team. The Eagles beat the Redskins back in Week 6, 20-13 at FedEx Field behind McCoy’s 126 yards on the ground. For the other NFC East competitors it’s pretty simple. The Giants play the Cowboys at MetLife Stadium in a rematch of Week 14; a game that the Giants won 37-34 on late game heroics by Eli Manning and a blocked field goal attempt as time expired.
If Weeks 16 and 17 follows expectations then the NFC East standings at the end of the regular season would be Eagles 8-8, Giants 8-8, and Cowboys 8-8. Philadelphia would have taken the first step to doing the improbable by making the playoffs as the NFC’s No. 4 seed. The next step would be getting to the Super Bowl.
When you start breaking down which team has the best chance of getting to the Super Bowl at the start of the playoffs you have to throw the records out the window. Last season the Green Bay Packers were far from the best team in the league as they entered the playoffs at 10-6 having to win their last two regular season games just to make it to the post season. No, the Packers weren’t the best in 2010, they were just the hottest, and so would the 2011 Eagles be if they were to run the table and make the playoffs. Despite what would be and 8-8 record, the Eagles would be riding momentum and they have the talent on both sides of the ball to beat the San Francisco 49ers, New Orleans Saints, and the aforementioned Green Bay Packers making an improbable run to the Super Bowl, quite the possibility.
Only time will tell what the playoff future holds for the Philadelphia Eagles. With that said, if the Eagles make the playoffs who would want to face them in a one and done scenario? In the blink of an eye they could explode and be up 21-0 and the game could be over. I know, so could the Packers or Saints, but that would be expected. No one is expecting the Eagles to make any sort of run so of all the NFC playoff teams, they would have the greatest potential to catch someone off guard. I wouldn’t want to play them. Would you?
Aaron Moon is the CEO and a Featured Journalist for The Penalty Flag. An active duty Navy Chief and avid writer, Aaron is a lifelong Bears’ fan who writes about his team from a critics’ point of view. You can contact Aaron on facebook or follow him on Twitter @DA_Bear_Truth. Contact Aaron directly by emailing him at amoon@thepenaltyflagblog.com.
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Should the Eagles Lose Out to Better their 2012 Season?
Should the Philadelphia Eagles lose out to better their 2012 season? Recently, that has been the question under fire in Philadelphia. The bitter fans of ‘The City of Brotherly Love’ have been arguing for weeks about this. True fans would say that you can never root against your own team, however, Philadelphia fans are a rare breed. Not only are they blunt and brutal but with the nightmare that is the Philadelphia Eagles, these fans have become angry, frustrated and merciless. So merciless that these fans are actually willing to kick the team while they are down and root against them. Some of fans will claim it is for the good of the team, but is it?
Some Eagles fans will claim that losing out is the best option for Philadelphia because of next year’s draft. If the Eagles do lose the rest of their games their record would be 5-11. They would be in the bottom six teams in the league which would give them a high draft pick. This upcoming draft also looks to be a fairly strong one with great quarterbacks and running backs up for grabs. However, could Eagles’ fans really rely on Andy Reid to make a smart decision with such a high draft pick? Remember how past first round picks such as Freddie Mitchell, Jerome McDougle, Shawn Andrews, Broderick Bunkley and Brandon Graham, didn’t turn out as planned. Also, if the team is able to draft a player like Andrew Luck or RG3, will they now that they have signed Vick to such a huge contract? This could cause the team even more controversy and could hurt the 2012 season.
On the other hand, the Eagles do still have a chance to make the playoffs. As SI writer, Peter King calls it, the NFC LEast is the worst division in the NFL. The top two teams are tied at 7-6. The Eagles could finish 8-8 and still win the division and make playoffs. If the Eagles can win out, and the Giants and Cowboys win only one of their last three games, the Eagles will have a chance. The Eagles would have the best divisional record and would be able to win tie breakers against the Cowboys and Giants, which would ultimately give the team a playoff berth. A spot in the playoffs gives any team a chance to win it all. Last year, the sixth team to make the playoffs in the NFC, the Green Bay Packers, won the Super Bowl. This could be a great opportunity for the Eagles.
With all that being said, is it worth it for the Eagles to make an attempt at the playoffs this year or should they just lose out? Added victories this season could lock Andy Reid in for another year. That could also mean that the hated, defensive coordinator, Juan Castillo would stick around. The team would not get the better draft pick and could end up getting crushed in the first round of the playoffs as everyone would expect. So when negative Eagles’ fans say it is in the best interest of the team, to lose out, are they right?
Jessie Zahner is an NFL team writer for The Penalty Flag. She can be contacted at jzahner@thepenaltyflagblog.com
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Run Forest Run: Tebow, Vick and Newton Causing Fits for NFL Defenses
Running quarterbacks. They are truly a defensive coordinator’s worst nightmare. Just when you think you have them in your clutches they pull off some nifty move and dart up field for a big gain. Just when you think a team is going to go three and out someone like Tim Tebow, Cam Newton or Michael Vick will move the chains by making a play with their feet.
It’s not like defensive coordinators don’t plan for things like that. Defensive coordinators like to assign “spies” or “rovers” to keep these guys in check but it rarely works. You just have to cross your fingers and hope your offense can outscore their offense or hope that guy just has a bad day.
Cause on a bad day you might get a 13-yard rushing performance like Tebow had in last Sunday’s win versus the Minnesota Vikings or the 18-yard rushing game Newton had in his very first game of the season. You might even get a 25-yard performance like the one Michael Vick had in a loss to the Falcons. Vick even lost two fumbles in that game.
