Sunday at the Post

QUOTE/STORY OF THE WEEK...

“Frankly, the legend of Michael Vick will be determined as we go forward. It won't be determined on the field of football. His life, he will never ever be able to recover from what he criminally and murderously took part in, but he has an opportunity to create a legend where maybe he can be a force in stopping the horrendous cruelty to animals, the dogfighting. A lot of us probably have our heads in the sands, and I know I have, when it comes to what really goes on in inner cities and around the country with dogfighting and cruelty to animals. It's not a good picture.” — Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie

I have attended many press conferences in my NFL career and very few have been memorable, but the Eagles’ introduction of Michael Vick on Friday was truly unforgettable. I was in awe of Jeffrey Lurie’s performance. He spoke from the heart, he spoke with passion, he spoke with anger, he spoke with compassion, he spoke with concern and, most of all, he spoke the truth.

APMichael Vick

Beyond his words, there was much more to respect about Lurie’s work Friday and in the days leading up to Vick’s signing. For one, he showed a willingness to listen and embrace the other point of view with objectivity — attributes that great leaders must possess. He was not afraid to make a tough decision, was not afraid to say no to his coach and, perhaps most important, was not afraid to have his mind changed.

Those of you who read this space frequently know that I love this Jack Nicholson quote: “I love discourse. I am dying to have my mind changed. I am probably the only liberal who read ‘Treason’ by Ann Coulter. I want to know — you understand? I like listening to everybody. This, for me, is the elixir of life.”

Friday, I wrote how Vick’s signing presented three challenges for the Eagles: regaining Vick’s on-the-field prowess, winning the public relations battle and getting the quarterback’s life off the field back to where it should be. The Eagles demonstrated Friday that they have their plan in place on the public relations front, but now the burden of bringing everything else together falls on Vick. He must demonstrate on a continual basis that he has changed and that he wasn’t acting when he won over Commissioner Roger Goodell, Tony Dungy, Andy Reid and Lurie. The making of the new Michael Vick starts now.

“My own measurement of Michael Vick will be 100 percent, is he able to create social change in this horrendous arena of animal cruelty?” Lurie said. “Whether he is successful with us on the field, sure, I hope he is.”

At the bottom of this post is a note from WIP radio pregame host John Miller. John is a passionate Eagles fan who, like many Eagles fans the past few weeks, has wrestled with the decision to sign Vick. Let me or John know what you think of his work.

THINGS I HEARD AROUND THE NFL LAST WEEK...

“Most defeats are profitable, most victories costly.” — Stratis Haviaras

1. I was telling someone in the league on Saturday how bad Jets linebacker Vernon Gholston looked in the team’s first preseason game Friday night. My friend said he talked to a Jets executive who claimed that Gholston had looked that bad all camp. I can’t imagine he looks good when he plays football. He has no instincts.

APIs Derrick Brooks headed to the Saints?

2. By the time you read this, Derrick Brooks may already be a New Orleans Saint, unless the Raiders step in and make a huge offer.

3. The Titans are giddy about the talents of third-round pick Jared Cook. The tight end out of South Carolina will give QB Kerry Collins a dimension in the passing game to complement what he already has with Bo Scaife.

4. Eagles offensive tackle Shawn Andrews has a mental block with training camp, but he needs to get back on the field to prepare for the season. How can the Eagles count on him all season if he’s so unreliable now?

5. I had been hearing that former Jets tight end Chris Baker was having a good camp with the Patriots, and his play Thursday night against the Eagles — when he caught two touchdown passes — confirmed that fact. He’s going to find a way to help the Patriots this year. On another note, the Patriots were very impressive the other night.

7. The word around NFL circles this week is that the Bengals may have been the other team that had a sincere interest in Michael Vick. No one on either side is saying, but I have heard that more than one time.

8. The Seahawks have had internal discussions about possibly being interested in adding another running back. If it were me running the Seahawks, I would be looking very hard to fill this need.

9. There has been very little dialogue between Michael Crabtree and his agent Eugene Parker this past week and this hold out is going to extend much longer. It's hard to make a deal if both parties are not talking. The same can be said for the Bengals and Andre Smith. Smith and the Bengals are a long way from doing a deal, which comes as no surprise to anyone.  

GET READY FOR PRESEASON GAMES…

“Every single one of you guys will have a least one chance to win a game for us. I ask you to prepare for that opportunity with the attitude that it is a certainty, not a possibility.” — Coach Bill Walsh, addressing one of his 49ers teams at the beginning of training camp.

MY VIEW OF THE GAMES...

1. After watching their first preseason game, I think the ‘Skins have to be worried about their offensive line.

APJoe Flacco

2. Joe Flacco looks much smoother, much quicker and much more decisive with the football. He’s going to have a good season.

