Mike Vick, RG3 Obsolete?

Mike Vick after hit Monday Night.
(Yong Kim/Philly.com)

So I'm listening to the radio after dropping my boys off at school.  "The Herd" with Colin Cowherd is on.  If you didn't know, Mike Vick had another premature exit from a football game Monday night vs New England.  The first snap of the Eagles' second offensive possession Mike Vick dropped back for a pass only to be blasted in the ribs by a rushing Jermaine Cunningham.  Vick was helped to his feet by a teammate but only made it a few steps before going to a knee.


The injury removed him from the game permanently.  There apparently is no fracture of the ribs.  Only bruising and discomfort.  Perhaps he comes back in a regular season game.  The question is (and has been) can Vick make it through a full season?  Right now, the answer is (and has been) no.  A resounding no.

The interesting thought brought up by ESPN's Colin Cowherd was a new trend of quarterbacks.  As in bigger, linebacker looking quarterbacks.  He brought the last two first overall picks -- Cam Newton and Andrew Luck.  They are strong-armed, tall guys who the NFL has forever loved, and are also physically gifted.  The thing Cowherd thinks the NFL loves about these guys is there beef.  Newton and Luck weighed 248 and 234 pounds at their combines, respectively.

Cowherd also named quarterbacks such as Eli and Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Phillip Rivers, Ben Roethlisberger, Matt Schaub, Matthew Stafford and Joe Flacco as bigger quarterbacks.  The biggest QB on the list may be the guy often referred to as "Big Ben" Roethlisberger.  If any current QB has been banged up more than Vick, it's Roethlisberger.  He also noted that Brees was an exception to the rule for slender guys.

A "tie-in" for Roethlisberger and Vick being so injury riddled is their reckless play.  Griffin III doesn't extend plays as often as Vick or Roethlisberger.  Cowherd may be on to something but it is far from a fool proof method.  And I don't want anyone to mistake what Cowherd is saying.  He's just pointing out a reason to take Luck over RG3.  Longevity.  Tim Tebow weighs about 250 pounds, but Cowherd would take RG3 over Tebow in a New York minute.

I remember when people were pointing Andy Dalton's red hair as a reason why he may not have success.  Apparently there hadn't been a highly successful red-haired quarterback before.  Obviously there weren't too many buyers for that having an affect.  There's reasons why the weight would make sense.  But I would caution Colin Cowherd and anyone else putting quarterbacks in a group like this.  Football is not science.  Research and numbers don't mix well with the sport.  That's why we have sayings like, "The tape doesn't lie," "he passes the eye-ball test," and "he has the 'it' factor."