I know this is not a popular opinion: I am a Michael Vick fan.
I know there are some people who will never forgive him for what he did, the brutal dog-fighting ring police say he led and for which he spent two years in a federal prison.
That's not something people forget easily.
That became apparent again yesterday when a new Forbes magazine poll indicated Vick was the most unpopular player in the NFL.
Strangling and electrocuting dogs will do that to your reputation.
Vick seemed to take it in stride yesterday. He likely has other things on his mind. Like that balky hamstring that kept him out of the Eagles lineup on Sunday, setting the stage for one of the all-time implosions by Nick Foles.
Foles went from NFC Player of the Week to being questioned about whether he can really be a starting QB in the NFL in the blink of an eye - and a seemingly never-ending series of errant passes on Sunday.
Foles eventually left the game with a concussion. That left coach Chip Kelly with no option than to throw rookie Matt Barkley to the wolves, with the expected results. He threw three picks and had another nullified by a penalty.
Now all eyes again are on Vick. Last week he certainly sounded like a guy who was not all that certain he would be available this week.
That was before Foles went down. Now Vick likely will be forced back into the lineup, regardless of whether his hammy is 100 percent.
I would like nothing better than to Vick return, put this Eagles team on his shoulders, and drive them to the playoffs.
I don't think it's going to happen.
I think Vick plays almost entirely by instinct. And it's those instincts that are going to cause trouble for a hamstring that has not fully healed.
The bet here is that Vick winds up limping off the field again on Sunday.
And none of that will change my opinion of the "most disliked" player in the league.
Like I said, I'm a fan.
Since arriving back in Philadelphia, Vick has consistently said and done the right thing.
It's amazing what losing two years of your prime - and spending them behind bars in a federal prison - will do for you.
Vick today resembles almost nothing of the brash, arrogant - and supremely talented - quarterback that led the Atlanta Falcons.
He seems to me to be a changed man, even if he can't change the fans' perception of him. Or course, most of that will be forgotten should he set the world on fire on Sunday. That's the nature of fans.
I don't think it's going to happen.
But it won't lessen my opinion of him one bit.
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