McNabb's Ego an Issue in Vick Lovefest

We could be polite and assume he didn't like the stadium music or something. Or we could look at the tortured scowl on Donovan McNabb's face, the way he mouthed "no rhythm" to his offensive coordinator, the way he stormed around the Eagles sideline -- and draw only one conclusion from the fact he waved his hand across his neck several times.

This was a throat-slash sign.

As in, enough of the Michael Vick project. As in, kill the tricks, the Wildcat formation and the sweeping Vick obsession. As in, Vick is receiving way too much attention from the coaches and love from the Philadelphia crowd. As in, "Yo, don't you know I'm Donovan McNabb, the face of the franchise, and that I've been in five NFC championship games, a Super Bowl, five Pro Bowls and numerous Chunky Soup ads with my world-famous mother -- and that no one disses me by letting a presumably reformed dogkiller steal my stage in my town!"

Amid all the warm-and-fuzzy, pro-Vick sentiment oozing from the Eagles locker room and, somewhat shockingly, the stands at Lincoln Financial Field, people have forgotten one of the undeniable characteristics of this team the last 10 years: McNabb's feelings are hurt easily. His career has been a swirl of perpetual drama, of course, sensationalized by ridiculously unfair criticism from Rush Limbaugh, the Terrell Owens circus, a benching last season and fans who can't decide whether he's the city's greatest quarterback ever or an underachieving, whiny bum. But he's also very sensitive about his ongoing approval rating and, ultimately, his legacy. And the other night, he made it apparent he was displeased with coach Andy Reid and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg and their early emphasis on using Vick as the centerpiece in a newfangled scheme. Everyone knows the Eagles will be creative with their hired weapon, but who knew that five of Vick's first six snaps would be as a quarterback, each out of the shotgun formation? The idea was to use Vick as a compliment to McNabb. Why was McNabb shuttling in and out of the game on some plays while Vick was being inserted six different times? Why was Vick throwing four passes, two of the shovel variety and one a 13-yard strike to Hank Baskett? Sure, he ran the Wildcat offense and lined up in the slot at wide receiver, the expected gadget plays. But it appeared the coaches were just as anxious to see him at McNabb's position, an immediate eyebrow-raiser that feeds suspicions that Vick eventually will replace McNabb in 2011, if not before.

Every concern about the Vick experiment has involved whether he'll have behavior lapses, setbacks that cause NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to delay his reinstatement by Week 6 of the regular season. Did anybody consider McNabb's ego in the equation? And by throwing a public fit only minutes into Vick's debut, just what will life be like in volatile Philly if Reid and Mornhinweg use him as the lead quarterback more often than anyone dreamed? McNabb was asked if Vick's presence -- which didn't result in much more than short gains against a Jacksonville defense that snuffed out the trickery -- disrupted the rhythm of an offense that was running just fine when McNabb was out there by his lonesome.

He was only too happy to confirm his dismay.

"When you're trying something new, it's important that you get into a rhythm first and then try to work it in there in the offense," McNabb said. "At some point, you have to get into a rhythm and get things going down the field and move the chains. Then you kind of show them something, but this was the first time. That's what preseason is for, trying some different things and seeing if you want to run them during the year or eliminate them in the offense. We got that out of the way and now we can move on."

So why did he flip the cut gesture to Mornhingweg? McNabb, a smooth politician, didn't answer the question. "Yeah, I sat all of them down and I told them, `That's it,'" he said of the coaches, attempting to downplay the episode with a joke. But those of us with functioning eyes and ears saw ESPN flood its programming Friday with shots of the gesture, along with a shot of McNabb and Vick having an animated sideline discussion. No doubt McNabb was ticked off, and it's not hard to figure out why.

"That had nothing to do with Michael," Reid tried to claim. "You can ask McNabb. He was fine with it. If you're going to use (Vick and gadgetry) a little bit, then you have to work it in there. That's what we're going to do as we go down the road here. I expect the guys to make that part of the rhythm and make it work. I don't see that as what happened there."

It took all of, what, six plays, to launch doubts about whether McNabb and Vick both can be happy. It's clear already that Vick, while working on his conditioning and getting into football shape, still has a potent arm and fresh legs. Inevitably, McNabb will find his way into one of his trademark slumps, and quicker than you can turn on WIP sports radio, the fans will be calling for Vick as the regular QB. But how can Vick ever develop his own sort of consistency if McNabb doesn't like the way Vick is being utilized and openly fights the coaches on it? Vick will play against the Jets this Thursday night in Giants Stadium, then he'll have to leave the team according to the terms of his agreement with Goodell. The commisioner can reinstate him at any time, but if he waits until Week 6, how will the Eagles incorporate Vick into the offense in the middle of a season?

Wisely, he is staying out of the fray and continuing to say all the right things. "I just want to be able to make plays, to be able to say I contribute and that I helped this football team reach that one common goal," Vick said. "That is winning and hopefully winning a championship. I am humbled. I want to sit back and learn as much as I can and polish my skills as a quarterback."

Just the same, he remains brazenly confident about his skills. He doesn't want to be a secret weapon, a Wildcat toy, a running back or a receiver or a kick returner. He wants to be the starting quarterback for an NFL team. "That is why I go home and study every night, that's why I prepare myself and that's why I am spending that extra time after practice trying to get my body back to playing shape," Vick said. "I am almost there, about 70 percent there. So, right now, I am just going off my natural ability. Once I get myself into top shape, the sky is the limit. When I was younger I did it all. I can do it all now. Down the road, I'll be back at the quarterback position full time."

It's no secret Philadelphia is a crazy, fickle place. But the standing ovation received by Vick, in a stadium about half-full at the time, was frightening. They treated him as a savior, forgetting his dogkilling sins as if they happened in another life. Only in Philly would they boo Santa Claus and cheer a guy who shot, hanged and electrocuted dogs. There were no anti-Vick protests by animal rights groups, no airplanes carrying derisive banners. I was half-flabbergasted, half-disgusted. Vick was thrilled, naturally.


"I can't explain the feeling. It was unbelievable the way I was embraced," he said. "It actually made me screw up one of my reads. I wanted to please the crowd and I actually made a bad play. Running onto the field, I was listening to what the reaction would be and it was very positive. I didn't expect that reaction. First off, I never envisioned myself in a Philadelphia Eagles uniform. It was kind of a surreal feeling."

"Yeah, the fans see him as an asset to the team," Jackson said.

Said Reid: "I was proud of everybody. It was nice to see."

Proud? How about repulsed? Silence would have been a much better reaction. But the Save Vick campaign is alive and not well, in Philly and beyond. Earlier Thursday, his road out of bankruptcy was paved by a federal judge in Virginia, leaving him six years to repay $20 million to creditors. What's next, dog-food commercials?
"It was a great day for me all around," Vick said.

I keep thinking how it wasn't a great day for Donovan McNabb, an ardent dog lover who never has been in jail and never has let down his family or franchise and yet, somehow, has become the heavy in the blooming Vick romance.

And to think just two weeks ago, he was telling us how he lobbied for Vick's presence. Be careful what you wish for, Don.