Bleed Green

As Michael Vick closes in on Randall Cunningham’s NFL record of rushing yards for a quarterback (4,928), an interesting debate could be sparked: Can a mobile quarterback win a Super Bowl? Conventional wisdom dictates that you need a pure drop-back passer to win a championship in the NFL. Players like Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Eli Manning, Brett Favre, etc. are all Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks who rarely leave the pocket. So where does this leave the athletic and mobile quarterbacks who aren’t afraid to run? Has a mobile quarterback ever won a Super Bowl? This is also subject to debate. John Elway won back-to-back Super Bowls for the Broncos in the 1990's, and he was the MVP in Super Bowl XXXIII with a dramatic touchdown rush that closed out the win. However, at that stage of his career, Elway was more of a leader who relied heavily on the success of running back Terrelle Davis. He wasn’t necessarily the scrambling threat that he was in his younger years. Another quarterback that comes to mind is Fran Tarkenton of the Minnesota Vikings. Tarkenton was the rushing leader among quarterbacks until Randall Cunningham came along. Tarkenton lead the Vikings to three Super Bowl appearances, but lost them all. He was also a nine-time Pro-Bowl selection. Tarkenton ran more out of necessity than he did by design. Nonetheless, he came the closest to being the prototypical scrambling quarterback to win the Super Bowl. The aforementioned Randall Cunningham led the Minnesota Vikings to a 15-1 record and a trip to the NFC Championship in 1998. However, by that point in his career, he was much more of a pocket passer than he was in his early years in Philadelphia. Donovan McNabb was a dynamic mobile passer and went on to lead the Eagles to five NFC Championship appearances, including four straight from 2001-2004. However, once again, he never won the big one. That brings us to Michael Vick. Clearly, Vick has learned to become a much more effective pocket passer than his days with the Falcons. However, he still plays the game with the same reckless abandon that was evident in Atlanta. Look at last year’s Redskins game when he was drilled near the goal-line trying to make a play and score a touchdown. The result: cracked ribs and three missed games. In Week 2 this year, to no fault of his own, he was doing what he does best: moving around in the pocket, trying to make something happen. The result: concussion-like symptoms after his helmet slammed into a teammate. Don’t get me wrong. I love Michael Vick’s game. He may be the most challenging weapon that any defensive coordinator will ever have to contend with. But, the theory of mobile quarterbacks not winning the big game definitely bears consideration here. Can Vick be the exception? Can he stay healthy and lead the Eagles to a Super Bowl? Time will tell, but I wouldn’t doubt him. He is a lot tougher than people give him credit for and he is a determined and driven player. Or...are the experts correct when they assert that only pure pocket passers like Brady and the Mannings are capable of winning the big game? Michael Vick defied the odds when he came out of prison to reclaim a starting quarterback position in the NFL. He may be one of the most physically gifted quarterbacks to ever play the game, but can his style of play translate to a Super Bowl victory? Can he play with his reckless style and still stay healthy? Stay tuned Eagles fans! It’s going to be an interesting season.