Vick on contract, the off-season and Oprah
The Philadelphia Inquirer Blog - Eagles
Vick on contract, the off-season and Oprah
Jeff McLane, Inquirer Staff Writer
ATLANTIC CITY -- Two days after he signed a one-year contract with the Eagles, Michael Vick was here to accept the Maxwell Football Club's Bert Bell Award as professional football's most valuable player for last season.
Vick was at the Harrah's along with his coach Andy Reid, also an award-winner, as the NFL continued negotiations over a new collective bargaining agreement in Washington. The owners and players agreed to a one-day extension on Thursday which made the Maxwell Club media session on Friday a little less uncomfortable.
If the owners had locked out the players as of Thursday at midnight Reid and Vick would not have been permitted to talk.
"Yeah, that would have been weird," Vick said.
But Vick and Reid instead embraced each other and talked briefly following their introductions. The two will have at least another year together. Vick signed the team's one-year franchise tender on Wednesday and will stand to make at least $16 million next season
“I’m very excited about the opportunity to come back and play in the city of Philadelphia," Vick said. "When I first signed with Philadelphia I didn’t think it would last as long. I thought I would be there one year and here I am on my third year."
Vick added that he wants to finish his career with the Eagles and that he "would love to finish his career with Andy." He said there has been no mention of a long-term deal with the Eagles, but it is likely Vick gets an extension once a new CBA is in place.
"We haven't talked about long-term negotiations or my future," Vick said. "We just talked about what can get done this year. I think that anything else that happns is solely on me. I think I dictate that situation based on my play and performance and my actions on and off the field. So that ball is in my court.”
As with what seems like every Vick appearance of late there was a very minor controversy. ESPN's First Take was telling its viewers that Vick was going to be on the show just before the Maxwell Club media session. There was a camera on the stage ready to shoot the quarterback. But Vick never did the interview.
First Take host Dana Dana Jacobsen then reportedly said that the Eagles "pulled the interview." Co-host Jay Crawford said, "We've been Oprah'd," referring to Vick recently pulling out of a sit-down with the talk show icon.
But Vick and the Eagles didn't know about the First Take interview beforehand, a team spokesman said.
Maxwell Club emcee "Lou Tilley booked Michael for an interview with ESPN and never asked Michael or [the Eagles] or any Vick representative in advance," the spokesman said.
The Maxwell Club later said they had made an error.
Vick's people said he could not attend a "What It Takes" symposium on Monday because of a scheduling conflict and a few weeks ago he backed out of a scheduled appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show.
“I will definitely go on Oprah’s show," Vick said. "At some point I just thought the timing wasn’t right based on everything that was going on – the contract, the CBA. There were certain things that I really didn’t want to touch on at the time. I feel like I need to do more in order to be on those shows so I can talk about the past and talk about the present and how prosperous things are, how bad they were and how we can move forward.”
Vick, of course, led the Eagles to the NFC East title last year after he took over for the injured Kevin Kolb in Week 1. With the Eagles committed to Vick for next season there has been a lot of speculation over where Kolb could end up. Kolb has said that he wants to start, whether that's for the Eagles or for some other team.
“We’ll see down the road here," Reid said when asked about Kolb's future with the team. "We would love to have Kevin back, obviously, as our second quarterback."
Many teams are expected to want Kolb, but there can be no player movement until there is a new CBA. If there isn't an agreement before the draft, Kolb could very well be back as Vick's backup. That could alter how the Eagles approach a long-term deal with Vick.
“I just want to play football," Vick said. "If I don’t get the extension then I don’t. At the same time, I want this organization to know that I’ll do anything I can to help us with football games in 2011. That’s my primary goal.”
If there is a lockout Vick said that he will gather his receivers and running backs for workouts
“Oh yes. My responsibility this off-season is to make sure everybody comes into training camp ready to play," Vick said. "Get with the young guys, get with the running backs, get out there and we throw and we build camaraderie."
And where would that be?
“It will be wherever we agree to be collectively, wherever we want to go," Vick said. "Maybe Florida. Maybe Hawaii. We’re going to get our work in.”
Vick touched on a few other topics:
ON WHETHER HE NEEDS TO IMPROVE IN CERTAIN AREAS:
“I watched a lot quarterbacks around this league and one person in particular I’ve been watching lately was Aaron Rodgers. I’ve got the utmost respect for his game. ... He just won a Super Bowl. Kind of follow that blueprint.”
ON THE OFF-SEASON AS THE STARTER:
“This is going to be a great off-season. I'm going to have so much more time to prepare, so much more time to study and figure out what I need to get done. Last year I was in a different role. When you’re a backup and with the potential I had I felt like I needed to do enough to show my coaches that I was worthy of being a backup on this team and why I should make the money I was making.”
ON HIS PHYSICAL CONDITION:
“Honestly, physically I feel better than I did last year this time around. I think because my body is healed. Last year I worked out very hard but I didn’t have a chance to rest. Now that I got the chance to rest, I went in the weight room the other day and benched 80-pound dumbbells 15 times with ease and I really haven't worked out.”
ON WHETHER HE NEEDS TO CHANGE HIS STYLE OF PLAY:
“I do think I need to play smarter. I do think I need to eliminate the unnecessary hits.”
the jerk who never shows up to things! throw him back in jail where the animals can eat him.— MRD- @mrd obviously your the jerk if you READ!!!!!!!! you see that the eagles are cancleing the interviews. ( dont agree with EAGLES leaving VICK OUT TO DRY) however im glad their canceling these sessions it's only to make this man look bad and make him relive everything. THE PASS IS THE PASS!! lets move forward kind of hard to do when THE WORLD WIDE LEADER try to bring down every black athlete they can a of racist— vickfan79
- @vickfan79- "THE PASS IS THE PASS!!" don't encourage AR & MM!! the Eagles will never win the SB w/ the PASS BEING THE PASS!!!
