He won't be the starter, but he could see more snaps.


At one point, it looked like Michael Vick was the most likely quarterback on the Philadelphia Eagles' roster to get moved during the offseason. But, now that Donovan McNabb has been traded, Vick will stay on as Kevin Kolb's primary backup.

But is that all Vick will be doing in 2010? He chipped in as a Wildcat quarterback in 2009, but the results were underwhelming. However, with a year in the system under his belt, it might be time to expand Vick's role.

The biggest thing working in his favor is the fact that he seemed to get better as the year went on.

He was largely a non-factor for the first 10 weeks or so, but he came on very strong at the end of the season and was one of the only bright spots in a playoff loss to the Dallas Cowboys. He threw a touchdown strike to Jeremy Maclin in that game, and looked like the best player on the field at times.

And now that he's the unquestioned backup, and is getting paid as such, I'd like to see the Eagles open up the playbook for Vick. Allow him to throw down the field, allow him to run the option, and just allow him, overall, more freedom when he's on the field.

I still think the Eagles' variation of the Wildcat can work, but they have to use it in the right situations this season.

Instead of putting him in when the offense is on a role, they need to save him for a time when the offense needs a spark. If you put him in while the offense is moving, you risk messing up the timing -- something McNabb complained about last season.

Kolb will undoubtedly feel the same way, so if he's instead used as a guy to come in on third and long, get the first down and turn the reigns back over to Kolb, it would help the whole situation move much more smoothly.

Vick showed that he's still got some of the physical assets that made him a superstar in Atlanta, so it would be silly not to utilize them, especially in a season when there could be a lot of growing pains with this very young offense.