The new #7 for the Eagles has become the most polarizing figure in the country.

Though we are already four days into the Michael Vick era in Philly, the almostathletes held a Mound Visit over the weekend to discuss the much maligned former QB’s signing.

Sieck: OK, well I’m eager to hear both of your thoughts on this. It seems that plenty of people are up in arms about this. Dare I go as far to say that they have their panties in a bunch. I could go on with clichés all day, but here’s the thing: I’ve previously stated that I don’t have any problem with Vick getting a job in the NFL… BUT NOT THE EAGLES. It seems lost on everyone that 1) we don’t need a QB, and 2) this guy IS NOT that good. People talk about this guy’s ability like he’s Joe Montana or something. I don’t get the move at all.

Dave: They make it because he is a proven QB, without any championships, but he can play the position better than any backup currently on their roster and because he adds more versatility to a lackluster offense that Reid has been pushing out there since he took over the play-calling.  While I don’t think the “Wildcat” will work (pro defenses are too good to have an option-esque type of offense work for more than one year, so the element of surprise is gone) he definitely adds another weapon that opposing defenses have to worry about it.

Brian: Despite the perpective from which I approach the signing (purely football or purely societal), there is no conceivable reason for this move. I suppose fans of Vick are still replaying that sick run against the Vikes, which has become the signature Vick highlight, in their minds, but what they’re forgetting is that he was a horrendous quarterback.  I’m not going to dispute his athleticism, but after several references (by Lurie, Reid, and Vick himself) to Vick being brought in as a QB, I can only assume that he and the Eagles’ brass expect him to be just that.  I can’t count the number of Vick jokes I used and heard when he was completing 53% of his passes in 2006. If Donovan were completing that paltry percentage, he’d have been out of here six years ago.

Dave: He was never that good of a QB, but he is better than A.J. Feeley or an injured Kevin Kolb.  I don’t see why they signed him either, but he does fit here.  He can backup McNabb and be a threat to run, or pass, while he is on the field.  Imagine  playing defense against the Eagles and seeing DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, Brian Westbrook, Donovan McNabb, and Michael Vick all in the formation?  And, while there has been no talk of it at Eagles camp, imagine if they use him to return kicks and punts? If he shows he can catch a ball, and do it in traffic, the Eagles will have one heck of a receiving corps.

Sieck: OK, they’re going to sign/bring a guy in for trick plays? Ridiculous. If I hear the word “wildcat” one more time, I’m going to vomit on my flip flops. I know Kolb went down, but they can stick with Feeley as the backup. McNabb is fine, I know he has his detractors (including someone on this esteemed site) but he’s still a top 10 signal caller in the league. The offense is fine.

Brian: From a societal perspective, this move smacks of desperation. Now that the Phils have (finally) removed the Birds from atop the city’s four-sport pedestal, Lurie is panicking big time, and frankly, I find it kind of

This expression doubled as Lurie's "I-can't-believe-the-Phils-have-supplanted-us" and "You-want-me-to-sign-who?" face.

amusing.  Let’s forget his totally absurd “gold standard” reference to his team, a team that still has exactly as many Super Bowl rings as the almostathletes, and focus on his adamant stance on bringing in character people.  Warren Sapp was passed over because he liked to toke weed, something an alarming amount of people seem to have forgotten about Vick’s past, and TO was labeled a cancer almost immediately after the Super Bowl loss.  If these guys can’t play in the Eagles philosophical sandbox, how can they possible justify bringing in a convicted felon, drug user, and purported STD transmitter (Ron Mexico)?

Sieck: First, I think the notion of using him as a  receiver is silly. I don’t think he’s built for it, and I really don’t think he has any desire to play the position.  And yes, Brian, I totally agree with you that Lurie’s stance of bringing in “quality” individuals and then bringing in Vick is completely hypocritical. It’s a joke. After all, hurting dogs is way worse than smoking the pot. However, I do have to say this about the dog thing: I’m a big dog person and don’t for one second excuse Vick’s behavior, but Vick shouldn’t be on the team because he stinks, not because he committed a horrid offense. Look, there are all kinds of scumbags in the NFL that are probably also doing awful things, but they get a pass because they have talent or they haven’t been caught yet. Perhaps Vick’s biggest crime is getting caught. However, having said that, I’m certainly not looking forward to the protesters lining up at the Linc this year.

