Vick Denies Any Issues With Coaching Staff


Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael VickJason Cole of Yahoo Sports recently reported that there has been tension between Michael Vick and Eagles assistant coaches.

“One of the internal issues was tension between Vick and the coaching staff, with the quarterback believing some of the assistant coaches were pushing to have him benched, according to a source familiar with the situation,” Cole wrote.

Today, Vick denied the report.

“That’s absolutely false. Coach [Andy Reid] and I never had that conversation,” Vick said. “Everything we talked about in that room was personal, was man-to-man, but that never came up.”

So he’s not concerned about that at all?

“Not at all,” Vick said. “My coaches do a great job of getting me prepared, putting me in the best position possible. I’ve got nothing but the utmost respect for them, and they know that, without me even having to say that on camera.”

Reid offered a similar take.

“I don’t know where that would come from,” he said. “That’s not the case. Everybody’s on board with Michael and they have been.”

Of course, this is one of those that falls in the “What else were they going to say?” category. Despite what Reid has said recently, his actions indicate that he has given serious consideration to benching Vick at various points during the season. It took him until this past week to give Vick a strong vote of confidence, as the team’s season hangs in the balance Monday night against the Saints.

It wouldn’t be too shocking if an assistant coach felt it was time for Reid to make a change. While it’s certainly not all on Vick, the offense is averaging just 17.2 points per game, which ranks 28th in the league. Players and coaches have shown clear signs of frustration, especially in the past two losses to the Falcons and Lions. After a players-only meeting this week, they’ll now try to salvage their season against the worst defense in the league.

“I think our guys are very resilient,” Vick said. “We just have to continue to persevere in all situations and make the most out of the opportunities that we got now.”

Follow Sheil Kapadia on Twitter and e-mail him at skapadia@phillymag.com.
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