2009 NFL Season/Off Season discussion

[Axl4Prez2004]

Vick just signed with the Eagles, two year deal as reported by ESPN.

Motherfucker!  I wanted to post it first!  BWWWAHHHAAAHAAA 

Now, honestly, as a Vikings fan, I'm jealous as fuck!  This was a great signing for the Eagles.  I haven't seen the contract details other than it's 2 years.  I bet those mofos got him cheap.  Wow.  Congrats to the Eagles fans. 

[cotis]

Quarterback Michael Vick has signed a two-year deal with the Philadelphia Eagles, his agent, Joel Segal, confirmed to ESPN.com.

Vick King Of First Down

During the first years of his career (2004-06), Michael Vick rushed the ball better than any other quarterback. He had six 100-yard rushing games and 102 10-plus yard runs, but he was also one of the top rushers amongst all players -- especially on first down.

Vick arrived in Philadelphia Tuesday morning and remained there Wednesday evening. The Eagles will hold a news conference on Friday morning to announce his signing. The first year of the deal is for $1.6 million deal with an option for the second year at $5.2 million, FoxSports.com reports.

Vick was the No. 1 draft pick in 2001, and once the highest-paid player in football. But he has not played since 2006 when his career came tumbling down. He was convicted in August 2007 of conspiracy and running a dogfighting operation, sentenced to 23 months in federal prison and suspended indefinitely by the NFL.

But after serving his time and being released from home confinement July 20, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell conditionally lifted Vick's suspension, allowing him to sign with a team.

Vick can immediately take part in preseason practices, workouts and meetings and can play in the final two preseason games.

Once the season begins, Vick may participate in all team activities except games, and Goodell said he would consider Vick for full reinstatement by Week 6 (Oct. 18-19) at the latest.

Vick filed for bankruptcy protection last July, listing assets of about $16 million and debts of more than $20 million.

Vick pleaded guilty after his three co-defendants had already done so. They told of how Vick participated in the killing of dogs that didn't perform well in test fights by shooting, hanging, drowning or slamming them to the ground.

Vick's appearances at federal court in Richmond, Va., prompted large groups of protesters to gather outside. Many were with PETA and held signs depicting photographs of pit bulls ravaged in dogfights.

Still, there were supporters who wore his No. 7 jersey.

The Eagles travel to meet Vick's former team, the Atlanta Falcons, in Week 13 on Dec. 6.

They will no doubt get shit for this, but I'm curious to see how M.Vick does in his first year back.

[Axl4Prez2004]

The Eagles are brilliant!  $1.6 million for a human highlight reel?  Other teams are kicking themselves (or will be soon).

My Vikings (God love 'em) are fucking idiots for not throwing $2 million Vick's way.   

[D]

Agree A4P

the fuck is up with these GM's

Vick,Peterson and Harvin running the Wildcat?

ARE U KIDDING ME

they blew it big time

[gilee7]

As an Eagles fan, I'm excited about this. I was surprised when they announced it last night, but not overly so. People kept saying he'd go to a well-established team like the Steelers or Pats or Eagles. We're not giving up much to get him (except a lot of drama and headache for a little while with the media).

I don't now why Jaws started freaking out in the booth last night, saying stuff like, "What does this mean to Donovan? How can they do this to Donovan?" I figured the Eagles probably consulted with McNabb beforehand, and it turns out he helped lobby the team to sign Vick. Even when he was in prime, leading the Falcons to the NFC Championship game, Vick was never the QB McNabb is. Certainly now, after two years away, he's not going to be even close to the QB McNabb is.

Vick isn't a threat to McNabb. He's simply a weapon, a dynamic playmaker to help make the Eagles a better team. They can experiment with Vick in all sorts of ways. Try the wildcat, line him up in the slot, at RB, let him return punts. I mean, they can have McNabb, Vick, and Westbrook all on the field at the same time. How scary is that for an opposing defense?

Hopefully the backlash will die down. I'm a huge animal lover, I've owned several dogs, and I think what Vick did was absolutely sickening. BUT, I also feel he served a fair prison sentence and now deserves a shot a redemption. Hopefully he'll make the most of it.

[D]

Jon Gruden in the booth is awesome! Great move by MNF.  Jaws still annoys the shit out of me though.

[Drew]

Yet another reason to root against the Eagles now. But I/m not surprised, I knew some team would pick this guy up.

And can we please stop using this phrase, 'This is America and people deserve a second chance.' i.e. Andy Reid. 

How about Vick flipping burgers or go rake leaves as his second chance to contribute to society.

