Andy Reid, via PhiladelphiaEagles.com:
“I’m a believer that, as long people go through the right process, they deserve a second chance. Michael has done that. I’ve done a tremendous amount of homework on this and followed his progress. He’s got some great people in his corner.”
Those people, Reid said, iinclude former Colts head coach Tony Dungy and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.
Vick wanted to play in a stable environment with smart coaches teaching a scheme that was successful in today’s football. And he didn’t care about playing time, at least not immediately. Getting back into a locker room with a solid core of players was more important.
“PETA and millions of decent football fans around the world are disappointed that the Eagles decided to sign a guy who hung dogs from trees.”
Wayne Pacelle, Humane Society, via The Los Angeles Times:
“It’s a city we’ve been looking at very closely because it has a major dogfighting problem. So Vick’s landing there has the potential to turn around the issue. This gives us a big boost.”
Enrico Campitelli, the 700 Level:
In all of Andy’s ten year tenure as Eagles head coach, I can’t recall him speaking with such candor as he did last night. He opened up about being able to relate to Vick’s struggles because of what he’s gone through with his two sons and their own legal issues.
Rich Hoffman, The Philadelphia Daily News:
The coach acknowledged that Vick has been on his mind for months and years. He said that Vick got into trouble at about the same time his sons got into trouble, and that he followed Vick’s story from afar and compared it to what his sons were enduring.
Paul Domowitch, The Philadelphia Daily News:
While many NFL coaches don’t view the Wildcat formation, which features a direct snap to a skill-position player other than the quarterback, as much more than a glorified trick play, Eagles coach Andy Reid sees it as much more than that.
Reid may have a few faults as a coach, but he is one of the best play-designers in the NFL. Give him 5 minutes, a pen and a cocktail napkin and he’ll give you a play defenses can’t stop.
He is all about creating mismatches. A safety on a swift wide receiver like DeSean Jackson. A linebacker on Brian Westbrook. Now he’s got Vick, who he can line up anywhere in the formation; who can throw the ball, run with it, even catch it.
Phil Sheridan, The Philadelphia Inquirer:
It just isn’t worth it. Not from a football standpoint, which is secondary, and not from any other standpoint.
The Eagles are also creating a difficult situation on their roster and in their locker room. Bringing in a guy like Vick, who will draw lots of negative attention and who may well repulse some of his teammates, is a potential team-killing move.
Terrell Owens was a jerk, but he wasn’t as polarizing a figure as Mike Vick.
Mike Florio, ProFootballTalk.com:
Things will get very interesting if the Eagles struggle in 2009, since the option for the second year of Vick’s contract will prompt speculation and/or popular opinion that the Eagles should dump Donovan and promote Vick.
While there’s no chance that Vick will supplant McNabb during the coming season absent injury, with each passing game Vick’s shadow over the next season will possibly grow.
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