Philadelphia Eagles to franchise Michael Vick; trade Kevin Kolb
Michael Vick is on his way to NFL stardom after almost being labelled as a convict. The Eagles have decided to put the franchise tag on Vick in the coming season. Hence, Vick will become a free agent in the off-season.
“If they franchise me, we'll see how that goes,” Vick said. “I'll leave it up to my agent to work everything out. . . . I'm expecting everything to go according to plan. We'll see what happens over the next couple of months. I've
just got to be patient and take it one day at a time.”
The quarterback was signed by the Eagles as a third string quarterback in 2009. In the 2010 season, he became Kevin Kolb’s backup after the Eagles traded starting quarterback Donovan McNabb to the Washington Redskins.
In the regular season, Kolb was injured and Vick was called to start in his place. He performed brilliantly and the fans loved him. The Eagles bumped him up to the starting quarterback position and they are expected to keep him
for the 2011 season as their starting quarterback, but without giving him a new contract.
The NFL is locked in a battle with the NFL Players Association in a labour dispute these days that threatens the 2011 season. Teams have been reluctant to sign free agents because of the uncertainty surrounding the collective bargaining
agreement and what changes a new agreement will bring. The CBA is expected to include a salary cap and possibly a rookie wage scale. Hence, teams are waiting for the details to emerge before they commit to expensive players.
Indianapolis Colts’ quarterback Peyton Manning is also due to become a free agent in the off-season. The Colts are expected to put the franchise tag on him. Each team can use the franchise tag on one player. A player who is given
the franchise tag must be paid 120% of his previous salary or the average salary of the five highest paid players at that position, whichever is higher. In either case, it will be a substantial pay raise for Vick, who went through bankruptcy and only recently
signed his first endorsement deal after being released from prison.
However, Vick’s financial situation will not change soon. A significant chunk of it would go to his creditors as per a court ordered schedule. When Vick earns more, more of his pay will be diverted into debt repayments.
The Eagles have Kevin Kolb on contract for the 2011 season. Kolb’s contract is worth 1.4 million dollars so as far as the salary cap is concerned, keeping him as a backup would be perfect for Eagles. Vick is a dual-threat quarterback.
He passes the ball just as well as he rushes it. He had nine rushing touchdowns in the 2010 regular season. His ability and tendency to rush the ball also puts him at a higher risk of suffering an injury. Vick suffered a rib injury against the Washington Redskins
in the regular season, which forced him to miss most of that game and the next three weeks of football. Kolb threw four interceptions and six touchdowns in those four games. He led the Eagles to victory in those weeks against the San Francisco 49ers and the
Atlanta Falcons, Vick’s former team.
Kolb has the skills required by a starting quarterback. Although the Eagles would want to keep him, Kolb does not want to stay. As several teams are looking for quarterbacks in the 2011 draft, anyone of those teams will trade with
the Eagles for Kolb. However, as far as the Eagles are concerned, Kolb is a valuable commodity. Eagles are expected to start hearing trade offers for Kolb, who has said that he wants to be a starter in 2011, regardless of where he plays.
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