In the month since Michael Vick's controversial return to the NFL, his involvement in the Eagles' offense has decreased with each game.

The quarterback-multipurpose player has gone from being on the field for 11 plays with the first team in his first game to five in the second game to just two in the Eagles' 13-9 loss at Oakland on Sunday.

While there is reason to believe that Vick will be used more often when the Eagles face Washington on Monday night - how could he not? - there is some confusion as to why the team would risk so much in acquiring the notorious player if it intended to use him only sparingly.

Vick, however, has had no problems with his limited role.

"The Michael Vick from two years ago was used to being a starter in this league and used to being in the limelight, being the guy who takes all the snaps," Vick said yesterday. "It's different, but I can adjust. I can adapt to any situation, and this was one of them."

When the Eagles signed Vick in August, it was understood that he would be a backup to starter Donovan McNabb and No. 2 QB Kevin Kolb. Vick had started in 67 of his 74 games as an Atlanta Falcon, but in Philadelphia he would come off the bench mostly as part of coach Andy Reid's Wildcat package.

Of the 18 "Spread Eagle" plays Vick has been directly a part of, the Eagles have gained just 34 yards for a 1.9-yard average.

"We signed him as a backup quarterback," Reid said Monday. "We have gotten probably a little bit more out of him than I thought we would have out of our other backup quarterbacks."

Offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said yesterday: "His presence is a threat."

In the Oakland game, Vick was inserted on the second play of the Eagles' second drive. He lined up in the slot but was dropped 4 yards behind the line of scrimmage on an end-around. He wasn't used again until late in the second quarter, when he was a decoy receiver split wide. He never got in the game again.

"Every game is a little different," said Mornhinweg, the Eagles' primary play-caller. "[We] had Michael ready for certain situations. Those situations didn't come up. They do in most games."

Reid and Mornhinweg insist that the Wildcat/spread option packages will continue to be a component of the offense. Running backs Brian Westbrook and LeSean McCoy and wide receivers DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin have taken direct snaps in the shotgun. Since McNabb returned from his rib injury two games ago, only McCoy, on three runs against Tampa Bay two weeks ago, has been the Wildcat.

"There are certain weeks that that's going to be used, certain weeks it won't be used," Reid said. "We just didn't get to it this week."

For Vick, it's a different scenario than one he is accustomed to. Having always been the guy with the ball in his hands, he never had to worry about things such as stretching and staying warm on the sideline or waiting for his name to be called.

"Prison in itself makes you patient," said Vick, who spent 18 months at the federal penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kan., after pleading guilty to conspiracy and running a dogfighting operation.

"That's something I learned. Everything just isn't given to you whenever you want it. You've just got to wait for your opportunities, just like I had to wait to be released from prison. I learned a lot of patience being away."

In Oakland, Vick was met by animal-rights activists, protesters, and run-of-the-mill fans eager to boo or bark at him on his first road game. According to the Associated Press, a small group of protesters assembled outside the stadium before the game.

"I'm just trying to do the best I can," Vick said Sunday after the game. "I want to help more animals than I hurt. I understand there are people who want to do that [protest]. I'm still trying to do whatever I can to be the best ambassador I can be. I'm trying to move on with my life."

Still, Vick said yesterday, there are those who want to see him fail.

"I know that people want to pounce on me," he said. "There's always people out there waiting for you to slip up. It's my job to put myself in a position where it's not going to happen."

Vick wants to be a starter someday. He signed a two-year contract with the Eagles, earning $1.6 million this season. But the $5.2 million option for next season is a team option. If the Eagles don't pick up the option, or if he can't latch on elsewhere, or even if he isn't used on another play this season, he said he won't complain.

"We get paid a lot of money," said Vick, who lost a reported $200 million in salaries and endorsements after his conviction. "It doesn't matter how much I used to get paid. There are blue-collar workers that wish they could be in our position, making a substantial amount of money every week doing something we like to do."

Contact staff writer Jeff McLane at 215-854-4745 or jmclane@phillynews.com.