Eagles' Vick trying to hold on
PHILADELPHIA, Oct 14, 2012 (Menafn - Reading Eagle - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) --Michael Vick spent part of the practice week carrying a football with him at the NovaCare Complex, taking it to meetings or lunch or wherever he was headed.
The Philadelphia Eagles quarterback said his teammates amused themselves by trying to knock the ball away, but Vick said he stubbornly held on to it.
"They tried every time," said Vick. "The stakes got pretty high and I had to put it down."
Vick, though, said the abbreviated exercise served its purpose.
"Not to put too much emphasis on it," said Vick, "but to continuously remind myself that I need to take care of the football."
Vick hasn't done that, and it's a major reason the Eagles don't have a better record heading into today's game against Detroit at Lincoln Financial Field (1 p.m., TV-Fox; Radio-WEEU/830-AM).
Philadelphia (3-2) has turned it over 14 times, and Vick is responsible for 11 of the giveaways.
While he appears to have gotten over a rash of early interceptions, taking a streak of 104 attempts without a pick into today, fumbles remain an issue that is costing the team points.
Vick fumbled twice last week in a 16-14 loss at Pittsburgh, once from the Steelers' 1-yard line.
While Philadelphia is among the better teams at producing yardage, it ranks next-to-last in scoring at just 16 points per game. Given that nine of Vick's turnovers have come on the opponent's side of the field, with three inside the 20-yard line, it's not difficult to discern the reason for the disconnect between yards and points.
"We've got to take care of the ball," said offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg. "It's just that simple, and Mike has to take care of the ball inside the pocket, as well as outside the pocket. It's just that simple."
Mornhinweg said his experience in nearly two decades in the NFL is that players usually do fix the problem.
"Now, most of it has been a one-, two- or three-game episode there," said Mornhinweg. "Then typically, you emphasize it; you drill it. The players are proud men. They want to take care of the football. Typically you emphasize it, you get results. It hasn't quite shown yet."
Vick keeps saying he understands how damaging the turnovers are and vows to correct them. He said he watched other players carry the ball during practice and is concentrating on holding the ball "high and tight."
The Lions (1-3) might provide an opportunity for Vick to make strides. Detroit has yet to intercept a pass and is tied for the fewest takeaways in the league, with three. The Lions also have been a slow-starting team, getting outscored 60-31 in the first half this season. That's another area where the Vick needs to improve. Philadelphia has been outscored 57-24 in the first half, and Vick knows the Eagles can't keep winning if they're constantly playing from behind.
"That responsibility falls first and foremost on me as the quarterback of this football team," said Vick. "We want to start fast as a team on offense. That's been our goal and we're going to put it together at some point, but you have to do it on Sundays and you have to get it done."
Contact Steve Patton: 610-371-5097 or spatton@readingeagle.com.
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