But low and behold if you catch them on a good day. You know, one of those days that defensive coordinators relive over and over in their sleep. Days like the three-touchdown rushing performance Newton had in a win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. Days like the 118-yard rushing day Tebow had in a win over the Oakland Raiders in Oakland a month ago. Even a day like Michael Vick had running for 97 yards with only 11 carries in a win versus the St. Louis Rams.
Days when nothing a defensive coordinator throws at these guys seems to work. Even when you think you have slowed Tebow down and the game is within reach, you look up and he has torched you with two passing touchdowns to seal the game.
You can see the effect these guys have when they are in the game. The Panthers are the eighth best scoring team in the league this year scoring 24.2 points-per-game with Cam Newton at the helm. Last year they were dead last scoring only 12.2 points-per-game. If the Carolina Panthers’ defense could stop anybody this team could be playoff-bound.
The Denver Broncos were only 1-4 before inserting Tebow into the lineup. They have gone 6-1 since inserting Tebow as a starter and are tied with the Oakland Raiders for the division lead. Denver’s scoring only improved by .6 of a point with Tebow starting but Tebow takes care of the ball and the defense has shaved seven points off the 28 points-per-game they were giving up before he became quarterback.
Philadelphia hasn’t had quite the success they had last season but the offense has produced points and the Eagles are the second best rushing team in the league behind….yeah you guessed it; the Denver Broncos. Philadelphia’s defense has been terrible but that doesn’t obscure the fact that Vick needs to take better care of the ball. He has thrown 11 interceptions so far this year as opposed to six interceptions all of last season. He has also matched his total for lost fumbles from last season with three so far this year.
But the blueprint is there and teams know they can score with running quarterbacks running the show. Conversely, defenses have recognized how hard it is to defend against these guys. Don’t believe me? Just ask the sleep-deprived defensive coordinators they will be facing this week.
Roosevelt Hall is an NFL Featured Journalist for The Penalty Flag and can be contacted at RHall@ThePenaltyFlagBlog.com. Follow him on Twitter @rhall_tpfb.
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Vick Ready to Play During Mop Up Duty
Michael Vick has missed the last three Philadelphia Eagles’ games with broken ribs and in his absence the Eagles have gone 1-2 and have fallen out of the NFC playoff picture.
Vick took part in the team’s light practice today and said he intends to play Sunday against Miami. Vick was upbeat afterward and said he was able to throw without pain.
“Threw the ball around a little bit and just gained confidence in the areas where I’d felt hampered a little bit,” Vick said. “It feels like I haven’t played in a month or so … I’m happy that I completed practice, and I’m looking forward to a great week.”
Vick said it was important to finish strong and agreed with a questioner that these final four games will be a test of his leadership.
After signing a $100 million-dollar you’re forced to start him eventually no matter where you are in the standings.
Philly Sports reported “Andy Reid had expressed concern about Vick’s ability to get full torque on the ball when he throws, which apparently kept him from returning Thursday at Seattle, when backup Vince Young threw four interceptions.”
Asked about speculation surrounding Eagles coach Andy Reid, with the team 4-8, Vick said: “I’m not concerned about coach Reid’s situation. I think everything’s going to be just fine. We all know — we had our bad breaks this year, to be honest, Let’s be candid right now. We’ve had our bad breaks, games we should have won. We’ve put ourselves in awesome positions to be in the ballgame, and then just couldn’t pull it out, whether on offense or defense. Honestly, I just don’t think coach Reid had anything to do with that.
“To hear (speculation about Reid) really upsets me … I just know everything’s going to be fine.”
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Sorry Michael, LeSean Deserved that Money
So far this year, LeSean McCoy is averaging 18.9 attempts per game, and guess what Andy? He is leading the league in yards per game. He leads the league or is tied for every statistical category for a running back.
Michael Vick, on the other hand, is only in the top ten in one statistical category (at number ten) and, worse still, he is averaging almost a one-to-one ratio of touchdowns to interceptions. On top of that, he has fumbled eight times. McCoy has fumbled zero times. So why did Michael Vick get the big contract?
At the beginning of the year, most people would agree that this team lived and died with Vick. While that is still true, why does it have to be? McCoy has shown that he can carry the team. This off-season he bulked up and it has shown. He has 896 yards, 103.1 yards per game, and nine touchdowns. This man should be getting the ball at least twenty-five times a game.
So is Michael Vick the defining player in the game? Yes, unfortunately for the wrong reasons though. He is more the reason they have lost games this year than won them. The Eagles have a minus seven in the turnover ratio. SEVENTEEN of those are on Vick.
At the time the deal was made to make Michael Vick a one-hundred million dollar man again, there were questions about his health, and those have definitely cropped up, but no one really questioned his ability to win games.
That is where the issues have really been this year: closing out games. On Monday, the Eagles went into the middle of the third quarter with a seven point lead, but by the middle of the fourth they were down by six. Isn’t the fourth quarter supposed to be the quarter when a bruising back like McCoy should be getting all the touches?
At this point, Vick is set as the quarterback, but that doesn’t mean McCoy cannot dominate touches the way Matt Forte does in Chicago. Jay Cutler has become a better quarterback for it. Let McCoy carry this team, he has shown that he can handle it.
Dashiell Davis is an NFL team writer for The Penalty Flag. He can be contacted at DDavis@thepenaltyflagblog.com
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Terrell Owens critical of Donovan McNabb’s contract extension
Terrell Owens was watching his old quarterback, Donovan McNabb, get destroyed by Michael Vick and his former team the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football.
No team has ever scored as many points (59) as the Eagles did against Donovan McNabb and the Washington Redskins.
Owens tweeted during the game “How do u justify a 78 million dollar contract w/this type of performance?”
McNabb finished the night 17 of 31, for 295 yards, and two touchdowns. It was the first four and out’s that set the tone for the Eagles accomplishments.