— bboybeballin - Haters unite....you have him for another year....so your lonely desperate lives will have some meaning.....sad and pathetic....— nuggett
- Cheeseburger Andy and Cake in the Face Michael embraced, but once the strike starts they can't talk. Hope the Eagles have new batteries in Vicks GPS ankle braclet once the lockout starts, BIG BUBBA is keeping the bunkbed ready. — jwatson
- Thanks, jwatson, for your vigil. I mean this in a good way to you... it's folks like you who actually make Vick want to prove you wrong. In an odd way, it's the haters who end up doing two things (1) destroying themselves with their hatred and (2) helping those they hate walk a better path. So in a very un-intuitive way, thank you, for destroying yourself for the team. — landt
- I don't hate him - I don't really like him either. What he did was wrong, but he has done enough to be allowed to be free in the world. I do not thing he earned the MVP last year however. His drop off in production towards the end of the season cost him that. The Eagles offense choices also hurt him. I think Andy Reid's offense hurt us.— CaptainCrunch
- Who cares? A totally unlikeable dbag, an average QB who can run (shame the league remembered how to defend him again like they did in Atlanta his last full 16 game season when they were LAST in passing and 25th in total O). And a guy who most likely five years from now will end up in trouble with the law again.— CiceroSpuriousDeodatus
- three, two...— tpizza
- Poor haters...now you have to sulk and read he got another award. How dare MV make you mad and bitter! LOL Are you all red and your thin lips all pursed up? ewwwww.....Viiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiick....he's in your head...making you mad, you so mad....Viiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiick.
LOL— cancer36 - You haters need to stop! Which one of you is perfect? Put your hand up! I bet that there is someone out there saying how much they dislike you and your ways too. He paid his debt to society, give it a rest. Oh, I guess you skipped the part of your Bible that spoke about forgiveness. You can't claim that you are all that you claim to be when you are busy tearing someone else down.— dross
- BIG UPPPPPPPPP TO ALL MY HATERS!
Wassup H.H.H (Humans who Hate Humans)You guys are perfect upstanding citzens.— salt - As far as the contract talks are concerned I only care so far as it delays free agency and upsets the draft. I want the best pick possible for KK so that the Es can field the best possible team next year. Get it done NFL so the fans can get back to what matters to them.— tpizza
- "if it's not positive keep it moving." Thats to all the miserable people on this blog. Let me help you to be a little more miserable. Michael Vick is in Atlantic City enjoying his life, he was in Hawaii in a Presidental Suite for a week, he will take his teammates to Hawaii or Florida to work out on off season. What will you be doing I know sitting in your trailers hating. LOL— Blessed8251
- You know, Blessed, I'm not a hater, but I live in a trailer. If you don't want to be a hater yourself, don't paint with such a broad brush. — landt
- dont worry. Reid will still be just as fat this offseason as he is every offseason, Vick will attend at least one party where someone will be assaulted, and Reid will pass the ball at least 60% and LOSE in the playoffs if he makes it that far, probably in the first round. REID WILL NEVER WIN THE SB. EVER. IT WILL NOT HAPPEN.— CharlieGarner25
- And what positive changes are you making in your life this offseason, CharlieGarner25 ? Are you giving in and now going to be writing about the impossibilities of a mere 78/22 pass-to-run ratio for next season, instead of the standard 80/20 ? Are you going to break down, and say that Andy Reid "probably" won't win a SB, instead of "never" ? The rest of us can hardly wait ! Just bustin... except for the name-callin', I always enjoy your posts... your frustration makes me laugh! Peace. — landt
lol, more pointless comments. I hope MV is here for 5 more years (at least) just so you haters can continue to show your true colors— Mabus- as i said before your offseason is your toughest season,,i'm glad you snubbed Lou Tilley if you snub Oprah you have to snub everyone else even brotherinlaws G Cobb and Derrick Gunn and Ike Reese...MV keep on-keepin on brother,my man.....NOTE:also BIG RED said he wants to keep KK on the team this season..Tick Tick Tick.........w.— wolf 4
- lol, AR also said McNabb was his 2010 QB. You're a dunce — Mabus
- Wow, the only thing missing from wiff "comment" was the hiccup sound effects...good Lord, 8:35 and drunk already...hic...hic...hic...my man!— tpizza
- pass me a keystone light— wolf 4
- Hey Mabus, thought this was worth a double post. Since the contract talks seem to be progressing wiff must be waking up every night in a cold sweat. How about this scenario? I still see KK going to Frisco so the Es will need a back up QB which will allow McNabb to return! Think of that KK out of town and McNabb AND Vick on the Eagles. I mean how funny would that be? It would be wiff's worst nightmare. Better yet, maybe even a straight up trade of KK for McNabb and DC’s #1? Think of it! Wiff wouldn’t have to move to Frisco [though he’d fit right in there, ahem] and KK has a dream destination. I mean what better place for the pig slasher than the city with the most pork? Man am I psyched now. C’mon contract talks!! Get it done!! KK needs a new bowie knife!!
— tpizza - Vick will bring us a Lombardi if the front office can grab some key free agents this year. Not from the junkpile.— HeelYes
The Vick style of QB play is not very likely to produce a championship. In fact, only 1 has produced a championship. Can anyone please tell me WHY they believe it would be different with Vick. Please tell me WHY. I am sure there will be insults thrown at me but no answers to my question. 3rd attempt to get an answer.— Kioto