3. I know Kyle Orton looked bad Friday when he threw three first-half interceptions, but the Broncos appeared extremely well-coached on offense. Josh McDaniels is going to be a very good head coach, especially if he can get Orton to eliminate his mistakes.

4. The Broncos changed personnel groups on every play to open the first drive against the 49ers. And once Brandon Marshall comes back, they’ll eventually have a down-the-field passing game.

5. Mark Sanchez will be the Jets’ starter in their opener. Unless my personnel eyes have left me, he is much better and much more talented than Kellen Clemens. Even without his $50-million rookie contract, Sanchez is the answer for the Jets.

APWatch out for Moreno this season

6. Knowshon Moreno is good — and I mean really good. His ability to pass protect makes him a huge weapon for the Broncos, and his knee looks fine.

7. Pittsburgh is going to have to really help offensive tackle Max Starks, who is still a liability in pass protection.

8. I was surprised to see Chad Ochocinco’s speed and acceleration the other night. He seems to have more burst now than at any point last year.

9. Michael Vick’s role on the Eagles, assuming he’s able to play, will change from week to week. They’ll use him to attack and exploit their opponents’ weaknesses.

10. The Jets are going to miss linebacker Calvin Pace, who was expected to be one of their best players, as he sits out the first four games for violating the league’s policy on performance enhancing substances. Rex Ryan’s scheme fits his game very well.

BOWEN’S BOAST...

I am headed to NFL Films on Monday and the first tape I am grabbing is the Chiefs/Texans game. I promise all of you that I will know the Texans as well as any team in the NFL this season. In large part because I want to see Bruce in Amsterdam and because I do a weekly radio show in Houston on 1560, called "The Game." Here is an article on their host.

Follow Matt on Twitter: @MattBowen41

BOOK OF THE WEEK...

APQuarterback Joe Montana and Bill Walsh

“The ability to help the people around me self actualize their goals underlines the single aspect of my abilities and the label that I value most: Teacher.” — Bill Walsh

“The Score Takes Care of Itself: My Philosophy of Leadership,” by Bill Walsh, Steve Jamison and Craig Walsh, in stores Aug. 20.

I was fortunate to get an advance copy of this great book. Here’s a sample of some of the do’s and don’ts for mental and emotional equilibrium in Walsh’s personal and professional life.

MY FIVE DO’S FOR GETTING BACK INTO THE GAME

1. Do expect defeat. It is a given when the stakes are high and the competition is working ferociously to beat you. If you are surprised when it happens, you’re dreaming; dreamers don’t last long.

2. Do force yourself to stop looking backward and dwelling on the professional "train wreck" you have just been in. It's mental quicksand.

3. Do allow yourself appropriate recovery/grieving time. You've been knocked senseless; give yourself a little time to recuperate. A keyword here is “little.” Don't let it drag on.

4. Do tell yourself, “I am going to stand and fight again,” with the knowledge that often when things are at their worst, you're closer than you can imagine to success. Our Super Bowl victory arrived less than 16 months after my “train wreck” in Miami.

5. Do begin planning for your next serious encounter. The smallest steps/plans move you forward on the road to recovery. Focus on the fix.

MY FIVE DON'TS:

1. Don't ask, “Why me?”
2. Don't expect sympathy.
3. Don't bellyache.
4. Don't keep accepting condolences.
5. Don't blame others.

I love this book. Get one, give one and make sure you read it.

The Sunday Jolt from Ray Gustini

See this movie: “The Hurt Locker”

“The Hurt Locker” is being hailed as a great Iraq war movie, which I think downplays the enormity of director Kathryn Bigelow’s achievement. Yes, the movie tells the story of a bomb disposal team fending off Shia militias in southern Iraq, but Bigelow’s movie is no more an Iraq thriller than “Foreign Correspondent” or “The Lady Vanishes” or any of the other stellar early Hitchcock pictures are great WWII thrillers. These are great pictures of suspense, untethered by the geopolitical strife they portray. It’s not an overstatement to say that Bigelow — ex-wife of James Cameron and director of previous cult favorites “Near Dark” and “Strange Days” — has made a thriller for the ages. To paraphrase Hitch himself, a bomb that explodes is a surprise. A bomb that doesn’t explode is, well, “The Hurt Locker.”

TIPPER OF THE WEEK... FANTASY STYLE... FROM JOE “THE TIPPER” FORTENBAUGH:

“Nothing is more dangerous ... than to live in the temperamental atmosphere of a Gallup Poll, always feeling one’s pulse and taking one temperature.” -- Speech, House of Commons, Sept. 30, 1941

Since last week’s fantasy contribution to the “Sunday at the Post” was not an epic disaster, Lombardi was nice enough to invite me back for another go-round.

Here’s the National Football Post’s scouting report on Carolina running back Jonathan Stewart. If you like this scouting report, be sure to check out our 2009 Fantasy Draft Guide. It’s everything you need to dominate the 2009 season.

