Michael Vick's Return to Atlanta – Eagles at Falcons NFL Preview

The Georgia Dome will be rocking when Michael Vick leads the Eagles into Atlanta. Frank Doyle previews the action.

Michael Vick’s return to Atlanta was always going to be heated. There’s no way it could not be. It’s hard to imagine anyone in Atlanta being neutral on the subject of Michael Vick.

When Vick was first drafted he was anointed the savior of the team, and the team brass felt a real and visceral sense of betrayal when Vick went to prison. But then there are the people in Atlanta who will never stop loving Vick, who think that he would never have done time if he wasn’t a kid from the wrong side of tracks, and who will proudly wear Vick’s old Falcons jersey on Sunday night.

Atlanta has known that it has to deal with Vick’s return since the schedule was announced. What the Falcons can’t have imagined, even in their worst nightmares, was that they would be mauled up and down Soldier Field the Sunday before Vick’s return to Atlanta.

The Bears played well on Sunday but the Falcons were poor. They couldn’t protect Matt Ryan, they couldn’t establish the run and they couldn’t play defense. The big problem for Atlanta is that Philly offers a much more multi-dimensional threat than the Bears did.

It starts with Vick of course. Vick has developed into the quarterback he always threatened to be in Atlanta. He’s much more patient and calculating in the pocket, he doesn’t run until he absolutely, positively, has to, and his vision and percentage completions have improved to bring him into a class of his own.

Injury permitting, of course. The spectre of an injury to Vick is what looms over the Eagles because if he gets hurt, Philly is as doomed as Indianapolis without Peyton Manning. Very doomed indeed.

While Vick is remains healthy,, the Eagles are a frightening team. If they are to be beaten, it’s best to catch them early – there are a lot of new players on the roster, and the shortened pre-season has cut down their chance to gel.

But the door is closing very fast. The Eagles hit the ground running against the Rams and were annoyed at themselves they didn’t put more points on St Louis – a good attitude to have as far as fans of NFL betting are concerned.

Philadelphia travels to Atlanta as a three point favorite, which shows just how much pressure the NFC’s best team of last year is under this Sunday. To stop their former team-mate the Falcons must control the ball on offense – Vick can’t do any damage while the offense isn’t on the field.

When he does return, the Falcons must force Vick to attempt his throws – they can pressure him in the pocket, but not to the extent when he’s lose and scrambling. Michael Vick is at his most dangerous when he’s rolling out or scrambling.

But most of all, the Falcons cannot screw up like they did at Chicago. Mistakes killed the Falcons in Chicago. Whatever about being beaten by the Eagles, if the Falcons continue to beat themselves their season is over before it’s even begun.