Key to Eagles Success: Less Vick, More McCoy

Week 1 nearly turned disastrous for the Philadelphia Eagles, who narrowly escaped with a victory. Leading 10-3 at the half, Philadelphia blew the lead by surrendering 13 unanswered points in the third and fourth quarters.

It wasn't until quarterback Michael Vick threw for a four-yard touchdown to third-year tight end Clay Harbor with just over a minute to play that the Eagles finally re-took the lead for good. The Eagles may have gotten the eventual W, but in the end the Browns may have gotten more out of this one.

Cleveland's rookie quarterback Brandon Weeden struggled all the way through, completing just 12 of his 35 pass attempts for 118 yards and four interceptions. But considering it was his first NFL start and he received little support from the running game, led by fellow rookie RB Trent Richardson, this was expected.

Philadelphia's offense controlled the game clock, running for 150 yards on 30 attempts and possessing the ball for nearly 36 minutes of play. Despite his 317 yards and 2 TD passes, Vick had one of the worst passing games of his career. Setting a career-high in attempts, with 56, Vick completed just 52% of his passes and tossed four interceptions to Cleveland defenders, including one of which went for a touchdown.

What's most confusing about the game is the fact that Vick threw so many passes while All Pro running back LeSean McCoy carried the ball just 20 times throughout the game. Last season's fifth-ranked rushing offense was extremely effective with its 30 total carries, averaging five yards per carry. Vick's career yards per pass attempt sits at just over seven yards, while he managed just around 5.5 Y/A Sunday against Cleveland's 24th ranked pass defense.

So what went wrong for Philadelphia's offense, and why did they manage just 17 points against a team that ranked third-to-last in scoring offense last season and threw four picks? Simple. The Eagles used too much of Vick, and not enough McCoy.

There are numbers that prove my theory.

Last season, McCoy ran the ball more than 20 times in a game on five separate occasions. He ran for 100 or more yards in four of those games and scored six touchdowns on the ground as the Eagles posted a 4-1 record. In the remaining of McCoy's 15 games last season, he ran the ball under 20 times and recorded just two 100-yard games but, more importantly, Philadelphia managed just a 3-7 record over that span.

Sure, McCoy scored more times on the ground (11) in games in which he received less touches, but overall he was much more productive when comparing yards/game and TDs/game.

>20 carries: 118 yards, 1.2 TDs per game

<20 1.1="1.1" 71.9="71.9" carries:="carries:" game="game" i="i" per="per" tds="tds" yards="yards">

How Andy Reid and his coaching staff has yet to realize this and put this into effect, A.K.A. give McCoy more carries, is beyond me. I'm sure they have realized it and maybe are just too stubborn to take the ball out of Vick's hands and into the 24-year old back's hands.

But I will not stop here. No, I have just a bit more findings to share with you concerning Vick's poor passing day against the Browns. From what I've seen, Vick is actually the opposite of McCoy. He's most effective in smaller doses.

In his eight seasons with Atlanta and Philadelphia, Vick has never thrown more than 50 passes in a single game, which is exactly why this puzzles me so much. Over his career he has passed 40+ times just eight times (including Sunday) and has posted a record of 1-6-1 in those games. Another interesting stat of Vick's is that Sunday was also just his second career 4 interception game, the other coming last October against the Bills, a game in which he attempted 40 passes.

His TD/INT ratio in those eight games sits at 12/14 with a completion percentage of a mere 55. Clearly he has proved ineffective and the results haven't been in his favor when receiving a considerable amount of attempts per game. Other quarterbacks in pass-heavy offenses such as Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers and even Ben Roethlisberger can handle a large workload (in terms of pass attempts/game) and still be effective. But that's just not Vick's style.

His career record as starter, when you take away those eight games, is 54-31. Since taking over the starting role for Philly at the beginning of the 2010 regular season, Vick's record is 16-9. Taking away any games in which he threw for 40+ passes and his record as the Eagles' starter stands at 15-5.

He's 2-4 in the postseason during his career, but 2-0 in postseason games in which he doesn't throw an interception. As quarterback, mistake-free football is vital. And, though it isn't quite evident in his postseason history (hasn't thrown 40+ in a postseason game before), Vick's team, whether it was in his Falcon days or his current Philly days, has the best shot of victory when he's passing between 20 and 30 times.