Dave: For the Eagles, it fits psychologically too.  Think about it, Tony Dungy’s oldest son kills himself, so when Dungy retires he finds a project, a wayward soul who needs the kind of guidance a father can provide.  So Dungy is on board and all about “second chances.”  But what team will give him that? How about the Eagles with head coach Andy Reid and his army of dysfunctional sons?  If anyone thinks someone like Vick – backed by the prestigious Dungy – deserves a second chance, Andy does.  He has been in court with his kids almost as many times as he has been on the sidelines coaching football.

Everyone needs a hobby in retirement, right, Tony?

Brian: I found the whole Dungy angle self-serving and bizarre.  However, I’ll give you one guess as to who the next Birds’ head coach is. And I’ve been saying this all weekend; this is not Vick’s second chance.  He’s been in trouble before, so unless we only categorize chances based on some sort of felony being attached to them, he’s on chance three or four by my count.

One other enormous public relations nightmare is giving Vick Jaws’ #7.  Now we all know Jaws isn’t a Hall of Fame QB, but he represents the polar opposite of all things Vick.  He’s a standup member of the community, he has parlayed his playing days into a posh analyst’s job, and he, predictably, has stayed out of the conversation despite the fact that his number has been denigrated.  I know some people don’t think there’s much to a number, but any athlete will tell you that there is something to the ownership of a number, something that should remain sacred.

Sieck: Well, I’ll abstain from comment on Jaws, because I don’t like him. I’ve had two encounters with the “standup member of the community” and neither went well. I’ll leave it at that. In other news, have you guys heard that the Birds just signed O.J. Simpson to be their running backs coach? I think their next move is going to be to resurrect Hitler and give him the GM job.

Finally, people need to be more thoughtful about this. What do they really expect Vick to do? He’s a football player. Do folks really expect him to go get a job at Dairy Queen or something? He’s going to play; I just wish it were somewhere else. As long as he straightens up and flies right, it’s unrealistic to expect him not to play.

Vick may bring publicity and outrage, but he's not bringing a Super Bowl ring.

A panicked Erin Andrews was forced to call 911 Wednesday when she spotted two men camping outside her home in Georgia. Andrews’ profanity-laced tirade was released to the media shortly thereafter, prompting further outrage over the humiliated sportscaster’s invasion of privacy.

Though the AlmostAthletes take pride in writing our own columns, with a specific flair that sets us apart from each other, sometimes it’s necessary to put our collective heads together to discuss some burning issue of national importance. Our periodic “A Visit to the Mound” segment begins with a look at the unfortunate scenario that has befallen ESPN sideline reporter, Erin Andrews.

ESPN reporter Erin Andrews recently celebrated her 31st birthday this past May, maybe her crew decided to give her the best birthday gift ever...a peephole video.

Dave: The release of a “peeping tom” video that violated the privacy of ESPN reporter Erin Andrews – by exposing her in the nude – has been a touchy subject over the past week and rightfully so.  Andrews, ESPN, and the media are obviously upset with this little “show” and ESPN and their legal team have done everything they possibly can to remove this video from the internet completely…a task that is easier said than done.  In my opinion, this was not only a disturbing act of privacy invasion for Ms. Andrews, but pretty much the end of her career.  This is a woman who has made a living for herself by interviewing professional athletes (mostly men) and college athletes (mostly men), so how could she possibly continue her career after something like this has happened?

Brian: The logistics of this thing are so bizarre. (1) How did this guy figure out that Andrews was there (2) How did he guarantee he’d get a full five minutes of footage from behind a peephole (3) How does the person who filmed this benefit from this other than through self indulgent giggles when he hears or reads about it (4) Doesn’t this create a windfall of copy cats and/or staged facsimiles?

