Vick: ‘Sometimes You Need To Be Pushed’


Michael VickMichael Vick regrets his comments from the end of minicamp. Says he never should have expressed his frustrations with the quarterback competition. And now that he’s been through the experience, he understands why Chip Kelly took the approach that he did.

“I should have never came out and said that. I just was having a moment,” said Vick. “But I appreciate having to put in the hard work, having all summer to think about what type of mindset I had to come back with. Preparing throughout the summer as if I was fighting for a job. And I was.”

That notion may not have fully dawned on Vick when he restructured his deal to stay in Philadelphia.  Kelly stated from the jump that the job was open, but it didn’t appear to really set in for the veteran until this spring. Following the last practice of minicamp Vick admitted that it was tough splitting the first-team reps, and hoped Kelly would name a starter prior to the opening of training camp.

Instead, Kelly made him earn it.

“It’s gratifying to know that I had to come back and work for everything and it wasn’t given to me. I’m proud that I got the best out of myself when I needed it, and it’s going to be needed and required a lot more. If I can take that same approach, then hopefully good things will happen for this team.

“You’re at your best when your best is required and sometimes it’s hard to get it out of yourself. Sometimes you need to be motivated, you need to be pushed,” Vick  continued. “And there were times when I questioned the situation but I just felt like there was a greater purpose, and that purpose was to get the most out of me and I found a way to do that. That’s why I stand before you humble because I was able to find something within my game and within my character and my personality that I haven’t felt in a  long time and that means a lot, and I thank Coach Kelly for that.”

Vick seems to be at his best when he is fighting out of a corner. The last time he had to do it — in 2010 — he finished as a candidate for league MVP.

Now that the QB competition is over, the question becomes: can he keep his edge?

“This is just Day 1. I still have to prove myself each and every day,” said Vick. “I’m still going to compete with the quarterbacks each and every day, and we’re going to approach this as if it’s our last play every play. That’s what we talked about and that’s what it’s going to be.

“It would be a shame if I let up right now. It would be selfish to myself and to my teammates. If anything, I’m going to continue to work harder. I’m going to go out here, do about five-six hundred sit-ups, five or six hundred push-ups, and I’m going to jump up on that treadmill and I’m going to run until I can’t run no more.”

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