And McCoy is most effective when he receiving more than 20 carries a game. So why, exactly, has Reid and Co. chosen to ignore this interesting finding? Well, that's beyond me. Does anyone really know what goes on inside of his head?

McCoy's career-high in attempts per game is 30, and that number has been reached just one time. But I'd expect him to see 30+ on numerous occasions this season. He should've reached that feat this past Sunday actually, considering the Eagles held a lead for nearly the entire third quarter of play.

McCoy ran the ball just five times in the third while Vick attempted 12 passes, two of which were intercepted by Joe Haden and L.J. Fort. Reid should have come out of the halftime break pounding the ball with McCoy to run down some clock. With a 7-point lead, why wouldn't you?

Anyways, maybe Reid will get it right eventually. If he wants to improve to 2-0 this weekend he will absolutely need to find the right mixture (30+ touches for McCoy; >40 attempts for Vick). Baltimore's defense––two turnovers forced, four sacks in 44-13 victory over Cincinnati Sunday night––will not be taking it easy on Vick and this offense. And why should they?

McCoy will need to see the ball early and often in order to be successful against a team such as Baltimore.

Note: I do not own the above images. No copyright infringement intended

Is Michael Vick Right or Wrong About Officials?

Another week gone by, another Michael Vick injury.

Just a short week after Philadelphia Eagles' starting quarterback Michael Vick collided with a teammate a suffered a minor concussion, Vick suffers what was originally announced as a broken right hand in a 29-16 loss to NFC East counterpart New York Giants.

Yesterday it was revealed that he simply bruised his non-throwing hand, according to head coach Andy Reid. But nonetheless, the usually soft-spoken Vick had some strong words for the game's officials in a post-game news conference (as displayed in the youtube video below).

While he does raise a good point in terms of him taking hits in the pocket that quarterbacks otherwise would draw a penalty flag for, I simply don't think this was a smart move for Vick.

It's apparent that he has yet to come to the realization that NFL Officials (not "refs," because there is only one "referee" on the field at a time) are bound to treat Vick differently. It's rare that Vick sits in the pocket and takes a hit, seeing as he loves to move around and extend plays. He's a whole different breed of quarterback than the rest of the Manning's, Brady's, Brees' and Rivers' out there.

Like Ben Roethlisberger in Pittsburgh, Vick holds on to the ball a bit longer and is going to be taking some hits. Whether or not they draw flags or not, that's solely up to the judgement of the referee.

There's no doubt he could've drawn a flag or two in Sunday's game against New York, but although he says "I'm not trying to complain or anything," that's pretty much exactly what he's doing here. And I don't think the league will be very happy to hear all of this.

The best thing Mike Vick could do right now, is to just stay quiet and keep doing what he does best: win football games for Philadelphia. If he can get his team back on track and bounce back from this 1-2 start, I think we will be seeing less and less of this. Philly is simply just frustrated by a slow start to the 2011 campaign.

Note to readers: This is my 200th post! Woo, that's a lot. Looking to add 200+ more in the near future! Thanks for supporting.

Video found on Youtube

Should Philadelphia Pursue Plaxico Burress??

Former Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress was recently released from prison after serving approximately two years of jail time for a gun charge.

Personally, I hate how much attention this story has gotten, and by writing this article I am only adding more fuel to the fire and helping to continue my frustration in the overly talked about Burress. But, the truth of the matter is that the 33-year old Super Bowl champion could be the difference between a borderline playoff team and a Super Bowl contender.

There are teams out there that are a few moves away from being in serious contention for a title. The first team that comes to mind is the Cleveland Browns. Cleveland has a very young offense, but if they get what they are expecting from their potential franchise quarterback (Colt McCoy) and can get targets such as Burress to add to McCoy's arsenal, who knows what will happen in Cleveland.

Although Cleveland seems to be a long-shot for Burress in 2011.

Footage of Burress being released last Monday (and being attacked by agent Drew Rosenhaus) shows Plaxico sporting a Philadelphia Phillies hat. Could this be a hint towards him wanting to join the Eagles? I certainly believe it could factor in.