Sieck: Well, people are starting to allege that it was someone at ESPN on her broadcast team. How else would one get that kind of access? The guy benefits because he gets to see Erin Andrews naked. There are a lot of perverts out there. This kind of thing happens all the time. So yes, there undoubtedly will be a ton of “copycats” as you say. I’m guessing he probably also didn’t like her, so maybe a revenge factor? Maybe she wouldn’t hang out with him or laugh at his jokes. Who knows? The guy is a weirdo.  While no one can condone what was done to her, she will have to suck it up, put on her big girl pants, and act like a professional. By the way, she also needs to stop crying because this will be the greatest thing that ever happened to Erin Andrews. I completely didn’t care about her a week ago, and I’m certainly talking about her now.

B: I have to agree with Dave here. I listened to 950 ESPN radio for the past couple of days and every pundit is in agreement that there’s not much she can do from now on. It’s not like she’s Lindsay Lohan and this sort of thing happens on a monthly basis. Her violation won’t lead to better sideline reporting or any sort of advancement at ESPN. I understand that our culture is disturbingly short-sighted (MJ, Manny, etc.) but this is completely foreign territory for Andrews and ESPN whose Disney affiliation makes the sordidness even worse.

S: Even if she can’t continue as a sideline reporter (and we all know this is an extremely important job, probably more than a doctor or judge) she will become a huge star and land something much better. We’re not talking about a politician here guys; it’s Erin Andrews. I can’t wait until the Playboy offers come pouring in. Besides, who’s to say she didn’t put the footage out herself? I can almost guarantee that’s been done before.

D: I have a strong feeling she did not put that out herself for the simple fact that if she wanted to do Playboy, she could just do it.  She didn’t need a video like this “leaked” to get Playboy’s attention to see how attractive she is.  It’s just a shame because she is good at what she does.  She is the most respected female in the sports media business because she is so knowledgeable, talented, and she’s is very, very easy on the eyes.  This video ruins her; no matter who made the video, her career is still over.  There is no way she can go back to sideline reporting, especially with college kids – which she was best at – who have all done nothing but search for this video over the past two weeks.  The other day a story ran in the L.A. Times saying that she and her lawyers expected hits and searches to go down, but all they have done is gone up.  Every time someone gets interviewed it’s going to go something like, “Yea, they blitzed from the weak side, but I just stepped up and found the open receiver and…you look good naked!” and then the kid has a big laugh with the rest of his teammates who are celebrating in the knowledge that they have seen the video too.  Check out this video of USC Trojans LB Rey Maualuga attempting to grind on Andrews, and who knows how often stuff like this happened…and this before college kids got to see her naked.

"Ugh...I wonder how many people in here have seen that video of me..."

B: That’s a good point, Dave. You know most college football players aren’t as devout and respectful as Tim Tebow, and there’s bound to be one who, even if he doesn’t say anything directly, will make a veiled remark or simply eye her up and down while he’s talking to her.  But Sieck’s point is well taken too in that, again, we’re a very forgiving society, so I’m sure she’ll find a way to cash in on this.  I hadn’t heard that she may have leaked it herself but it makes total sense. While she seems approachable and affable on air, I’m sure she’s constantly fending off wackos, interns, athletes, etc. I wonder what kind of jail time this kind of crime would command. I’m sitting here trying to think about what she can do next. Dancing With the Stars? Reality shows? Her own interview show? I just can’t envision a scenario in which she’s holding a phallic microphone in front of Colt McCoy and 60,000 screaming college kids.

S: Yeah, but I’m not just talking about Playboy. She could have leaked it to get EVERYONE’S attention. And you never know, maybe this is her “out” to do whatever she wants. I’m sure there are a bunch of rules and nonsense regulations working for ESPN, let alone the set of rules that come with being a journalist. Maybe she wanted to spread her wings. You never know what is in peoples’ heads. Look, I’m not saying she definitely leaked it, I’m just saying she could make it work for her. And as far as her being good at what she does…I guess that’s fair enough, but I usually go get a beer when they flash to the sideline reporters. And as far as college kids being fresh with her during interviews…I don’t see it happening. If it did, there would be punishment, and part of being a professional reporter is being able to deal with unruly athletes sometimes. She’ll have to suck it up, buttercup.