Michael Vick Quotations

I was happy for Mike, ... The whole time I had all of the belief in the world in M.J. He's a receiver with a big body, great hands, and he just has to develop a little bit and get there. He will get there with experience.

I would have been able to come back and play ... With an injury, the longer you sit on the sideline and kind of nurse it a little bit, the stiffer you get. Once I got stiff, there was no need to go back in.

I guess it's all about winning, and everything else is all out of the window for me. Nothing else matters besides ending on a positive note and having a good feeling about next year.

I wouldn't say that the game last week was similar to the one in Carolina. That was pretty much a blowout, if you ask me. Last week, we had a better chance to win. We put ourselves in a position where we could win and we didn't come through in those situations.

My goal is not to be a great NFL quarterback,

Some days I'm going to struggle, ... Some days I'm going to miss things I should have seen. But with age and growing in the league, I'm pretty sure I can get to where I want to be. What I have to do is not lose focus and not forget about the things that got me here. If I do that, then I think there's no stopping me.

My goal is to play within the offense, like I did last week. I learned to trust the guys around me. If I have to resort to running at some point in time, then I'll do it.

Maybe they could be wrong, and maybe they could be right,

No, I ain't mad. He didn't do anything wrong. The world will all know when the truth comes out.

No! ... If need be, I'll run just as much as I did last year. The thing now is I know how to protect myself. A few years ago, I was running reckless. Now, I'm sliding and getting out of bounds for the longevity, baby for my season, for my career.

I didn't want to see Mike go. I wish they would have consulted me, but it's all good.

We're not dinking and dunking the way it's supposed to be done. It may be hurting me. It may be hurting the offense.

Making plays when you have to, making big plays in a tough environment, you ask yourself the question, 'How bad do you want to get to 2-1?' ... 'How bad do you want to win this game?'

I have never been in that situation, ... But evidently from what they have been doing in the preseason, they have been able to manage the situation and handle it.

He knows what it takes to get the extra yard and what it is to get 20 carries a game and to make the offensive line go.

I am terribly disappointed. But this is the ultimate team sport and we will have to keep playing. I have confidence that these guys and coaches can get it done.

I can't put it into words. It's an adrenaline rush. I think you have to be a quarterback with scrambling ability to understand it.

I don't think anyone should tell you how to dress, but that is the code and that is what they want and that is what the players have to abide by,

I don't think it's that serious. It doesn't feel that serious.

I felt real good. The object was to come out here, test it out, do some things on it and see how it held up, and I did a pretty good job today. I'm not sore, so we'll see how tomorrow goes.

I don't care. It doesn't matter. At the end of my career they're going to judge me on wins and losses, not on how many throws I made from the pocket or what my quarterback rating was.

I don't know what's going to happen. You never know. I can't put my faith in any team. You have to be alert for all things. I'm just playing it by ear and I'm not predicting anything.

Guys are four and five yards down the field and I'm throwing bullets. You can't do that.

I ain't scared of this, man, ... I'm telling you, I'm not. It's a big challenge. It's really big, and I know that. But I knew this day was coming when I was drafted No. 1 (overall in 2001). I'm up to it, and I'm preparing myself for it.

He's furious right now, ... He's a good player. He's just got to stop being upset.

Whatever they want to say, whatever they want to perceive me as ? just a running quarterback or a runner ? it does not matter. I'm a winner.

He doesn't want this to be an 'Autograph Camp,' so he makes sure to give them a much better experience.

My perception of the West Coast thing is starting to change too. We're not doing what I see Seattle doing or San Francisco doing or Green Bay doing. We're not doing those things. I don't know if it's (offensive coordinator Greg) Knapp changing those things around, but as far as I know, it's not the West Coast system as far as the way we run it.

I run the ball a little bit more than other quarterbacks so, that might take away from some of his catches. You have to be a team player when you come here.

Regardless of whether or not it's a tough game, division games will be tough. We might as well get used to them.

Our hurry-up offense and our tempo are outstanding, ... We've just got to use it a little bit more. I'm pretty sure they'll come up with some type of scheme in order to get the two-minute drill or the hurry-up offense going. Once we start doing that and we mature as an offense, man, the sky's the limit.

Man, this time last year, I was just trying to make the right reads, ... Now I know 90% of the playbook. I'm seeing it. It's just a matter of getting the ball there.

Just because he's my brother, that doesn't give him the right to step on another player's leg during a game. It doesn't give him the right to get into some of the other situations he's gotten himself into.

