Nobody on the Philadelphia Eagles will lose more than Michael Vick if the lockout continues. He benefited tremendously from getting the chance to work wtih and learn under the guidance of Andy Reid and Marty Mornhinweg. Vick would get better and better the longer he works with them.
I sense that he loves the challenge of playing the mental game at the quarterback position, so the Eagles coaches need to push the envelope.
When Les Bowen of Philly.com asked him about how he will do during the lockout, you knew Vick was going to say something positive, but the truth is he’s being hurt by not meeting everyday with Mornhinweg and having practices under the watchful eyes of Reid. He benefits from having them going back through the practice tapes and picking apart his every move.
“I don’t think it’s hindering my development; I have almost every game plan from last year,” Vick told Bowen. “I can look at all the things we did as an offense. It’s all still instilled in my memory – it’s in the memory banks. The only thing I miss is being able to learn the new things, the new wrinkles we want to put in the offense. But that only takes me 45 minutes, anyway. I’m definitely going to improve. I play the game of football in my mind each and every day. I watch a lot of film. I replay plays in my mind, mistakes that I 
made.”
That’s fine that he’s playing the game in his mind, but he needs Reid and Mornhinweg there to ask him questions which force him to understand the what and why of everything that his offense and the opposing defense are doing during a particular play. To really understand the offense the way Vick needs to know it, he not only needs to know the how and what, but he also needs to know the why of what he’s doing as well as all of this teammates.
The quarterback benefits from team passing workouts more than anybody else. They need to be scripted so that he’s forced to see the entire field. The offensive coordinator and quarterback coach will intentionally put traps in the plays and defensive coverages he’ll be facing, so that his coverage-reading skills and his on the spot decision-making is tested during a workout.
If he’s not tested mentally during a workout. The workout isn’t worth it.
Vick needs Reid and Mornhinweg to script the workout and be there looking over his shoulder and challenging him to make the read quicker. He needs to be pushed to the next level and the Eagles coaches know how to do it. Vick hasn’t mastered this offense like Peyton Manning has mastered the offense he runs in Indianapolis and he hasn’t mastered it the way Steve Young and Joe Montana mastered the west coast offense in the past.
He’s only been here in Philadelphia a couple of years. Vick wants to be great and this is the time when it needs to happen, during the offseason.
I know Vick is looking at tapes and videos of last years games, but NFL defensive coordinators are planning new strategies against him as you read this article. They’re not going to do exactly what they did against him last year, that’s why he’s going to be smarter and quicker in his recognition and decision-making process. The recognition has to be occur and the decision has to be made, then that ball has to be out of there and on target. There can’t be any hesitation.
Timing is extremely important in the west coast offense, so repetition is a must. I know he told Les that they’re going to start working out together, but they’ve already missed valuable time. Vick needs to be dropping back and seeing an entire coverage, so that he’s forced to see the entire field and make a quick decision. You must have the entire defense out there to go against in order to give the quarterback some good work.
The longer this lockout goes on the more that it’s holding up the development of Michael Vick. He can only do but so much by himself and with his teammates. Reid and Mornhinweg have the knowledge he needs to take his game to another level.
Clearly Vick has to get to the point where he can sense a blitz in a split second. This sense is developed from seeing it over and over with good coaches pushing you.
him and every other player so there is not real advantage or disadvantage..
We all know that Veteran teams like the Pats/Steelers/Giants/Saints/Colts will have the advantage since they return alot of their players and have experienced QB’s playing in the same system with basically the same coaches
All rookie players and teams with 1st Year Coaches are going to be a big disadvantage as coaches are tying to elevuate their rosters, put in new schemes, and then all the new draft picks and new players will have very little time to work with each other and for their new teams.. Football may be very ugly to watch the first few games dpeending on when they start, how much practice andcamp time they actually get .. I am pretty much writing off this 2011 Season if there is no agreement by May 15th.. This entire Draft group and last years Draft Class are really going to miss that OTA/Trianing Camps time if they don’t get an agreement soon, but every team is in the same boat which will make for shoddy play and sloppy football next fall..
The teams the Eagles are going to have to beat to win a Super Bowl are teams with veteran quarterbacks who are able to make adjustments on the fly in the playoffs. Look at the way Aaron Rodgers made adjustments during the playoffs and Super Bowl to lead the Packers to a title. I don’t have confidence in Vick being able to do that unless he works with the coaches during this off season.
There’s no reason Vick can’t spend time with coaches from “Andy’s tree”. Gruden, Maruchi, etc would be happy to spend several days at NFL films to work with Vick. He can expect the guys to be his personal coaches during the work stoppage, but coaches like to coach. These guys love to play with the new and improved Vick toy. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
I meant can not expect to be his personal coach.
Someone tell me how I can spend a few days at NFL films!! Please. I’ll bring the coffee and donuts.
I do agree with your assesment G,
Vick needs structure,consistency and reps on all the facets of being an NFL QB wether it’s footwork,arm motion,reading coverages,pocket awareness,etc,etc. Missing a whole lot of time definitely will hinder and hurt him where he is liable to revert to his natural instincts which is to make 1 read and then tuck the ball and run,run,run which works on occasion but is not they way you want to run an offense and Vick wouldn’t last a season playing in this manner..
I see QB M Kafka as the Eagles Starter by 2013
Vick was determined to get the starting position from Kevin Kolb…… i think he will have a break out year and for years to come……. What he learned in such a short time was just flat out outstanding alone…… Some Qb’s know there the starter all off-season and play like crap during the regular season….. He’ll be ready……. He just needs help learning to see the blitz better!!!! Other than that he’s there!!!
I read a report (national football post) that said Vick was gathering the skill position players to work out sometime next week in South Jersey (my neck of the woods)
Below is a quote from Vick that pretty much addresses the title of this article…
“I don’t think it’s hindering my development; I have almost every game plan from last year,” Vick said. “I can look at all the things we did as an offense. It’s all still instilled in my memory – it’s in the memory banks. The only thing I miss is being able to learn the new things, the new wrinkles we want to put in the offense. But that only takes me 45 minutes, anyway. I’m definitely going to improve. I play the game of football in my mind each and every day. I watch a lot of film. I replay plays in my mind, mistakes that I made.”
Also heard a rumor, that Vick plans to visit Plaxico Burress..maybe nothing to do with the Eagles, maybe their friends, but adding another weapon like Burress on the Eagles would lovely!