Plus Eagles star quarterback Michael Vick has already shown interest in the 6'5'' wideout. Vick could help in mentoring Plax and aid in his rebound from the jail sentence. I mean, come on, Vick has already done a very good job in repairing his image, for the most part.

With former Indianapolis Colts' head coach, and Super Bowl champion, Tony Dungy mentoring Plax, it looks like he is already well on his way to recovering from his mistake and moving on with his life.

The Eagles sure could use another player such as Burress to complement play-making youngster DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin. All Burress really needs to do is run routes and catch the ball, so I really don't think the idea of him being 'out of shape' would prevent the Eagles from pursuing Burress.

I say Philadelphia pulls the trigger and adds Burress once the lockout is lifted.

Photo credit: Associated Press

Peyton Hillis, Michael Vick two finalists for Madden Cover

The Cleveland Browns haven't been to the playoffs since 2002, and have had just three winning seasons since 1990. But, when it comes to Cleveland's fan base, they are as strong as ever.

With the 32-player tournament to determine the NFL player to grace the cover of Madden '12 down to just two players, Cleveland's crazy fans managed to vote their running back, Peyton Hillis, past Super Bowl MVP Aaron Rodgers.

Philadelphia Eagles' quarterback Michael Vick seemed to be an early favorite to win it all, and I still think he may very do just that by beating out Hillis. Either way, just getting this far is quite the accomplishment for the 240-pound bull-of-a-running back.

Hillis never rushed for more than 348 yards and six touchdowns in a given season throughout his college career at Arkansas, and was a seventh round pick (227th overall) of the Denver Broncos in 2008.

In Denver's system, Hillis ran for 397 yards and six touchdowns on 81 carries (4.9 YPC) in two seasons. Last off-season he was moved to Cleveland in the Brady Quinn trade, and made an impact on his new team right away.

Hillis ran for a touchdown in each of his first four games, which included two games of 100-plus yards. By season's end, Hillis had racked up a career-high 1,177 yards and 11 touchdowns on 270 carries.

We all know of Vick's story, as well.

Released from home confinement on July 20, 2009, Vick returned to the league with the Philadelphia Eagles that August. With a limited role, it didn't seem like Vick would ever fully return to Pro Bowl form having been out of the league since 2006.

That was, until this past season. After an injury to starter Kevin Kolb during a week one matchup with the eventual Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers, Vick took over as starter and never looked back. Before his jail time, Vick was known as an inaccurate passer who was always looking to run. But, apparently he worked on this problem while playing in jail(?) because he then proceeded to set career-highs in yards (3,018), touchdown passes (21) and completion percentage (62.6).

Of course, he still managed to wow everyone with his legs, running 676 yards and a career-high nine touchdowns. Vick's Eagles were knocked off by Aaron Rodgers and the Packers in the opening round of the playoffs, but that does not take anything away from Vick's phenomenal season. Like I said with Ben Roethlisberger and his off-field issues...winning seems to cure all. Apparently everyone forgets how much they used to hate this guy?

Unfortunately I expect Vick will win the voting, and I say unfortunately because I would love to see Hillis win cover athlete.

The winner will be announced on April 27 on ESPN2 at 4 P.M. Stay tuned.

Photo: Matt Sullivan/Getty Images

Michael Vick Wins Comeback Player of the Year Award; Tom Brady Unanimously Voted as AP Most Valuable Player

Yesterday the league announced that Philadelphia Eagles' quarterback Michael Vick had won the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year award, and rightly so.

In his first full season back after serving jail time for his participation in dog fighting, Vick led the Eagles to a 10-6 record and an NFC East title. His Eagles were one and done in the playoffs after failing to come back against the Pack, who were eventual NFC Champions, in the opening round.

Before his jail term, Vick was a run-oriented quarterback and was always looking for a running lane rather than an open receiver. But this year, his throwing arm seemed remarkably stronger, and more accurate. Not only was he concentrated on passing the ball first, be he was also a more effective runner when he did tuck the ball away and take off down the field.

Vick wasn't even named the opening day starter, and only got the chance to start because of the concussion that Kevin Kolb suffered in the first week of the season against Green Bay. Vick ended the season with 3,018 passing yards and 21 touchdowns, both career-highs. He also set a career-high with nine rushing touchdowns (100 attempts, 676 yards). Even more impressive? He threw just six interceptions, and didn't throw his first until week 11.

