Three years ago today, the Eagles signed Michael Vick.
But more than celebrate the day, they’d prefer to move beyond the three-and-outs.
“It’s like an anniversary, huh? A celebration?” Eagles offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said, via Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer. “I knew exactly what we were getting. Even though I hadn’t met him three years ago, I will tell you, when we got him, it had been going on two years where he hadn’t played. However, even then, he was still one of the great players in the game. That was my thought process there.
“I do know he has really worked to play the quarterback position at a high level. Now he’s chased that perfection every day. He wants to become a master at that position, as well as being one of the dynamic players in the game.”
Granted, he didn’t look like that in the preseason opener, leading a pair of three-and-outs before leaving with a thumb injury.
That lack of a rhythm was what Mornhinweg referred to as “one of the things” that bothered him.
The coordinator referenced Vick’s pocket presence, saying he moved himself into a sack.
“He can get better there, and he’s certainly gotten better over the last couple years there,” Mornhinweg said. “Now I do say if it was a regular-season game...he would have done that better.”
Vick may never reach the transcendent heights he hinted at in Atlanta, but he’s with a staff that’s good at maximizing the talents of its players. (Andy Reid even made Kevin Kolb look good, which might be his greatest trick ever).
Whether Vick ever becomes a “master at that position” remains to be seen.