Jonathan Stewart     Carolina Panthers     Age: 22     HT: 5-10’     WT: 235lbs     Bye: 4

APJonathan Stewart

Why We Like Him: Stewart is a bruising change-of-pace runner who serves as the perfect complement to DeAngelo Williams. He finished his rookie campaign as a top-25 fantasy running back, scoring 10 touchdowns (eighth) and averaging a very healthy 4.5 yards per carry. What makes Stewart so effective is that the Panthers employ a two-back system, which keeps him and Williams fresh for four quarters, as evidenced by Stewart’s 4.8 yards per carry in the second half of games last year versus his 4.3 average in the first half. He’s an effective red zone runner who scored in eight games last season.

Why We Don’t Like Him: He can’t offer the type of consistency you find in top-tier fantasy running backs. While splitting carries may enable him to stay healthy, it will also keep Stewart on the sidelines at times while Williams is running wild. Stewart rushed for less than 60 yards in 11 games last season and is not a threat to catch the ball out of the backfield. He had only eight receptions for 47 yards in 2008.

Fantasy Outlook: Think of him as a RB2 in deep fantasy leagues and a flex/RB3 in smaller leagues. Stewart gets a healthy amount of carries and has a nose for the end zone — two attributes that make him very fantasy friendly. If something happens to Williams, Stewart’s stock will shoot through the roof, but until that day, owners need to prepare for him to split the workload. Target him in the middle rounds, as he is a very serviceable running back playing for a good football team.

Hit me up on Twitter: @JoeFortenbaugh

LEADERSHIP IMPROVEMENT IDEA...

“A fool with a plan can outsmart a genius with no plan.” — T. Boone Pickens

FROM THE FORMER CEO OF COKE

“Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air. You name them — work, family, health, friends and spirit and you're keeping all of these in the air. You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls -- family, health, friends and spirit -- are made of glass. If you drop one of these, they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged or even shattered. They will never be the same. You must understand that and strive for balance in your life.”

How?

1. Don't undermine your worth by comparing yourself with others. It is because we are different that each of us is special.

2. Don't set your goals by what other people deem important. Only you know what is best for you.

3. Don't take for granted the things closest to your heart. Cling to them as you would your life, for without them, life is meaningless.

4. Don't let your life slip through your fingers by living in the past or for the future. By living your life one day at a time, you live ALL the days of your life.

5. Don't give up when you still have something to give. Nothing is really over until the moment you stop trying.

6. Don't be afraid to admit that you are less than perfect. It is this fragile thread that binds us each together.

7. Don't be afraid to encounter risks. It is by taking chances that we learn how to be brave.

8. Don't shut love out of your life by saying it's impossible to find. The quickest way to receive love is to give; the fastest way to lose love is to hold it too tightly; and the best way to keep love is to give it wings.

9. Don't run through life so fast that you forget not only where you've been, but also where you are going.

10. Don't forget that a person's greatest emotional need is to feel appreciated.

11. Don't be afraid to learn. Knowledge is weightless, a treasure you can always carry easily.

12. Don't use time or words carelessly. Neither can be retrieved. Life is not a race, but a journey to be savored each step of the way.

ARTICLES YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED THAT AREN’T WORTH MISSING...

“I am dyslexic; the word ‘no’ turns me on.” — Carl Mather

Here are some must-reads from the Michael Vick saga...

Steve Wyche of NFL.com, who worked for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution during the Vick era

Phil Sheridan of the Philadelphia Inquirer

COMMENT OF THE WEEK FROM THE POST...

"If Philly fans booed Santa, what will they do to this guy?"

From "CrazyLegs" regarding the story "Report: Vick lands with Eagles"

STORIES TO SHARE....

“Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, it is about learning to dance in the rain.” — Anonymous

Mother Dog Doing What She Does Best

In 2003, police in Warwickshire, England, opened a garden shed and found a whimpering, cowering dog. It had been locked in the shed and abandoned. It was dirty and malnourished and had clearly been abused.

In an act of kindness, the police took the dog, which was a greyhound female, to the nearby Nuneaton and Warwickshire Wildlife Sanctuary known as a willing haven for animals abandoned, orphaned or otherwise in need.

http://www.warwickshirewildlifesanctuary.co.uk/

Geoff and the other sanctuary staff went to work with two aims: to restore the dog to full health and to win her trust. It took several weeks, but eventually both goals were achieved.

They named her Jasmine, and they started to think about finding her an adoptive home.

The dog had other ideas. No one remembers now how it began, but Jasmine started welcoming all animal arrivals at the sanctuary. It wouldn't matter if it was a puppy, a fox cub, a rabbit or, probably, a rhinoceros; Jasmine would peer into the box or cage and, where possible, deliver a welcoming lick.

