Once again, Eagles backup QB Nick Foles impresses
Nick Foles isn't going to beat out Michael Vick for the Eagles starting quarterback job. Obviously. But what the rookie quarterback from Arizona has accomplished in the preseason has been awfully impressive nonetheless.
Foles leapt into the spotlight after Vick suffered a thumb contusion in the preseason game against the Steelers and threw two touchdowns.
After a shaky start Friday vs. the Browns, throwing an ill-advised interception on the game's first drive, he had another strong outing in Philadelphia's 27-10 win, completing 12 of 19 passes for 146 yards, two touchdowns and that lone pick.
Add that to his stats coming into Friday -- where he had completed 24 of 38 passes for 361 yards, four touchdowns and one interception for a league-high 118.4 quarterback rating -- and that's a pretty decent preseason. Actually, I'm kidding. That's an outstanding preseason.
And considering Vick isn't scheduled to play the rest of the preseason and with original No. 2 Mike Kafka out with a hand injury, Foles, formerly the No. 3 quarterback, will continue to get work with the No. 1 team and continue to build his resume.
“For being a rookie, he is so calm,” tight end Brent Celek said Friday. “Any time you ever make a mistake, if you can come back and let that go, you're going to be fine in this league. We all make mistakes, it's how you respond from it. Nick has done a great job, not only throughout camp but through the first few games.”
The best part of the Foles meme in the past week is the complete overreaction by NFL fans. Has Foles looked good so far? Yes. Does it necessarily mean he'll look good in the regular season if he ever gets the chance to play? Not necessarily. For now, he's not facing a full slate of defenses that opponents will throw at him if he's playing in a real game. Before Friday, he was facing second- and third-stringers.
But he's also showing the skills that are needed to be a legit NFL quarterback.
However, perhaps we can take it easy when talking about Foles' future. Or not.
The Eagles just announced that Nick Foles' post-game press conference will be held at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton.
— Reuben Frank (@RoobCSN) August 25, 2012
Look, Foles is not going to take over Vick's job unless the brittle Vick gets hurts (which is always a possibility). But perhaps, if Foles is lucky, he'll have the chance to be the next Kevin Kolb -- I mean that in the nicest way possible (in that, maybe he can get the chance to be a starting quarterback somewhere else).
“I know the game is going to be fast,'' Foles said in the days before the Browns game, “so I'm just going to have to play fast. My biggest thing is to just go out there and execute the offense, run things the way they're supposed to be run, and then rely on the guys around me."
Once again, Foles did exactly that in a most successful way.
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