With the impatient wait for the return of the NFL entering its “Dog Days” stage–especially now that the draft has come and gone–the NFL-ravenous public circles like hungry sharks waiting for the next tidbit of news about their favorite team or player. One such team that’s well known in relation to moving the dial is the Philadelphia Eagles. Granted, much of the attention focuses on the fact that Michael Vick plays quarterback for the franchise, thanks in large part to his well documented past. Add in a new head coach like Chip Kelly, previously of the multi-uniformed Oregon Ducks, to the mix, and what you have is a nice recipe for catching the public’s eye.
And so, whenever news of Vick racing one of his teammates hits the modern media circuit, it’s going to get traction. This is helped by the fact that Michael Vick was known to have otherworldly-like speed. Because of the beating Vick has been taking, however, thanks to getting absolutely buried by various defenses in recent seasons, there were looming doubts about whether or not Vick possessed his impressive physical gifts. This belief is, apparently, what led Eagles running back LeSean McCoy to challenge his quarterback to a 40-yard dash footrace. While the race itself apparently happened almost two weeks ago–Vick won–the topic is still up for discussion, at least to the player who crossed the finish line after Vick.
As the various local Philadelphia sports writers follow the Eagles during the off-season workouts, McCoy was asked about the race, to which he replied, “he jumped off. He started early.” Considering the all-access era of news we live in, there is, of course, video of McCoy’s response, courtesy of CSNPhilly.com.
While the story here is indeed frivolous and fluffy, the fact that it has become a talking point only further indicates the incredible popularity of NFL. With all due respect to Allen Iverson, we’re not even talking about practice here. We’re talking about a footrace. Furthermore, the story is getting some traction as well. With that in mind, it’s not hard to imagine Roger Goodell sitting behind his desk made of money, laughing to himself while his interns tell him such a story is actually a topical subject. The laugh comes from the (daily) confirmation that, yes, the National Football League does, in fact, rule the roost when it comes to capturing the attention of sports fans.
With all of that in mind, while the fact that Vick still has his speed may provide a sense of satisfaction for Eagles fans, if they want him to start more than 10 games next season, they better hope the offensive line protection improves. In those 10 starts during last season, Vick was sacked 28 times, clearly indicating his speed wasn’t enough.