[LunsJail]

Yet another reason to root against the Eagles now. But I/m not surprised, I knew some team would pick this guy up.

And can we please stop using this phrase, 'This is America and people deserve a second chance.' i.e. Andy Reid. 

How about Vick flipping burgers or go rake leaves as his second chance to contribute to society.

Because he plays football for a living. If the guy was a plumber, would anyone have a problem with him going back to plumbing?

[Drew]

Because he plays football for a living. If the guy was a plumber, would anyone have a problem with him going back to plumbing?

He can learn another trade like a lot of people do through out their lives. Just because he plays football doesn't give him a right to play football.

[Axl4Prez2004]

Jon Gruden in the booth is awesome! Great move by MNF.  Jaws still annoys the shit out of me though.

Yep.  Jaws, hello!  McNabb wanted weapons, hello?  Vick is not just a weapon, he's right up the Eagles' alley, he's a cheap weapon.  What an absolute steal.  Hey D, throw in DeSean Jackson to that headache for opposing head coaches.  McNabb, Westbrook, Vick, and Jackson...four solid weapons.  Even McCoy looked very good last night...that's a great sign for the Birds with Westbrook's history of injuries.

Seriously, who would you rather have, Sage Rosenfels, career backup, for a 3 year $9 million deal...or the greatest scrambling qb of all time?  The Vikings are f'ing crazy...that said, if Turdvaris is starting over Sage I'm gonna go f'ing crazy!     (that said, I understand Minnesota would have been a tough sell.  the owner probably already is nervous about drafting a guy with "questionable character" - Percy Harvin.  Also, a smaller market team like the Vikes that can't guarantee a sold-out stadium week in week out means they might be hit too hard by any potential animal rights bullshit boycott)   

btw, sorry Drew, Vick has served his fucking time.  I can't wait to watch him play football again.  His return will be the highest-rated pre-season game of the year...and hold onto your hat if McNabb gets hurt this season, because Vick will tear shit up!

btw, I'm fine with 2nd chances.  It's the 3rd, 4th, and 5th chances that make me angry.   

[SpecialAgentCooper]

49ers won tonight!!! I know it's only pre-season, but hell it was a win!

                                                                              Coop

[Axl4Prez2004]

49ers won tonight!!! I know it's only pre-season, but hell it was a win!

                                                                              Coop

Your niners should have grabbed Vick when they had the chance.  Congrats on the win.

[SpecialAgentCooper]

I'll have to agree with you on that one Axl4Prez2004, but with all the politics surrounding that dude I don't think they really tried too hard.  I still have a little faith in Alex Smith, but I think they still have yet to find their go-to-guy yet.

                                                                                                              Coop

[AxlsMainMan]

Michael Vick's 2nd chance exposes society's double standard

Posted: Aug. 15, 2009
BY DREW SHARP
FREE PRESS COLUMNIST


Philly threw Michael Vick a Milk Bone. Here's hoping he chokes on it.

This only reaffirms why I ceased being a sports fan a long time ago. It wasn't worth the duplicity. There should always be a more honorable aim than winning at any cost. Vick's getting a second NFL life is but another example of our society's morality of convenience.

If that makes me a "hater," so be it. At least I know I'm not a hypocrite.

I'm hoping that those who staunchly preached a second chance for Vick will exhibit the same compassion when the next 29-year-old black man leaves federal prison following an almost two-year sentence but can't run a 40-yard dash in 4.4 time, chuck a football 70 yards or sell a $100 jersey.

But somehow, I doubt that will happen.

Second chances are selective. Always have been. Always will be. It seems a second chance is OK if it improves your favorite football team's red zone offense.

Everybody will take up sides now. The Eagles will become America's adopted team this season but for vastly different reasons.

For every new fan the Eagles might gain for signing Vick, might they lose two to three more who simply won't forget Vick's heinous deeds and will hold those supporting him accountable?

PETA and its legion of extremists or the vocal callers flooding Philadelphia talk shows Friday aren't the NFL's greatest concern. It's what I once referred to as the quiet objectors, those who will make their disgust known by boycotting the Eagles' corporate sponsors.

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie told reporters Friday he has tried reassuring nervous sponsors by telling them Vick seems committed to changing his life. But Lurie didn't look as though he was completely sold himself.

This move has both economic and competitive disaster written all over it, especially if Donovan McNabb struggles in what has become a Super Bowl-or-calamity season.

Nothing divides even the strongest locker room faster than a quarterbacking quandary. Adding a toxic asset like Vick could obliterate such delicate team chemistry.

