Michael Vick's career was resurrected in Philadelphia, and he's confident the same can happen for Vince Young. (AP)
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Michael Vick is something of an expert on being a veteran quarterback with a lot of baggage that most teams don’t want but got a chance with the Eagles.
His signing worked out fairly well. And Vick is confident the Vince Young signing will also work out just fine for the Eagles.
“You’ve got to go out and get the best player, no matter what anybody is saying about them or what happened in their past,” Vick said. “You’ve got to give yourself the best chance of winning. So go out and get the best players and give them a chance to compete each and every Sunday.”
The Eagles plan to sign Young later Friday, and if all goes well, he’ll be on the Lehigh University practice fields as early as Saturday.
Young, twice a Pro Bowl quarterback with the Titans, was released by Tennessee on Thursday and will become Vick’s backup, with second-year pro Mike Kafka retaining his job as the Eagles’ No. 3 quarterback.
“I think it’s good for Vince,” Vick said after morning training camp practice Friday. “Get him in here, let him start to compete and get him back to playing football again.”
Young enjoyed some terrific success in Nashville but also some very tough times. He said he considered retiring after his rookie year. He got hurt his second year. He was benched for Kerry Collins his third year. And then after a game against the Redskins last year, he threw his shoulder pads into the crowd after getting booed and got into a shouting match with head coach Jeff Fisher, an incident that led the Titans to announce that they would cut ties with him after the season.
But Young did win 30 of 47 starts in five seasons with the Titans. Statistically, he had his best season ever last year, with a 98.6 passer rating – fifth-best in the NFL last year among QBs with at least 150 pass attempts and not much lower than Vick’s 100.2 mark.
“Vince has done well, he’s just had some tough breaks, but you see a lot of guys in this league who have some inconsistencies in their career, but they’re able to change it,” Vick said. “Throughout the duration of his career, I think he’ll be great.”
The Eagles have become sort of a reclamation center for quarterbacks. Andy Reid, Marty Mornhinweg and James Urban worked wonders with Vick, turning him from a prison inmate into a Pro Bowl starter, and they believe they can work wonders with Young as well.
“It’s going to be a positive effect,” Vick said. “I think Vince will mature as a player, and I think he’ll get better. [Being in Philadelphia] will help him long-term. So get him in here and make him a better player, and if we ever need him, he’s there for us. If you have a roster full of good quarterbacks, then you have a great chance of winning.”
Vick said he’s known Young since 2005 and that although they haven’t spent a lot of time together, they have a good relationship.
“Looking forward to working with him,” Vick said. “We’ll spend a lot of time getting to know one another. It’s cool – I look forward to having him in here, look forward to makig him a better player.”
So is it a good idea for the Eagles to bring in a quarterback who doesn’t react well to getting booed?
This is, after all, Philadelphia.
“We all have problems with booing,” Vick said with a laugh. “We all hate getting booed. It’s just part of the game. You’ve got to take the bad with the good. As much praise as you get, you might get scrutinized and criticized, but I think that only makes you better as a person and as a player, and you just have to keep going.”
In Vick’s first year here, two years ago, his teammates were Donovan McNabb, Kevin Kolb and A.J. Feeley – and briefly Jeff Garcia. All are gone. Now Vick leads a group with Young and Kafka. But he said the one thing that won’t change is how much all the quarterbacks push each other and help each other and motivate each other to improve.
“Vince and Mike Kafka will compete against one another, we’ll all compete against one another, and we’ll make each other better each and every day,” Vick said. “As a group, we all have to help him get caught up. It’s not easy but at the same time, you put the work in, you try to understand what’s going on, and you just work as hard as you can. Film room is going to be important, studying at night is going to be important. He’ll get there.”
His signing worked out fairly well. And Vick is confident the Vince Young signing will also work out just fine for the Eagles.
“You’ve got to go out and get the best player, no matter what anybody is saying about them or what happened in their past,” Vick said. “You’ve got to give yourself the best chance of winning. So go out and get the best players and give them a chance to compete each and every Sunday.”
The Eagles plan to sign Young later Friday, and if all goes well, he’ll be on the Lehigh University practice fields as early as Saturday.
Young, twice a Pro Bowl quarterback with the Titans, was released by Tennessee on Thursday and will become Vick’s backup, with second-year pro Mike Kafka retaining his job as the Eagles’ No. 3 quarterback.
“I think it’s good for Vince,” Vick said after morning training camp practice Friday. “Get him in here, let him start to compete and get him back to playing football again.”
Young enjoyed some terrific success in Nashville but also some very tough times. He said he considered retiring after his rookie year. He got hurt his second year. He was benched for Kerry Collins his third year. And then after a game against the Redskins last year, he threw his shoulder pads into the crowd after getting booed and got into a shouting match with head coach Jeff Fisher, an incident that led the Titans to announce that they would cut ties with him after the season.
But Young did win 30 of 47 starts in five seasons with the Titans. Statistically, he had his best season ever last year, with a 98.6 passer rating – fifth-best in the NFL last year among QBs with at least 150 pass attempts and not much lower than Vick’s 100.2 mark.
“Vince has done well, he’s just had some tough breaks, but you see a lot of guys in this league who have some inconsistencies in their career, but they’re able to change it,” Vick said. “Throughout the duration of his career, I think he’ll be great.”
The Eagles have become sort of a reclamation center for quarterbacks. Andy Reid, Marty Mornhinweg and James Urban worked wonders with Vick, turning him from a prison inmate into a Pro Bowl starter, and they believe they can work wonders with Young as well.
“It’s going to be a positive effect,” Vick said. “I think Vince will mature as a player, and I think he’ll get better. [Being in Philadelphia] will help him long-term. So get him in here and make him a better player, and if we ever need him, he’s there for us. If you have a roster full of good quarterbacks, then you have a great chance of winning.”
Vick said he’s known Young since 2005 and that although they haven’t spent a lot of time together, they have a good relationship.
“Looking forward to working with him,” Vick said. “We’ll spend a lot of time getting to know one another. It’s cool – I look forward to having him in here, look forward to makig him a better player.”
So is it a good idea for the Eagles to bring in a quarterback who doesn’t react well to getting booed?
This is, after all, Philadelphia.
“We all have problems with booing,” Vick said with a laugh. “We all hate getting booed. It’s just part of the game. You’ve got to take the bad with the good. As much praise as you get, you might get scrutinized and criticized, but I think that only makes you better as a person and as a player, and you just have to keep going.”
In Vick’s first year here, two years ago, his teammates were Donovan McNabb, Kevin Kolb and A.J. Feeley – and briefly Jeff Garcia. All are gone. Now Vick leads a group with Young and Kafka. But he said the one thing that won’t change is how much all the quarterbacks push each other and help each other and motivate each other to improve.
“Vince and Mike Kafka will compete against one another, we’ll all compete against one another, and we’ll make each other better each and every day,” Vick said. “As a group, we all have to help him get caught up. It’s not easy but at the same time, you put the work in, you try to understand what’s going on, and you just work as hard as you can. Film room is going to be important, studying at night is going to be important. He’ll get there.”
