I’m going to talk about the national media and the Eagles QB competition. The point of this post isn’t to give my thoughts on the who is winning, but rather just the competition in general. I will write about the QB battle on Monday or Tuesday. I’ve got a bit of research to do in order to put everything into context.

Back to the national media for the time being. I read a lot of football articles and information. I spend way too much time on Twitter. I watch ESPN and the NFL Network on occasion. I see video clips from each network more than long shows, though. The bottom line is that I’m exposed to a lot of national opinions.

The feeling from the national media is that Michael Vick is the Eagles QB. There is no competition. Nick Foles might be backup material. Matt Barkley is the future of the franchise. Simple as that.

I’ve seen some very respectable fantasy football writers debating how early to take Vick in their drafts. I’m no fantasy expert (unless Katie Holmes and Megan Fox carrying me to the top of Mount Pudding counts), but it seems to me that spending a first round pick on a QB that isn’t guaranteed to even make the team is highly questionable. I was shocked to see smart guys having a discussion like this. Their argument is that Vick will light it up as a runner and passer in Kelly’s system.

Former NFL players are virtually all behind Vick.

Heath Evans, who appears to be a major idiot, predicted the Eagles would go 7-9 this year. I’ve got no issue with that prediction. His logic is what gets me. Evans assumes Vick has the job. He then predicted the Eagles would beat the Packers. Why? The Packers could not stop Colin Kaepernick in January so clearly there is no way they’ll stop Vick in November 2013.

Ugh.

Dom Capers and the Green Bay staff have focused on handling the read-option. They went to Texas A&M to learn everything they could. I didn’t have to look that nugget up. I knew they went. Why? I follow football. Evans is too busy saying dumb things to read some article and do some research. There is no guarantee that the Packers will be significantly better, but I would tend to bet they will.

Evans them said the Eagles would lose to the Vikings. He talked about how weak the Eagles run defense has been in recent years and that the team wouldn’t be able to handle RB Adrian Peterson. Ugh, again. We don’t run the Wide-9 anymore. Kelly has loaded up on big guys and the defense will focus on stopping the run. I’m not saying we’ll shut down Peterson. Few did last year. Had Evans said “Even with Philly’s defensive changes, they’re going to struggle with an elite RB”, I’d be fine. Instead, he is predicting 2013 on the past. Dumb.

The NFL Network had Willie McGinest and Solomon Wilcots recently discuss the Eagles. They both laughed off the notion of Vick not being the starter. They obsessed on his mobility. Vick can run. Chip Kelly is obsessed with running QBs so how could he not have the job? Well, except for the fact that Kelly has said all along he doesn’t need a mobile QB. As it appears now, 2 of the 3 QBs who could make the roster (Foles, Barkley) are not mobile. But why let logic interfere with media stupidity? The saddest part of this is that I like McGinest a lot and have high hopes for him as an analyst. Wilcots is up and down. These guys are dumb. They’re just being lazy with these opinions. They’re guessing.

I do not know the context for the next quote, but I’ll share it anyway. Ignore if you like. From Pete Roussel on Twitter:

“Cris Carter: “Sal (Pal) is under some allusion that they (Eagles) can run a blur offense with Nick Foles.” Classic!”

I think Cris meant to say “delusion”, but you still get the point. Kelly must have fast players to run his offense. Foles doesn’t fit. You must be an idiot if you don’t see that.

Michael Vick may very well win the QB competition and be the starter this year. His arm strength and mobility are the key reasons that Chip Kelly had the Eagles bring him back.

The problem is that Kelly has said from Day 1 that there would be a competition. He’s made no secret of that. He hasn’t said “Mike is our starter for now”. Chip has pushed the notion that nobody has a job yet. Every player is trying to go out and win a spot. Chip has said this over and over.

The Philly media and other media who regularly cover the Eagles are listening and seem to get this. The national media is obsessed with Vick running the ball and Chip Kelly wanting a QB that can run the ball.

I understand how the national guys are connecting the dots, but they are doing so while ignoring statistical facts and Kelly’s own words. Would Kelly lie if he did covet a mobile QB? Maybe, but I don’t think he would go out of his way as Chip has done to sell the idea that he can win with any QB. He has made the Tom Brady reference a few times. If I had him, do you think I’d run him?

Those words ring hollow for Evans, Carter, McGinest, Wilcots and the other national guys. They know what they know and the facts be damned.

* * * * *

Vick might start to change that. He made some comments to the media today that will draw serious attention to the fact the Eagles are genuinely splitting reps. Heck, Foles may have more QB snaps this spring than Vick. The national guys will hear this story and go “Huh, that’s weird.”

Here is Vick admitting that splitting reps with the 1’s is tough on him.

If you don’t want the video, go here for Tim McManus’s write-up.

That will be a national story. Heck. Florio may have already planned 5 pieces just off of that interview.

The more Vick talks about his uncertainty and the competition, the more the national guys will should wake up. That’s when we’ll get the “What the heck is Chip Kelly thinking?” articles. Can’t wait.

* * * * *

Check out this Chip Kelly quote that Ryan Messick shared on Twitter:

Reporter “You run a lot of option, is it a fallacy that it can’t work?”

Chip: “Is it a fallacy that we run quite a bit of it? Yes.”

* * * * *

Geoff Mosher posted a story this afternoon that Vick wants Kelly to name a starter before Training Camp.

“Hopefully, Chip makes a decision before training camp and we won’t have to answer that question,” Vick said in an exclusive with CSNPhilly.com, “so we can go out there as quarterbacks and just focus on this season and not answer questions about competition every day.”

Uh, okay. Then this odd sequence.

Asked if tension could mount between he and Foles as camp progresses, Vick said, “Yeah, but hopefully we’ll have an answer by then, so I’m not going to answer that.

“I won’t want to continue to answer those questions. I won’t continue to answer those questions until Chip makes a decision.”

Reminded that Kelly has frequently said no timetable exists for the coaches to make a decision, Vick said, “Then I’m not gonna answer any questions.”

Vick was asked at one point if he knew his answers were going on the record and he acknowledged that he did know that. Not the wisest answers from Vick. Kelly has said repeatedly that he won’t run the QB decision. It is truly strange for Vick to say this. Maybe he hasn’t been listening to the media.

Or maybe he’s only listening to the national media.

Chip isn’t giving the QB job to anyone. Someone will earn it. Chip doesn’t care about Vick’s highlights or NFL records. Chip wants to find the best QB for 2013. That could be Vick, Foles or Barkley. Dixon and Kinne are more essentially camp bodies.

Foles and Barkley understand the competition. I thought Vick did too, but now I’m starting to wonder if he really understood what the deal was. Well, he does now.

I don’t care who gets the job, I just need someone to step up and win it.

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