Michael Vick SUCKS!!

I have to admit: I haven’t been following Pro Bowl voting very closely. Imagine my surprise when I read the following item in Tuesday Morning Quarterback’s column, “Last year, Michael Vick made the Pro Bowl despite being 21st in passer rating; this year he made the Pro Bowl despite being 24th.”

What??

There are a lot of Vick apologists out there and they always point out what a great athlete the man is. While that’s all well and good, there’s no “miscellaneous athlete” category in the Pro Bowl, he’s being voted in as a QUARTERBACK. Excuse me for pointing this out but quarterbacks are supposed to complete forward passes and marshal their team to victory.

Just so I’m being clear: I’m not saying Vick isn’t a phenomenal talent – I’m simply questioning his effectiveness at his position. His passes are consistently off target and his decision making is questionable. He’s only a threat when he’s scrambling and while that’s a nifty skill to possess, it is something that’s desirable as a surplus ability rather than your only tangible skill. I mean, Drew Bledsoe is as mobile as a block of granite but who’s having the better season as a quarterback? Whose team is in contention for the playoffs and whose is already eliminated? On the other hand, a decathlete might have great speed and arm strength but would he have the ability to read defenses and make accurate passes? I mean, if athletic skill were the only prerequisite for being an NFL quarterback, why aren’t teams raiding track and field competitions? Simply put, because it takes something more to be a quarterback and Mike Vick is apparently missing that “something.”

Just how bad is Vick’s as a passer?

Check out his season stats and career totals:

Comp Att Yds % YPA TD Int Sack Rating
2005 199 363 2297 54.8 6.33 15 12 30 74.1
Career 711 1318 8916 53.9 6.77 51 38 139 76.1

Now take his career numbers and compare them to other football giants such as, oh… I don’t know:

V. Testaverde 3691 6526 45252 56.6 6.93 269 261 408 75.2
B. Johnson 2323 3758 25551 61.8 6.80 153 102 213 84.2
T. Dilfer 1646 2953 19352 55.7 6.55 106 117 236 71.3

In plain language, Vinny Testaverde, Brad Johnson and Trent Dilfer all have greater career completion percentages than Vick. Vinny and Brad have higher Yards per Attempt and passer ratings than Vick. No one, I repeat, NO ONE is accusing these guys of being great QBs but they are in large part, statistically better than Vick.

The Vick apologist will then say, “hey – say what you want, he wins.” My answer is two part:

Number one, who does he beat? Len Pasquarelli writes this about the Falcons 2005 season, “The Falcons defeated just two teams, Minnesota and Miami, that currently have winning records. Their eight victories came against franchises that have an aggregate record of 41-77 -- and none of whom is headed to the playoffs.” That’s not really that impressive…

Number two, does he really win? I mean, he’ll be watching the playoffs from home just like I will be. This is in spite of a rushing attack that was ranked 1st in professional football and a decent defense (ranked 18th in the league – right in the middle. Not great but not bad either). Where did Atlanta’s passing attack rank? 28th in the league, that’s where. Atlanta is sending five other players to the Pro Bowl: Warrick Dunn, Alge Crumpler, Rod Coleman, Keith Brooking and DeAngelo Hall. That’s tied for second most in the league so it’s not as if Vick’s supporting cast sucks. When looked at objectively, the only true weak spot on the Falcons team is the quarterbacking. How can you see it any other way? Need more evidence? Among quarterbacks that had at least 100 pass attempts this season, these fellows had higher QB ratings (from nfl.com):

• Trent Dilfer
• Kyle Boller
• David Carr
• Brian Griese
• Chris Simms
• David Garrard
• Jamie Martin
• Brad Johnson
• Kelly Holcomb

Not exactly murderers row is it?

Then a Vick apologist might say, “yeah but that’s just this season. What about the other seasons?” Well I don’t have the Falcons record for the 2001 season (Vick’s rookie season) and, even though I looked up all the other shit, I was too lazy to look this up. In my defense though, he only started 2 games that year and threw more interceptions (3) than touchdowns (2). Oh, and he also put up a lowly 62.7 passer rating. As for the other seasons, the breakdown is as follows:

2002: 9-6-1 (won 1 playoff game)
2003: 5-11
2004: 11-5 (won 1 playoff game)

That’s 2 playoff wins in Vick’s five seasons. That’s not the end of the world, but it’s simply not enough to consider this guy the next coming of Jesus Christ. Say it with me folks: Michael Vick is insanely overrated.