Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA — Michael Vick pointed to the scoreboard on his way to the locker room after suffering a concussion, reminding hecklers the Eagles were winning.
Without Vick, Philadelphia couldn’t hold onto the lead and lost 35-31 to the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday night. The Eagles (1-1) may again be without Vick for their home opener against the New York Giants.
Coach Andy Reid didn’t rule out Vick’s return this week, but head athletic trainer Rick Burkholder wouldn’t give a time.
“That’s foolish on our part medically to put time frame out there,” Burkholder said Monday. “Everybody wants to know time frame, everybody wants to know whether Mike’s going to play, everybody wants to know whether Mike’s going to practice. We’re going to go through our protocol and when Mike’s ready to practice, I’m going to turn him over to Coach and he’s going to make a decision whether he’s ready to play, had reps, all that kind of stuff.”
Vick was injured in the third quarter when he was spun around by a defender and slammed into right tackle Todd Herremans. His neck whipped back and he bit his tongue, which led to him spitting blood on his way off the field.
Vick wasn’t woozy and seemed fully alert. He certainly was aware of the score — 31-21 in favor of the Eagles — when he pointed it out to fans in the Georgia Dome on his way in for tests. Vick barely failed those baseline tests, so the medical staff kept him on the sideline.
“He was just a little bit off, enough that we acted on the side of caution to hold him back as our standard protocol says,” Burkholder said. “I was with him on the airplane. He was absolutely fine last night. As the days go on, we’ll see, but last night he was pretty good. He told Coach he was fine, he told his teammates he was fine, he told me he was fine, and he was very far along last night.”
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Meanwhile, the New York Giants’ defensive gameplan for the Philadelphia Eagles is going to have a major section on stopping Michael Vick.
As far as Tom Coughlin was concerned Tuesday, the elusive Eagles quarterback is going to play, concussion or not.
“I expect Michael Vick will play and if he can’t play, I am sure he will,” Coughlin said on a conference call a day after the Giants (1-1) knocked off the St. Louis Rams.