Michael Vick Injury: Philadelphia Eagles Should Place Injured QB on IR

Michael Vick will sit out another week with a rib injury. It’s now time for the 4-7 Philadelphia Eagles to sit their quarterback for the rest of this season. 

According to Philly.com: 

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"Quarterback Michael Vick and wide receiver Jeremy Maclin have been ruled out of Thursday's game against Seattle. 

Vince Young will make his third consecutive start at quarterback while Vick is sidelined by broken ribs. Vick threw on the side yesterday, but has not participated in practice."

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That makes for Vick’s third straight game where he will miss starting for the Eagles. In those two games, Young has not played terrible for Philadelphia. He’s thrown for 400 yards in a loss against New England last week. While, against the New York Giants, he led the Eagles to a big victory.  

Young’s play has not been the reason why this Eagles team is 1-1 with him he as the starter. He didn’t play defense against the Patriots, when New England was scoring 38 points last week.

Young has shown that he can take control of this Eagles offense just like Vick did. In two games, Young has an impressive three touchdowns with 658 passing yards. He does have an alarming four interceptions in two games.  

The interceptions are a concern, but three of those four interceptions came in the win against the Giants.  

If Vick would come back this year, he would be a constant threat to re-injure these ribs. Vick’s best attribute is his speed. With the broken ribs, it makes it hard for Vick to breathe. Plus one bad hit to Vick’s chest could cause a fracture, or make the injury even worse.  

Vick is an important part to the Eagles offense. If this team would have been fighting for a playoff spot, then it would be worth the quarterback testing his broken ribs. 

Instead, the Eagles are 4-7 and three games out of the final playoff spot in the NFC. They are three games behind the No. 6 Seed Atlanta Falcons. If the Eagles would win their remaining five games, finishing 9-7, it would mean a good team like Atlanta would have to lose four of its last five games. 

Even if that would happen, the Eagles still have to jump over their entire division. With just two games remaining against their division, it does not look like they have a shot at getting that final wild-card spot. 

Vick is one of the best players in the NFL. He is also one of the most fragile players, with his style of play.  

The Eagles have a large investment in Vick and they must protect it. They should sit him for the rest of the year and let him rest up for the 2012 season. 

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