IS TALKIN' SOUL WITH DONOVAN MORGAN
When training camp starts at Lehigh in late July, there will be a lot of talk about how things are different.
How things are different this season, now that there will be no No. 5 on the field for the first time in 11 years.
Former Eagles quarterback and current ESPN analyst Ron Jaworski said this week that based on what he's hearing, there's already a difference with the Birds.
"I've spoken to a number of players, a number of the coaches, and the one thing I sense that was probably missing over the last couple years is energy," Jaworski said during an interview with Mike Missanelli on 97.5 The Fanatic. "There's almost that little-kid enthusiasm right now within the organization because of the changes they've made.
"When you get those young, enthusiastic players int he locker room, it's amazing how they raise the spirit, and even of Andy Reid and the coaching staff. And the feeling down at the Novacare Center is real positive now. They know they've got a young team. They know they're going to make mistakes, but as they grow together, this has the chance to be a real good football team down the road. I think that's the part that's exciting."
Some current players have made similar comments this offseason. And I expect more to during training camp. Of course, none of this will matter until the team starts playing real games. If they lose, no one will care what the atmosphere was like at camps in the spring and summer.
LIKELIHOOD OF A VICK TRADE
Michael Vick made Len Pasquarelli's Trade Odds column on ESPN.com. Pasquarelli names 10 veterans and the likelihood of each being traded. He's got Vick at a 2 on a scale from 1-10:
He hasn't been a full-time starter since 2006 and clearly has lost some of his trademark quickness. He was limited to 13 pass attempts for 86 yards last season. He looks to be pigeonholed as a Wildcat quarterback, but wants to be a starter again. The Eagles paid him a $1.5 million bonus in the spring, and he has just one year left on his contract.
I'll admit that when I heard Andy Reid almost go out of his way to speak glowingly about Vick last week, I wondered if some of it was an act, or if he really felt that way. The market for Vick never really surfaced this offseason. If the Eagles were to get rid of him now, they would need to add a veteran backup QB. I don't think going into the season with rookie Mike Kafka in that role is an option.
SPEAKING OF VICK...
Clark Judge of CBSSports.com has a list of the league's top five backup quarterback options, and Vick makes the cut:
I concede that Vick is more of a playmaker than a bona fide quarterback, but he's capable of breaking open a game and breaking down an opponent with a single run, play or pass. Yes, he's wildly unpredictable, and normally that's not good. But in Vick's case, it can make him difficult to defend.
The other QBs on the list are Miami's Chad Pennington, Tennessee's Kerry Collins, Dallas' Jon Kitna and Arizona's Derek Anderson.
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