Geoff relates one of the early incidents. “We had two puppies that had been abandoned by a nearby railway line. One was a Lakeland Terrier cross and another was a Jack Russell-Doberman cross. They were tiny when they arrived at the center, and Jasmine approached them and grabbed one by the scruff of the neck in her mouth and put him on the settee. Then she fetched the other one and sat down with them, cuddling them.

“But she is like that with all of our animals, even the rabbits. She takes all the stress out of them and it helps them to not only feel close to her but to settle into their new surroundings.

“She has done the same with the fox and badger cubs, she licks the rabbits and guinea pigs and even lets the birds perch on the bridge of her nose.”

Jasmine, the timid, abused, deserted waif, became the animal sanctuary's resident surrogate mother, a role for which she might have been born. The list of orphaned and abandoned youngsters she has cared for comprises five fox cubs, four badger cubs, 15 chicks, eight guinea pigs, two stray puppies and 15 rabbits.

And one roe deer fawn. Tiny Bramble, 11 weeks old, was found semi-conscious in a field. Upon arrival at the sanctuary, Jasmine cuddled up to her to keep her warm, and then went into the full foster mum role. Jasmine the greyhound showers Bramble, the roe deer, with affection and makes sure nothing is matted in her fur.

“They are inseparable,” says Geoff. “Bramble walks between her legs and they keep kissing each other. They walk together round the sanctuary. It's a real treat to see them.”

Jasmine will continue to care for Bramble until she is old enough to be returned to woodland life. When that happens, Jasmine will not be lonely. She will be too busy showering love and affection on the next orphan or victim of abuse.

Doing what she does best, being a mother.

From John Miller: A View of Michael Vick

Thursday night at Lincoln Financial Field, the Eagles held their first ever “WTF? Night.”

APMichael Vick

It isn’t often that you walk through a press box filled with hard-boiled, wise-cracking sports reporters who look unanimously shocked by an event. But the signing of Vick was an electric moment, filled with a million questions, a million opinions and a million angry reactions.

My first reaction: Why would they do this? He’s never been a good west coast QB, so why do they think he’ll fit in with their scheme? Why invite the PR maelstrom? It made no sense, football-wise or business-wise.

But if you’re open minded, you can begin to see it. Some never will, and I get that. Vick’s crimes are gruesome, and there are plenty of people who can’t forgive him.

Personally, I believed Vick deserved a second chance well before anyone had any idea he would sign with the Eagles. The crime is grotesque, but he served his time and he seems contrite. But I was shocked that he ended up with the Eagles because it just didn’t strike me as a good fit.

So, football-wise, the possibilities are pretty intriguing. Just because the Eagles didn’t need Vick doesn’t mean he can’t be valuable. If Vick is even close to what he once was, defensive coordinators won’t be able to sleep at night, terrified of the fastest offense ever built: Vick, McNabb, Westbrook, Jackson, Curtis, Maclin -- Mach 7.

When it comes to the morality of this issue, people need to have open minds. Clearly, the Eagles believe in second chances. In an extraordinary postgame news conference, Andy Reid made an eloquent case for helping Vick try to redeem himself. For a coach who never tells you what’s going on, Andy laid it all on the line. He opened up like never before, talking about his son’s legal troubles and about the process that led to Vick’s signing.

APEagles owner Jeffrey Lurie

Friday morning, another remarkable news conference. Eagles chairman Jeffrey Lurie made it quite clear convincing to make a “that he needed counterintuitive … soul-searching, tough decision.” (Not only will Vick operate under a zero-tolerance policy, but Lurie made it clear that Vick must be a “force for good.” He must be an agent for social change.

Off the field is clearly the bigger issue. The Eagles have invited the circus to town for an extended stay. Some fans are disgusted and won’t ever be back. Most seem willing to give Vick a chance. But as Lurie said, there won’t be any third chances.

For me, Tony Dungy’s thumbs up means a lot. If you’ve read his biography “Quiet Strength,” you know that this is a serious man committed to doing the right thing. He’s not trying to make a name for himself; he’s simply trying to help another human being.

In making the decision to reinstate Vick to the NFL, Commissioner Roger Goodell went out on a limb. Goodell put some serious thought into this – face it, he grilled Vick before making a decision he knew wouldn’t be popular.

So, with the blessing of two extremely trustworthy, influential men, the Eagles began to consider the signing.

Obviously, the Eagles think their football team is better than it was without Vick, and you can look at that cynically. But as I watched Reid and Vick and Dungy and Lurie speak at the end of the week, I was struck by the humanity of the Eagles. Yes, they want him primarily because he’s an immense talent and they think he can help them win football games. But I think they see a much bigger opportunity – a chance to give a man his life back and, in the process, make society a little bit better.

There is no better story in America than a story of redemption. Now Mike Vick has been given a great gift -- a chance to write that story.

Let’s hope Vick – never the most accurate passer – threads the needle.

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