7 vs 4

Now that the season ended so dismally the Eagles have some decisions to make, will Quinten Mikell be back? Will Patterson be back? Will Ellis Hobbs ever play a down again? I feel certain the David Akers will be back, he is on of the most accurate kickers in NFL history. Now to the real question 7 vs. 4. Say whatever you want about the situation, whether you believe its about the most exciting player in the NFL vs basically a rookie, dog killer vs dog lover or even white vs black. Even if you hate Michael Vick you have to admit that he is the main reason we even made the postseason this year. Our defense was last in the redzone this year and if we weren't creating turnovers them we had no shot. The offensive line was sketchy at best, which makes it hard for any quarterback to do well in the west coast offense. Without Vick i can honestly say we may have been fighting Dallas for the bottom of the division.

I am not saying that Kevin Kolb is the sole reason for that. He just does not have the mobility and ability to get out of the pocket when the protection breaks down like Vick does. Numerous time this year i can say i felt the play was over just to have Vick run around and find an open receiver for 5,10,15 yards and the 1st down. I along with most people in the Philadelphia area were not expecting all that much this year from the Eagles. Most were saying 8-8, 7-9, and even 6-10(myself included). We all believed that this was going to be a very dark and down year for the Birds. With Kolb at the helm we saw a guy who was inexperienced and we were not used to that since we had that same qb for 11 years (5). There is no doubt most of us did feel it was time for a change at signal caller. We all were willing to live with the fact that we may have to struggle for 1,2, maybe even 3 years. Nobody knew that Kevin would get hurt in the 1st half of the 1st game, and we would see Vick play the entire 2nd half and almost bring us back to victory, falling just short.

From this point on Kolb did not have a shot in this town, Vick had won us all over. I know the unwritten rule in sports is that you are not supposed to lose your job because of injury. But when a player comes in in relief and plays as well as Vick did those 2 or 3 games that Kolb was injured how could Andy Reid and Marty Mornhinweg honestly take him out. If you watch TV or listen to the radio and heard interviews with other players you could tell that they all had confidence in Vick over Kolb. That is a hard thing for a young team to over come. If you are a sports fan you know how truly important that confidence is in sports. You could have the best players in the sport but no confidence and go nowhere nowadays. I do not know if its Vicks leadership, or the fact that he has been to the Pro bowl and the NFC championship game and is a proven player in this league, or if maybe its just that fact that Kolb does not have the time in grade that Vick does. Whatever it is we can all tell that this teams heartbeat pumped in Vicks chest, as he went, they went.

Michael has completely change his game this year from the way he was in Atlanta. He is more of a true pocket passer with the ability to run if he has to instead of basically a running back that has the skills to throw if he has to. I believe that the way he plays now actually makes him a more dangerous player then he was back then. Defenses have to worry about him throwing the ball so they have to drop more in coverage, but also when they bring the rush he can roll out and break a run for 25 yards if they are not careful. Kolb does not bring that aspect to the position. He is a defined pocket passer who does not have the skill set to get out of danger if the protection breaks down. If you give him time he may be a quality NFL quarterback but he may be Brady Quinn or a Matt Lienert, the problem is you never know. Kevin has already come out and said he would like to start for this team but if he is not going to then trade him so he can start somewhere. He made 11 million dollars last year for mostly holding the clipboard, and this year he is only do to make 1.4 million on the last year of his deal so it shouldn't be that hard for the Eagles to get maybe a 2nd rounder for him. Wherever he goes he will be looking for an extension and with the CBA expiring i believe he will get what he wants if he is not here. I just can't see the Eagles taking a flyer on him after the season that Vick had this year. I believe that the Birds will put all there efforts behind signing Michael Vick even if they have to franchise him for this year which means he will make 17 million next year. So i believe that the debate 7 vs 4 is not really a debate at all. 7 will be here 4 will not.