If Tom Brady didn't have a near flawless regular season--not postseason, the award is given out according to regular season play--then Vick may have had a shot at winning the MVP as well. Instead, Brady became the first player in history to win unanimously win the league MVP award.

Brady led his Patriots to a league-best 14-2 record, and threw a league-high 36 touchdown passes. The NFL Offensive Player of the Year (handed out earlier this week) threw for just shy of 4,000 yards (3,900) and just four interceptions, which is the least amount he has thrown in one season discounting 2008 when he missed the entire season.

Other awards handed out this week: Sam Bradford and Ndamukong Suh won Offensive and Defensive Rookies of the Year respectively. And rightly so.

Photo credit

Michael Vick: Kirby Lee/NFL

Tom Brady: Kirby Lee/NFL

Mr. Heck's Regular Season Awards

With a crazy 2010 regular season finally in the books, it's time for my annual "Regular Season Awards." I know what you're saying, and yes my title for these awards isn't very creative, but it will have to do until I can come up with a fancier name, sorry.

Most Valuable Player: Tom Brady

Everyone seems to wanna give this award to Michael Vick. But, the truth is Brady was far more consistent throughout the season than Vick. While Vick went his first seven games without an interception, he threw six in the last five games of the season. Brady through four all season and ended up playing the final 11 games without an interception. Twelve of Brady's 16 games he threw for multiple touchdowns and had a quarterback rating of 100 or better in 12 games. Vick was an all-around solid player this season, but Brady put up numbers reminiscent of New England's undefeated regular season in 2007.

Runner ups: Michael Vick, Phillip Rivers

Rookies of the Year: LeGarrette Blount (offense) and Ndamukong Suh (defense)

For Blount, the road to the NFL was a rocky one after his punching incident in week one of the college football season last year after his Oregon Ducks fell to the Boise State Broncos. He was suspended indefinitely and his chances at going pro were put in jeopardy. Tampa Bay, looking for a consistent runner who could play on first and second downs, claimed Blount off waivers (from the Titans) on September 6. It wasn't until week four against the Cardinals that Blount broke out and raised some eye brows with a 120 yard, two TD performance. He went on to break 1,000 yards rushing with four 100-yard games and a couple of highlight reel plays (jumped completely over two defenders on two separate occasions this season). Blount's Bucs just barely missed out on the playoffs this season, unfortunately.

Suh, a Heisman trophy finalist in 2009, made an immediate impact in the NFL this season. The 6'4'', 307 pounder was first among defensive tackles with 10 sacks as he started all 16 games this season. Suh's 66 total tackles was seventh-best among defensive lineman. The former Nebraska Cornhusker forced fear in to his opposition with a big hit he put on Cleveland Browns' quarterback Jake Delhomme in the preseason. Suh was fined $7,500 by commissioner Roger Goodell for the hit in which he slammed Delhomme down to the turf. Suh, unlike my offensive rookie of the year Blount, was awarded a Pro Bowl selection this season. This is the first of what should be many in the years to come for Ndamukong.

Runner ups: Sam Bradford (offense) and Eric Berry (defense)

Breakout Player: Arian Foster

Houston seemed to be lost for words as soon as they learned that their rookie running back Ben Tate would miss the rest of the season after suffering a leg injury in the very first preseason game. A couple weeks later they would discover a guy who would carry the workload for a majority of the season. Foster, who ran the ball just 54 times for 257 yards and three touchdowns in his rookie season last year, ran all over the Indianapolis Colts in week one (a franchise-record 331 to be exact). Foster put up seven 100-yard games and five multi-TD performances throughout the season, and ended the 16-game schedule with a league-high 1,616 yards and 16 touchdowns on the ground. Foster is on the radar in 100 percent of fantasy leagues after this season.

Runner ups: Peyton Hillis, Cameron Wake, Brandon Lloyd

Comeback Player of the Year: Michael Vick

He didn't get my MVP vote, but the fact that he went from not playing in the league at all in 2007 and 2008, to just 13 pass attempts and 24 rush attempts in 2009, to a Pro Bowl selection and an MVP-type performance in 2010 warrants this award. Vick's career-high 3,018 yards and 21 touchdown passes showed the NFL world that Vick can--and will--throw the ball. His 676 rushing yards and nine TDs sure did help too. I look forward to seeing what he and the Eagles do in the playoffs.

