Not that the world needed more proof, but once again Michael Vick showed a national television audience that he's back and better than ever. When the Eagles fell behind 24-20 in the third quarter, after Houston controlled the ball for 12 of the first 15 minutes after half time, Vick knew it was time to rally his team.
The unquestioned leader made his voice heard, and the rest was history.
"I just wanted the guys to believe in themselves," Vick said postgame. "I have all the belief in the world in those guys and I think the world of them. I'll go to battle with them any day. So I try to encourage them and say whatever I can to keep them upbeat, keep them confident and keep them with that will to win."
Of course, it didn't hurt that Vick was spectacular in the fourth quarter when his team needed him the most. In the final frame, Vick completed 5 of 7 passes for 106 yards and a touchdown for a QB rating of 153.3. He also ran for 12 yards and a touchdown. For the second straight home game, the Eagles needed to come from behind in the second half to win. Both times, they did just that.
"We just did a great job of battling back," Vick said. "I told the guys that now is the time to put it all together and come out and make the plays that I know we can make. Let's be efficient. Let's be smart and lets win this football game – and we did."
With each electrifying play that Vick makes with his legs, and after hanging in the pocket for that extra second, it seems that a punishing hit is always waiting. Even Superman has his limits, and there are those who wonder when the constant punishment will take its toll on the Eagles quarterback.
"He got knocked around a little bit," head coach Andy Reid said after the game. "(Houston) has a real good defensive front. They blitzed a little bit, and he kept getting back up and kept going."
Vick knows that his teammates, coaches and all Eagles fans cringe when the hits start piling up. But often times, he said, the hits aren't quite as bad as they may appear.
"I'm used to taking hits and it's not that bad," Vick said. "They make look harder than what they are … if I take one and I lay down I took a good one, and you know it. I'm a pretty tough guy, I feel like for the most part, so I try to bounce back whenever I can.
"I expect to get hit and sometimes it gets me going. You get hit a couple times early then you realize that you have to move a little bit in the pocket."
No one would mind if Vick's No. 7 jersey was just a bit cleaner when the final whistle blows, but that's not who Michael Vick is. He's the type of player who won't be denied, even if his body becomes bruised and battered in the process.
There's no "S" on his shirt, but on the field the Eagles quarterback thinks he's invincible.
And sometimes, he's right.
-- Posted by Josh Goldman, 1:50 a.m., December 3
