Boy oh boy, and here I thought Andy Reid — who is as big as a van — wouldn’t be able to back pedal this quickly. But that’s just what he did in choosing Michael Vick over Kevin Kolb despite his clean bill of health. Reid, the mastermind behind the trade that sent Donovan McNabb — the greatest Eagles quarterback in history — down the turnpike to D.C., installed his man this summer with the promise of a learning curve, slow growth, and an eventual dynasty built around young studs Kolb, LeSean McCoy, DeSean Jackson, Brent Celek and Jeremy Maclin. Instead, he’s opting for the quick fix to win games now. And I can’t say I blame him.
Furthermore, teams across the country in need of help at QB (Arizona, Buffalo, Cleveland, Seattle, Oakland all come to mind) apparently began calling earlier today to see if Kolb could be had. When asked Wednesday whether Kolb would be on the Eagles’ roster after the Oct. 19 trade deadline, Eagles coach Andy Reid said, “Listen, I can’t predict anything down that far; nobody in this league can do that.” Nice vote of confidence, huh?
Kolb has missed the past six quarters because of a concussion, and Michael Vick (his temporary replacement, and insurance policy) played well in his absence. Kolb was cleared to practice and was expected to run the first-team offense Wednesday. However, Tuesday night, Vick was named the Eagles’ starting quarterback, with Reid saying, “When someone is playing at the level Michael Vick is playing, you have to give him an opportunity.”
Vick threw for 175 yards and one touchdown and ran for 103 yards, and this past Sunday he passed for 284 yards and two touchdowns in the Eagles’ victory over the very unlucky, very tenacious Detroit Lions.
Fantasy Impact: Dump Kolb, now. He’s not worth a dime. And like I said, there’s no real foul here in the real world. Teams are built to win and win now. If you’re not challenging for a division crown, for a playoff spot, then you’re either the worst organization in sports, or the Cleveland Browns. If Andy Reid thinks his team has more of a chance to challenge in the W-I-D-E O-P-E-N NFC East with Michael Vick’s athleticism and leadership, I say go for it. Does it screw those of us who drafted Kolb in the 4th-6th round this past August? Well, yeah, completely. But like the Eagles will do, we all have to adapt. Kolb will have to wait for his opportunity now, but he’ll be paid almost $13 million to do so. I’d be fine with that if I were him. If you did grab him, I’d recommend trying to sign or trade for Kyle Orton, or slog it out for three weeks while you wait for Ben Roethlisberger to join his shockingly 2-0 Steelers. Even if you have to overpay for him by giving up a Flex/RB2 or RB3, so be it. He’ll come back, and they’ll throw, and life will be good again.