Runner ups: Brian Urlacher, Braylon Edwards

Biggest Disappointment: Brett Favre

What can I say? After last season's career year, we probably should have been expecting a letdown in 2010, but yet we're still all disappointed that it had to end this way. His consecutive games played streak was ended and the last image we may have of Favre is of him being slammed in to the turf by a rookie defensive lineman, causing a concussion on a rock solid Soldier Field surface in a 40-14 loss. Favre's 19 interceptions and Minnesota's 6-10 record sure didn't help matters. There's still a chance he could come back in 2011, but I really do not expect it to happen. I think he has finally discovered that his body can't take the beating any longer.

Runner ups: Donovan McNabb

Coach of the Year: Lovie Smith (Chicago)

Green Bay and Minnesota made all the headlines and front pages this off-season, but it was in Chicago where all the hard work finally paid off during the 2010 season. Quarterback Jay Cutler put up over 3,000 yards and 20 touchdown passes for the fourth straight season and was able to protect the ball a little better than last year, going from 26 int's from '09 to 16 this season. He had to adjust to yet another offense as Mike Martz was brought in as the coordinator. But it was really Lovie's defense that was able to get the Bears' its first division title since the year they played Indy in the Super Bowl back in 2006. Good luck to Lovie and his Bears in the playoffs.

Runner ups: Todd Haley

If you have any other awards you would like to "hand out" feel free to inform me of them in the comment section.

Photo Credit
LeGarrette Blount: AP Photo/Bill Haber
Arian Foster: AP Photo/Dave Einsel
Brett Favre: AP Photo/Ann Heisenfelt

Must-win for Houston Tonight at Lincoln Financial

Houston has been very lucky this season? If Peyton Manning wasn't having an off year they would not have a shot in hell to make the playoffs right now with a 5-6 record (2-2 in division). But, coming off a 20-0 defeat of division rival Tennessee, Houston seems to be on track to put themselves in the middle of the playoff hunt in the South.

Just one game behind the first place Colts and Jags (both 6-5), the Texans have the ability to put themselves atop the division--temporarily, at least--with a convincing win over Michael Vick and the high-flying 7-4 Eagles.

Tonight, at 8:20 on NFL Network, Michael Vick will test the Texans' 28th-ranked defense in front of NFL fans all over the country. This is Houston's chance to show the nation that they truly do deserve to be considered a playoff contender coming out of the South. Whether they will manage to beat out Indy for this division title is yet to be seen, considering they still have Baltimore, Denver and two more divisional matchups (TEN, JAC) left on their schedule.

Despite having the seventh-best offensive attack in the league (seventh in rushing, 15th in passing) and one of the game's best runners in Arian Foster, I really don't think Houston will manage to contain Vick.

Unfortunately for Houston, Philly is poised to put a beating on Houston. This is actually unfortunately for me as well--I had Houston making the playoffs for the first time in franchise history this offseason.

Vick puts the ball in the end zone four times tonight, three through the air and one on the ground. Philly wins the game 38-17. That's my prediction. Bold, I know, but hey someone's gotta do it.

Whatifsports.com says...

Philadelphia 21, Houston 18

Not quite as big a margin as I was predicting, but same outcome nevertheless. Vick didn't have any rushing yards on five attempts (Houston did manage to contain him), but threw for 198 yards and tossed two TDs. LeSean McCoy ran all over Houston for 112 yards and a score.

Jeremy Maclin's 15-yard catch and run from Vick, which he put in the end zone, allowed Philly to extend its lead to 21-10 early in the fourth quarter. Foster ran the ball in from 13 yards out with four and a half minutes to play, but Philly's defense stopped Matt Schaub's late-game surge.

This loss may be the end to any playoff run Houston was hoping to make this season, putting to waste their solid 4-2 start this year.

Photo Credit

Arian Foster: AP Photo/David J. Phillip

Vick Picks Apart Skins on National Television; Climbs up Rankings in Process

If there was any doubt in Philly that Michael Vick could lead this Eagles offense, it has surely been erased over the past two weekends.