Just because I got injured doesn't mean that my confidence level is going to go down, ... The same thing happened to me against Seattle, and I came back and had one of my best games against Buffalo. Injury doesn't scare me.

I think that is our identity, ... We run the football whether it's Warrick, T.J. or me. That's what makes our game go. If that's the way it's going to be, as long as we keep winning and as long as I make my plays when I have to, things are all good.

Our feathers are ruffled, ... We're making a name for ourselves in the NFC, as well as among the bird elite. With apologies to our nation's national bird, we really took it to the Eagles. They've pushed us around for the last time.

I think I have a lot of learning to do. Back at Virginia Tech, I threw the ball enough, but not as much as I would have liked to. I think in the NFL you have a lot more chances to throw the football downfield. It's going to be a challenge.

I think I could play with anybody. It's all if they could play with me. He would have to understand my style of play and what I do. And if he can do that, he can be here. Other than that, this is my team.

It forces you to adjust. You've got to prepare for T.J., and his style. Warrick and his style and the things I can account for. It just puts a burden on a defense. It makes them have to work that much harder to be alert for different things, and that's to our advantage.

I think so. I think they're trying so hard to beat us that ...

I think Greg Knapp needs to know that. He needs to know exactly what type of talent he's working with. ... You've got to be creative. There's no reason I should be passing for only 2,300 yards for the season. My passing attempts per game (24.2) are not even that high. I hope it's not that they don't believe in me, because I believe in me.

It feels fine. I just twisted it a little bit. We had a good cushion, so it made sense to keep me on the sideline.

I think we proved ourselves in the preseason. We took care of our business when we were supposed to. As an offense, we moved the ball efficiently. We were able to be consistent, and those were things we didn't do a great job of last year. We're ready.

We've talked a lot lately, more than usual. We had to. He is hanging in there. He's doing alright.

Yeah, you got the family dog and the white picket fence, and you just think that's all there is. Some of us had to grow up in poverty-stricken urban neighborhoods, and we just had to adapt to our environment. I know that it's wrong. But people act like it's some crazy thing they never heard of. They don't know.

We just didn't play championship-type football when we needed to. At some points we did, at some points we didn't, whether it's on offense or defense. Playing like that, we wouldn't even win a game in the playoffs. We've just got to re-evaluate a lot of things around here.

That's tough. We weren't prepared for that. We didn't play a game all year in the cold weather. Its not an excuse. We still had a chance to win the game. But it was tough.

We don't see too much of a spy look anymore, ... because of our run game and because of some of the things that we do. We see more straight-up coverage. ... They try to stop me that way and not be fancy with it.

Yeah I think we showed we can compete with this team. We beat them.

We're all trying to get on the same page. I want to throw the ball right at them so they can catch it. I didn't do that all the time last year.

Wherever I go, I'll have to make some changes, ... My style is going to change.

That wasn't the way that things was supposed to be. And all because the so-called culture that I thought was right, that I thought it was cool, and I thought it was fun, and it was exciting at the time. It all led to me laying in a prison bunk by myself with no one to talk to but myself.

This was a statement. It was a game that showed how far we've come since 2004.

We were able to take advantage of some things and some looks that we couldn't do last year down in Philadelphia in the cold, being a one-sided football team,

When I got hit, it was painful, but I got up and was able to walk, ... I was able to go back out there and fight it out like I always do.

We left the game with a bit of confidence. We weren't happy we lost; nobody's ever happy when they lose, but we learned that you have to take advantage of those opportunities when they come up.

When one guy goes down, we can't get the job done? That's why we've got backups, ... We're a team. One man can't win a football game by himself. I can't win a game by myself.

There hasn't been a game this year where we came out and everything we watched on film, the team came out and played what they showed, ... We always get the different looks. I don't even know why we watch film anymore. I mean for real, man.

We understand that it takes 11 guys to win a football game. We do not have any selfish guys on the football team. That is fine with me.

Trust me, you won't be seeing me around at that age. I'll be gone way before that.

We're going to play it by ear and see how it goes,

We're going to sit down and talk about everything, ... I've got a lot of questions for him. I'm going to spend all the time I can with him.

We're ready to beat anybody, ... You just have to be confident in what you are doing.

This year I think you'll see Michael Vick at his best. This year I'm more comfortable, I'm more relaxed. Last year I was a rookie. Now I feel it's my team, and it's my time. Somewhere in my heart, I know, and can feel something good about to happen.

Everybody worked together to make the receivers better. Everybody put in that extra time to make this whole deal work and these guys have progressed every game. Last year was our first year in the system and people dogged us in certain ways but sometimes you've got to give people a chance.

