With last season's horror show in the rear-view mirror, the Philadelphia Eagles are once again an optimistic bunch. For those high hopes to amount to anything, Michael Vick must stay on the field.
That's been a problem for the veteran quarterback. He hasn't played a full 16-game season since 2006. When Vick was healthy, we saw him fade down the stretch. Where was the electric superman from 2010? Far away.
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Vick faces his most critical season yet, and ESPN analyst Ron Jaworski -- currently ranking each NFL starting passer -- believes we're about to see his best.
"Vick has shown he is capable of throwing the ball exceptionally well from the pocket. His overall throwing skill set can be top-five in the league," Jaworski said on ESPN, per Rotoworld.
"His objective in 2012 must be to play that way more often. It becomes an availability issue. You can't be an elite NFL quarterback if you can't be counted on every single week. I am really excited to see Michael Vick in 2012. A more disciplined player will result in fewer turnovers. I would not be surprised if we're getting ready to see the best year of Vick's 10-year career."
We already know Vick has pored over game tape this offseason, huddled in darkness, dissecting every bad decision from a year ago. That's encouraging. This is a better overall team than we saw last year, but nothing has changed at the core: Philly will go as far as Vick takes them.