First, Vick takes hold of the reins as Philadelphia defeats Indianapolis for the first time since Peyton Manning joined the franchise in 1998. Next, Vick picked apart Washington's defense for a franchise-record 59 points at Fedex Field last night.

Vick did it all. He did what he does best--ran for 80 yards and two touchdowns--and he completed 20 of his 28 pass attempts for 333 yards and four touchdowns. He also managed to protect the ball, which was very key in Philadelphia's record-breaking 42 point first half. The 31-point victory (59-28) was Philly's fourth road victory, making them one of the most successful road warriors so far this season at 4-1, along with the 5-0 Jets and 4-1 Steelers.

This game alone, despite the 'Skins 4-5 record, should place the Eagles inside the top five in this week's power rankings, especially with the Giants, Ravens, Steelers and Titans all losing their respective match ups.

Vick wasn't the only player to have a great game last night. Vick's top three receiving threats--DeSean Jackson (2 rec., 98 yards, 1 TD), Jeremy Maclin (4 rec., 79 yards, 1 TD) and Jason Avant (5 rec., 76 yards, 1 TD)--all had spectacular games, and Philly's run game accumulated 260 yards on the ground.

On defense, the Eagles picked off former teammate Donovan McNabb, fresh off his new contract extension, three times. One of those three picks was turned into a pick6 after the interceptor, defensive back Dimitri Patterson, returned the ball 40 yards for the eighth and final touchdown of the night.

Photo Credit

Michael Vick: AP Photo/Gail Burton

You've Just been 'Vick'-ed: Why Michael Vick Should be Philly's Starter

All the off-season hype of Donovan McNabb's bitter departure from Philly, his arrival in D.C., and the beginning of the Kevin Kolb era is now over. In fact, it abruptly ended when Kolb struggled to get anything going during the Eagles' week one matchup with the Green Bay Packers. Of course, he ended up being knocked out of the game early on after suffering a concussion.

Kolb went 5 for 10 for 24 yards as the Eagles trailed 13-3 at the half.

Vick stepped in after the break and led the first team offense to a 17-point second half, including 10 unanswered in the final quarter of play. If it wasn't for Aaron Rodgers lighting up Philadelphia's defense for two third quarter scoring drives, Vick's comeback bid would have been successful.

Vick stole the show with 175 passing yards and a late touchdown toss to Jeremy Maclin, and his 103 rushing yards on just 11 attempts.

Despite falling short of a victory, Vick's performance prompted Andy Reid to start him against Detroit the following week with Kolb recovering from his concussion. Again, Philadelphia's defense allowed quite a few points--32 to be exact. But, Vick kept up with Detroit's backup quarterback, Shaun Hill, leading the team to a 21-17 halftime lead.

The Eagles scored two second half touchdowns thanks to LeSean McCoy's pair of rushing touchdowns (4-yarder in third, 46-yarder in fourth). Vick finished the game with yet another stellar statline in his first start at QB since 2006: 21/34, 284 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT; 7 carries, 37 yards.

Known for his speed and ability to escape the rush, Vick made an impact in both faucets of the offense, both through the air and on the ground.

When the Eagles signed Vick to a contract last season, he knew he was going to be on the bench quite a bit and only relieve McNabb every couple of series when Reid implemented the wild cat offense. And he gladly took that role, knowing it was what he had to do to make a breakthrough back in to the league after serving his time in jail.

But personally, I think he has done enough to make up for his mistake. He seems to be much more mature now, after serving his time and I really think it's time he gets what he has earned, and that's a shot to be a starting NFL quarterback again.

He has proved that he still has the ability to make an impact at the pro level, and it doesn't seem fair that he's just getting demoted back down just because Kolb, who hasn't really shown that he's ready for this responsibility, has been sitting behind McNabb for a couple of years.

Andy Reid should be doing what is best for his team, and at this point it looks like Vick is what's best for this offense. Reid has been on a short leash for a while now, and if Kolb struggles in his return, Reid's hot seat will be on the verge of melting away. Reid's job in Philly is certainly on the line this season.

Photo Credit: AP Photo/Paul Sancya