The worst thing you can do is catch a team coming off a bad performance, ... Those are the teams that are the most dangerous. They will blow you out. You have to look at it like this: They are the defending world champions.

You bet we can, ... or my name's not Ron Mexico, when I don't want to blemish the name of Michael Vick.

I stand before you a changed man. Use me as an example of an instrument of change.

It was about making plays when we had to,

The way I feel and from what the doctors tell me, I don't feel like it's serious. We just took the precaution to come out.

The reason I became a better player was because I came to Philly.

We had a great day on third down. Third down is how you win football games in this league. You keep the chains moving, you keep the clock running and you give yourself another opportunity to add some points.

We are going to get it on, ... Two great coaching staffs, two great quarterbacks, two great teams. That's the way it should be.

I wanted to give the fans something to cheer about. Just wanted to get the jitters out, and I didn't want to shortchange the fans or myself.

So what? As long as I continue to make plays and win football games, that's all they're going to remember. That's all I care about.

Dealing with the issues off the field is the hardest part, ... But that's part of it. I don't cry about it. I don't pout.

As long as I'm getting mental reps, I think I'll be able to go out there and execute the game plan. It's possible I may not practice all week. Who knows? I'm just playing it by ear right now. I just have to be able to be me.

As long as I can go out and make plays, people can say what they want to say,

That shook me up a little bit. Now, I'm trying to protect myself. I'll do anything possible, whether it's getting the ball out of my hand or going down if I have to. If I've got to take the sack, I'll take the sack.

They say I can't throw the ball from the pocket and my passing efficiency isn't that good, so I had to show everybody. It's not trying to prove to the world, because I know what I can do and the Falcons know what I can do. From here on out, I don't want to hear that question again.

They try to keep me in the pocket, try to make me throw the ball, ... So what do we do? We gash them in the run game. We've got a counter for everything teams try and do.

They used to call me 'Lil' Quick,' ... I went to a couple of football camps when I was a kid, but nothing like this. The good part of dealing with kids is that I was their age once, and I remember what I would have thought if I was attending a camp with a high-profile player, how I'd have wanted him to treat me. So that's how I try to be.

Sometimes being selfish is not a bad thing. Some guys just want the ball. They feel like they can make a difference. There is nothing wrong in that.

People can say what they want to say,

There's no reason for me to go into a big dissertation about why I'm not getting the calls. The refs have to do their jobs as well. I even mentioned it in training camp to the refs when we had our little meeting.

This time it's going to be in different weather conditions. I think that will be a plus for us.

The passing game will be totally different, ... We have guys that can make some plays. We have guys that can run now. I think we're more intact with what we are doing as an offense and as a whole. The communication and camaraderie is there. We are ready.

This goes to show how far we've come since 2004. We were playing a great team like Philly on a Monday night with everybody watching. That's what you play the game for. We certainly stepped up to the challenge.

I learned how to take care of it. I learned how to rehab it and what to do and what not to do. I'm taking precautions, but at the same time I'm doing what I can to try to strengthen it up.

I landed on the guy's foot and right on my ribs.

I've got to feel good and know that I can give the team 100 percent effort, ... I can't sit here and say I can go out there at 85 percent if that 85 percent is going to hurt the team. Hopefully I will feel good enough. I'm going to try and give it a shot.

I'm coming out this season to show everybody that I'm the best, or trying to be the best, or one day, that I'll be the best, ... It might not happen this year. It might happen in '07 or '09. One day, you're just going to see all the hard work pay off.

I'll be ready to play next week, the way it feels right now and what the doctors are telling me.

I'm the quarterback. It's all on me. Everything falls on my shoulders, ... All I can do it come back the next game, try to get better and make sure it doesn't happen again.

I'm probably going to make the final decision. I'm the only one who knows how bad I'm hurting and what I can do and what I can't do.

I'm kind of sick of the fact that everyone wants to praise me in the running game. My goal is try to make them respect me in the passing game, too.

I'm just taking it day-to-day to see how it feels. I am feeling better. I'm still a little sore, but it felt good to get out there today and run around, bounce around a little bit. I'm getting flexibility back in my leg and getting my range of motion.

Oh, I was scared, man, because my knee hit the ground so hard, ... I was just holding it, hoping that it wasn't as serious as I thought. I was just thankful that it wasn't serious.

I've just got to get the ball to guys and get them involved in the game and capitalize on our opportunities, and I know we will do that,

I'm drained, man. It's been a tough season for us, up and down.