And how many will laugh their back pockets off should that happen?

Vick and his apologists aren't the only ones lapping from the hypocrisy trough.

If Louisville coach Rick Pitino was 18-19 last season instead of 31-6 and ranked No. 1 in the country entering last season's NCAA tournament, his behavior would have immediately cost him his job for a clear violation of the morals clause in his contract.

Pitino pled guilty to an embarrassing indiscretion when the married coach admitted to an affair with a woman, including a sex romp six years ago in an Italian restaurant after closing hours. Now, there are accusations of rape and extortion flying around.

But university leaders maintained public support for Pitino, cautioning against a rush to judgment under the guise that high-profile people are no different from the anonymous in deserving a chance at redemption.

The truth is that they're the only ones who consistently get that chance.

http://www.freep.com/article/20090815/COL08/908150323/?imw=Y

[sandman]

Yet another reason to root against the Eagles now. But I/m not surprised, I knew some team would pick this guy up.

And can we please stop using this phrase, 'This is America and people deserve a second chance.' i.e. Andy Reid. 

How about Vick flipping burgers or go rake leaves as his second chance to contribute to society.

Because he plays football for a living. If the guy was a plumber, would anyone have a problem with him going back to plumbing?

that's an interesting question. i think alot of us have jobs that we would not be able to go back to if we had to serve 2 years in federal prison for torturing and killing dogs (or any other federal crime). ever worked somewhere where background checks are performed?

so i think it's kinda disgusting that he was allowed to play again. playing in the NFL is a privilege. and no, not everyone deserves a second chance, and i sure as hell don't like reid and mcnabb telling people that they "should" give him a second chance.

but with that said, he's back in. and i'm glad the eagles got him. he can help this team. he's a bad QB, and an awful passer, but he's explosive and can make big plays in other ways. and every D coordinator we face was just given another aspect to have to spend time preparing for.

[Drew]

Brett Favre to play for the Minnesota Vikings


http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AuMkgcrCi001UFt8V_KCeKA5nYcB?slug=ap-vikings-favre&prov=ap&type=lgns

[Axl4Prez2004]

Brett Favre to play for the Minnesota Vikings


http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AuMkgcrCi001UFt8V_KCeKA5nYcB?slug=ap-vikings-favre&prov=ap&type=lgns

Holy shit motherfuckers!!!!!!!!!!!!!  The Vikes are goin' to the NFC Championship game!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
D said it best a while back, "Adrian Peterson will be to Brett Favre what Terrell Davis was to John Elway."  If it weren't for Terrell Davis, John Elway would have a rep similar to Donovan McNabb or Jim Kelly.  He'd be, "the guy who couldn't win the big one."

                     

fyi:

(to those who look at the 22 interceptions and late-season free-fall with 2 td's and 9 ints going 1-4 in the last 5 games)
Favre had a torn biceps tendon toward the end of the season.  Through the first 11 games, a healthy Favre threw for 20 touchdowns and 13 interceptions and the Jets were in 1st place.  Finishing 1-4 with 2 touchdowns and 9 interceptions made the year's numbers look bad. 

Favre is now healthy.  Had he been healthy throughout the season, his numbers projected out to 29 touchdowns and 19 interceptions.  Yep, a gunslinger.  A "turnover machine?"  Hardly.

Favre will make defenses respect the Vikings' pass attack, which will open up more holes for Adrian Peterson.  With all due respect to Thomas Jones and Leon Washington, the Jets running backs, they pale in comparison with Purple Jesus Adrian Peterson. 

The Vikings just got a lot better with this one big move. 

Adrian Peterson is Brett Favre's Terrell Davis.  John Elway very well could have finished out his career known as the Super Bowl loser, much like Jim Kelly.  However, Elway had Terrell Davis as his stud running back.  Davis gave the Broncos balance to allow Elway to shine and carried the Broncos to back-to-back Super Bowl titles in the late '90's.

   Vikings-Steelers Super Bowl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Drew]

  Vikings-Steelers Super Bowl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Vikings are okay but no to another Superbowl with the Steelers.

I had a pretty good idea today's news of Brett Favre would get you excited. 

[D]

I am excited as hell also

That damn NFL Sunday Ticket will damn sure be worth the money this season

Favre, Vick, every Cowboy game.

I love Directv


Rick Pitino should send Vick and Favre a Thank You Gift.

[draguns]

I think this is going to be one hell of a football season! I'm looking forward to it. Oh and of course NY Giants will go out on top and be Super Bowl Champs!!!:)