Hey Mark....Mike Vick. OK first off I saw him quite a bit as a Hokie and was thoroughly blown away with his talent. He has clearly worked very hard as a passer since he came to the NFL but he's a long way off being the finished product.
To my mind he is the best player at QB in the NFL but he isn't the best QB in the NFL. I hope that makes sense. He has an ability to run the like of which no-one has ever seen and that ability would make about 95% of starting tailbacks in the league jealous. He has more speed than anyone I think I have ever seen. The way he can split defenders with his pace is staggering. And I KNOW FOR A FACT that no-one will want to be playing Atlanta come the playoffs because he is the one player that can take over a game and win it. I know Peyton and Brady and Favre can dictate games like few others before them, but the dual threat ability that #7 has makes his simply lethal.
Going back to my initial point about him being the best player but not the best QB.....what I mean is that he doesn't have the passing ability of a Manning or a Pennington, but he has the TOTAL package that sets him aside.
To your questions.....
1. 10 yards or less - He has become much better in this short range area. He doesn't try and throw the skin off the ball as much, he has developed more touch, more of a catcheable ball and works through his checks better than he did. He has struggled to pick up this new offense that Gregg Knapp has installed because he still - and I think always will have - the look deep/take off nature. I hope they don't knock that out of him. I think there is a sense of the Falcons wanting to find a happy medium between keeping him on a leash and making sure he doesn't get hurt and allowing him to do what comes naturally, which is just to play sandlot ball. His delivery in the short range is still quite pronounced, and at times you almost feel that he is torn between doing what his coaches want and just getting back to that sandlot kid. There is still room for improvement here, but he is learning to throw balls to suit situations. To that end, watch the Denver game earlier this season. He was flushed from the pocket. He looked round, rolled to his right and suddenly spotted Alge Crumpler in the left flat. But coming into his vision also was Al Wilson. 2 years ago, he would have tried to beat Wilson or thrown it almost through him. This time, he just flipped it nonchlantly over him, perfectly in stride.
2. Passing 10+ - It's the stronger area of the two. The deeper he goes, the better he goes - very few QB's you can say that about. He can make every throw on a rope. When he played as a rookie against Miami at PPS, he was the sandlot passer but at times he let his arm get the better of him. Now he seems to have that under control. This season he has regressed in some areas because of the system and his inability at times to mold it to his talents, but the arm and the deep ball is always a thing of beauty. Because of his strength, the deeper ball sometimes still comes out flatter than any QB in the game. Watch a Peyton deep ball and a Vick deep ball. There is maybe 10-15 yards worth of vertical difference. It's staggering.
3. Field Vision - It's great. His vision and the escapability that that brings, the mobility, is stunning. He has eyes in the back of his head. But like I said earlier, I still see a player that wants to be a sandlot QB but has to try and be an NFL QB. I'm not sold that turning him fully to the side of being an NFL passer is quite right. If I was Mora Jr and Knapp, I would tailor an offense so dynamic around him that they would be unstoppable. But they rightly know that if he gets hurt then they are up the creek without a paddle. So at times he can appear hesitant almost as if he thinks that he HAS to do what the team wants. You of course don't want him to run every down. A QB must work his progressions, find his receivers, etc etc. But there never has been a passer like him and he is very special. There is not one passer in NFL history who could rip off a 70 yard gain, beating 5/6 players and then come back and throw a 70 yard rope in stride. He sees the lanes as a passer and as a runner, he CREATES the lanes. He doesn't always need to see a running lane to make yardage.
4. Arm strength - Special. Can make all the throws. Difficult to compare to George or Elway. But it's at least as good as those. I think probably it's better than any of the above, but who knows. And of course, you don't want a QB who throws it too hard or continually overthrows. He can fit balls in where he wants and can out balls in stride. Michael Bishop of KState probably had a stronger pure arm, but there's a huge difference being a passer or a chucker.
5. Running ability - You would have to think that he would be a starting TB in the NFL if he added some bulk and wasn't a QB. There's no compliment higher than that. He makes arguably the best previous mobile QB, Randall Cunningham look like Dan Marino mobility wise. Frightening. The speed, the ability to get to the edge and turn up the field is as good as any tailback in the game today.
6. Speed - Well he looks as fast as any player in football. His 40 times at Virginia Tech were in the 4.24 region. He may not be the fastest on the track, but I can't think of a faster player on the field than Vick regardless of position. He is revolutionary.
7. Ranking - To my mind the top 3 QB's in the game are Peyton, Favre and Brady. Vick would probably be next. And that's an amazing compliment when you consider how raw he still is as a QUARTERBACK and all that entails. I think pound for pound he's the best PLAYER in the NFL. I think he needs an offense that suits his needs more. If that happens, he could be the best in the game.
8. Trade Value - Untradeable. Seriously. There is nothing that you could trade him for. Not only because his talent makes him untradeable but because of his contract, what he means to the CITY OF ATLANTA, etc etc etc. Arthur Blank would be killed if he ever traded him.
As for people on this site who think he is overrated, they can't be watching the games. As I said, the guy has revolutionised football. Even if his arm and his throwing is out, he can still kill you on the ground. As good as Peyton, Brady, Brett, Pennington etc are, NONE of them can say that. None.
Sorry to keep repeating myself, but NO-ONE will want to play Vick and the Falcons in the playoffs. I fully expect them to be the NFC's representative in Jacksonville.
Hope that's what you were after.
Boomer.
