Quotables: Michael Vick says he saved Riley Cooper’s career, and Eddie Lacy is a ‘bell cow’
Meanwhile, the Browns are stewing over how Josh Gordon’s appeal was handled.
Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
“When I’d seen it I didn’t believe it. I couldn’t even see him fixing his face to say that because I’d known him for three years.”
- Michael Vick, on former Eagles teammate Riley Cooper's racist remarks
When a video of Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Riley Cooper went viral last season, a cavalcade of observers called for the team to cut him loose. Three years into his career, Cooper had totaled only 679 yards receiving and five touchdowns. Even with Jeremy Maclin missing the year with a torn ACL, the outside pressure to release Cooper was mounting. Not wanting to see his team wither under the lights, quarterback Michael Vick stemmed some of the criticism by speaking up for his teammate. Vick said of the events:
“I just felt like I was the most capable guy on that team of taking a stand for Riley, and being a voice for him at that time. [It] was going to derail our team. Unfortunately, it was going to derail Riley’s career. It would have ended his career.”
The events didn’t derail Cooper’s career. He went on to have his most productive season in the NFL. The Eagles were sufficiently pleased with his approach and production that they rewarded him with a new five-year contract. Understandably, Vick feels he played a large role in turning things around for his former teammate.
“He has a lot of confidence. He’s hard to defeat, because he doesn’t take defeat very well. He feels, ‘You can’t cover me.’”
- Ted Williams, the Philadelphia Eagles tight ends coach on Zach Ertz
Much is expected of tight end Zach Ertz as he readies for his second year in Chip Kelly's offense. As a rookie, Ertz caught 36 passes for 469 yards and four touchdowns, helping the Philadelphia Eagles to secure an NFC East crown. Now with a full summer spent in the team's offseason program, more is expected of Ertz. Add in that the Eagles severed ties with top receiver DeSean Jackson, and Ertz is being looked to as a potential leader on offense. Williams continued:
“He’s one of the best route-runners I’ve ever seen.”
If opposing defenses indeed can’t cover Ertz, it’ll go a long way towards replacing the production they lost in Jackson.
“I think he’s a bell cow. He’s a big guy, and he’s physical.”
- Sam Gash, the Green Bay Packers running backs coach on Eddie Lacy
He wasn’t the Green Bay Packers’ top pick in 2013, but running back Eddie Lacy made the biggest impact of any player in the team’s rookie class. When quarterback Aaron Rodgers missed roughly half the season with a fractured collarbone, it was Lacy whom the offense turned toward. While Rodgers sat out with an injury, Lacy rushed for 666 yards and eight touchdowns. He went on to win Offensive Rookie of the Year honors as well as being named a second-team All-Pro. As strong as Lacy’s rookie campaign was, his new position coach, Sam Gash, says he can do even more this season:
“Without a doubt he has the capability of being the leading rusher and maybe even combined yards if he catches a lot of balls. I absolutely do think that.”
A pairing of Lacy and a now-healthy Rodgers will help the Packers improve upon last year’s 8-7-1 record.
“Gordon’s head hasn’t been in practice for at least the last three weeks -- he’s been in awful limbo.”
- Aditi Kinkhabwala, NFL Media insider on Mike Pettine's mindset regarding the Josh Gordon suspension
The wait on a resolution to Josh Gordon's suspension appeal ended Wednesday when the NFL upheld its season-long ban. Gordon missed two games due to suspension in 2013, but still managed to lead the league in receiving yards with 1,646. Losing their top receiver for all of 2014 will certainly prove difficult for the Cleveland Browns, but perhaps not as difficult as the time spent waiting for the NFL to make up its mind. Kinkhabwala explains:
“We saw this week how visibly frustrated Mike Pettine was with the process. He had been so careful not to call out the NFL, not to call out the arbitrator, but he said this week, ‘Really, we are impatiently waiting.’”
With Gordon out for the 2014 season, the Browns' most productive returning pass catcher becomes tight end Jordan Cameron.
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