Michael Vick: Best quarterback in the NFL?
Donovan McNabb was ready to face his old team, the Philadelphia Eagles, Monday night, and redeem himself after being benched in his last game, a 37-25 loss to the Detroit Lions. He had just signed a five-year
deal worth up to $88 million with the Washington Redskins, and was ready to prove his worth. But the game quickly turned into his worst nightmare as Michael Vick made his case for being the best quarterback in the league.
The first play of the game was an 88-yard touchdown pass to DeSean Jackson. It kicked off a game that would see Vick throw for four touchdowns, and rush for another two. The final score was 59-28 for Philadelphia.
Vick threw for 333 yards, bumping his season total to 1350, he’s also thrown 11 touchdowns this season and has yet to be picked off. His quarterback rating is the best in the league at 115.1. Next on the
list is David Garrard with a rating of 104.9, and the only other quarterback with a rating over 100 is Philip Rivers, who has a rating of 102.9.
Not only is Vick the top passer in the league, he’s also 38th in rushing with 341 yards. He had 80 yards Monday night on eight carries.
There’s never been any question that Vick wasn’t a good quarterback. He’s mobile, he’s got a strong arm, and he wins games. But is he the best quarterback in the league? That honour usually goes to guys
named Ben Roethlisberger or Peyton Manning, but this year Vick is making a strong case to be included in that list.
The most astounding part of his terrific season is his touchdown to interception ratio. Every good quarterback has the occasional interception, even if it’s a tipped pass or a botched catch by a receiver,
but not Vick, not this year. In 153 attempts this year he has yet to give the ball to the other team. In comparison, Garrard has thrown seven picks while Rivers has thrown eight.
His completion percentage is 62.7, good but not as good as it could be. He was 20 for 28 against the Eagles after starting the game with 10 straight completions.
Vick is 4-2 as a starter this year, but he had only thrown seven passes on 3 October against the Redskins when he was knocked out of the game with an injury. The Eagles lost that game 17-12, and Vick missed
the next three games. When he came back, the team basically told him not to try as hard. That he shouldn’t be putting his head down and running into linebackers, he’s a passer, not a rusher after all, but when you’re as good as Vick is it’s hard to hold back.
The Eagles are 6-3 in their division and tied with the New York Giants, who have another top rated quarterback in Eli Manning. Their first game of the season against the Giants comes this Sunday at Lincoln
Financial Field. The game will be a very good test for both Vick and the Eagles; the Giants have the fourth ranked passing defence in the league, and top spot in the NFC East is at stake.
There must already be consideration that Vick is the NFCs top quarterback, and if he can continue his torrid pace and pick up a win against the Giants Sunday, there will be little doubt that he’s the best
in the NFL, at least this year.
The next step for Vick is playoff success. So far in his career he is 2-2 as a playoff starter. Oddly enough, both of his playoff losses came against the Eagles when he was with the Atlanta Falcons. A
division win and a Super Bowl appearance would without question establish Vick as the best quarterback, if not player, in the NFL.
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