Michael Vick: Poor End to 2010 a Bad Sign for Eagles in 2011?

The quarterback carousel in Philadelphia was an unexpected twist in the 2010 season.

In January, Eagles fans thought Donovan McNabb would be back to lead the troops for at least one more year.

After the shocking trade to the division rival Washington Redskins, the spotlight was suddenly on Kevin Kolb.

Within one week into the season, that spotlight again shifted, this time to Michael Vick.

An injury that Kolb sustained in week one landed him on the sideline. Vick took over, and the Michael Vick experience was underway.

After leading the Eagles to a 35-32 victory over the Lions in week two, Andy Reid named Vick the official starter.

In week four, Vick suffered a rib cartilage injury and was replaced by Kolb. It wasn't until week nine that Vick would return to action.

That's when the magic began.

Vick was handed an Eagles team with a record of just 4-3. What he did over the next few weeks not only won over most of the fans in Philadelphia, but many across the entire nation.

He was phenomenal in his return against the Colts, throwing for 218 yards and rushing for 74 more. The team squeezed out a 26-24 victory against one of the toughest teams in football.

The following week Vick and the Eagles dismantled the Redskins on Monday Night Football. Vick threw for 333 yards and rushed for 80 yards. He had six total touchdowns. Five of those touchdowns came in the first half.

Philadelphia won three of its next four games, Vick had become the talk of the league and the Eagles were on the brink of a playoff berth.

Suddenly, the Eagles flat lined.

Well, that's not completely true. The team was dominated for 50 minutes in their week 15 matchup against the New York Giants.

We all know that story. The Eagles faced a 31-10 deficit with roughly eight minutes remaining in the game. Without all the gory details, a punt return by DeSean Jackson as time expired sealed a 38-31 win for Philadelphia.

However, other than those final minutes, the Giants defense manhandled the Eagles the majority of the game.

The problems continued the following week, when the Vikings stunned the Eagles with Joe Webb taking his first start under center.

The season then ended in the first round of the playoffs, when the offense only managed 16 points against the future Super Bowl Champions.

The team's pathetic performance in Week 17 against Dallas can be ignored, since it was all backups on the field for Philadelphia.

However, there were and still are concerns that Vick may be regressing into his old playing style. Fans are worried that the new Vick may return to his old form in 2011.

I don't think there is much need to worry, at least, not about Vick.

In the three games mentioned, the Eagles had a poor offensive gameplan.

In the case of the Giants game, Vick was able to lead the team to a miracle victory thanks to his athletic ability. That doesn't excuse the fact for a poor game plan put together by the coaching staff.

When Vick was able to overcome the gameplan, he was a hero. When he failed, he became the scapegoat.

The Giants found a way to contain Vick, and the Eagles weren't able to make appropriate adjustments.

The following week, the Vikings mimicked the exact defensive strategy the Giants used. This time, they came away with a win.

The Packers did the same thing.

There is no question that Vick was having problems reading the different blitzes that teams were sending, but accommodations should have been made to solve the problem.

This isn't an Andy Reid bashing article. Those who know me, know that I'm actually a strong supporter of Reid.

However, it seems that most of the blame for lack of execution late in the season needs to be placed on the coaching staff.

Another thought to consider, was that this was Vick's first "full season" returning to the NFL. Although I'm sure he worked hard to get into shape, he likely wasn't at top form.

That shouldn't be the case next season. Plus, he will spend this offseason training with the first-team, something he was unable to do last year.

A few struggles late in the season shouldn't be a reason to panic.

Philadelphia has some of the most talented players and coaches in the league. They should be able to resolve the issues before the start of the 2011 season.