Both the offensive and defensive lines were dominated, Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson, fighting to establish themselves as a No. 1 quarterback, floundered. Costly penalties helped keep the Browns off the scoreboard, and the defense failed to resemble the improved unit new defensive coordinator Rob Ryan has promised.

So what? It was the first preseason game, played against a team the Browns will face in the final week of October. With Green Bay on the regular season schedule, safe to say Ryan or head coach Eric Mangini weren’t about to expose the Packers to much in the Browns arsenal.

Though fans and media members alike prematurely went for the panic button after the team’s lackluster performance, Saturday evening shouldn’t be taken as an indication of what the 2009 season has to offer.

But what’s truly disturbing is what transpired Tuesday during the Browns’ morning practice, which prompted Mangini to show his disgust through the media with his team’s general lack of football savvy.

The Browns’ first-year head coach has a reputation for revealing next to nothing about his attitude toward the team, the status of injured players, or for that matter, who’s winning the quarterback competition. That being said, Mangini’s rant during Tuesday afternoon’s press conference should have been a red flag for the Browns and their fans.

After countless miscues, mental mistakes and assorted stumbles the likes of which Mangini takes pride in ridding his team of, he vented his frustrations and held back little.

“It’s not good enough,” Mangini said according to Cleveland.com. “There are too many mistakes. We had mistakes in the two-minute drive, a false start on fourth-and-two, had a false start when we were backed up... Things like that, they’re just going to kill you. They going to kill us.”

To get to the point where Mangini publicly called out his team in such a fashion is tangible proof that he’s more than a little disappointed with what’s transpired. But he didn’t stop there.

“That's just bad football,” Mangini said in regards to how the two-minute offense performed. “And it’s under our control if you look at the scoreboard and understand what we have to do. That’s it. We have to put the plays in the context of the game.
“Know the situation, anticipate what’s going to happen, be able to react to that, understand the person you're playing against, what his traits are. Anything short of that, you’re just running plays.”

Yes, these are the toughest days of training camp, the team is learning a new system and practices have been far more demanding than those run by former head coach Romeo Crennel. But that’s no excuse for the general lack of execution the team has displayed to this point.

The Browns’ roster isn’t exactly chocked full of talent. For the team to have even limited success, it will have to be sharp mentally, drastically reduce its mistakes and retain possession of the football for extended periods.

If Tuesday’s effort was a preview of what’s to come, Browns Backers will be in for yet another excruciatingly long season.

"You can't assume the rosters at the beginning of preseason will be the same as rosters at the start of the season. See 2008, Chad Pennington Effect."

And we had the Chad Pennington Effect because we first had the Brett Favre Effect.

So, all of you wise guys who picked the Bears to win the NFC North because they got Jay Cutler...are you ready to change your NFC North prediction because the Vikes got Brett Favre?

After all, there were some out there last season who, upon learning the Jets acquired Favre, changed their AFC East prediction from the Pats to the Jets. When Brady went down in Week One, those folks were feeling mighty smart.

Of course, these folks didn't take the Chad Pennington Effect into account.

And all of you who chose the Pats (or Steelers) vs. the Bears in Super Bowl XLIV, are you ready to change your prediction to Pats (or Steelers) vs. the Vikings?

Because, guess what? That's what I heard from Rich Eisen and Warren Sapp yesterday, along with avowed Vikes fan Mike Mayock on the NFL Network (which, naturally, had to interrupt the replay of my Dolphins preseason game vs. the Jags!) on Tuesday, during their "pre-press-conference" jabber.

Now, Eisen usually has that calm collectivity that spells reasonably objective, but this didn't stop him from claiming the Vikes (as well as the Giants, Eagles, Cowboys, and Falcons...Cowboys and Falcons? Are you kidding me?) are legit Super Bowl contenders!

I imagine Fox Sports, ESPN, Sporting News, CBS/NBC/ABC, Pro Football Weekly, and Sports Illustrated will say the same things.

Actually, with Adrian Peterson and that defense, I always thought the Vikes would win the NFC North, and might be on the Supe contender "long" list.

And, while many Viking fans—of which I used to be one, back in the Joe Kapp days—think Favre brings instant Supe contention to their team, I beg to differ.

Now, there is nothing wrong with getting the guy who can make his new team an instant winner. That's what my Fins did last year when they got Pennington. Still, there are many Fins fans who hated that move, wanting "QB of the future" Chad Henne to learn his way through the season, even if it meant just a few wins.

Just as there are more than a few Vikes fans who hate the Favre move. The difference is, is Sage Rosenfels or Tarvaris Jackson "QBs of the future" for the Vikes?

Still, while Favre might be able to win games that neither Rosenfels (remember that debacle against Colts last year, when Rosenfels blew a late lead with his bad passes and fumbles?) nor Jackson can likely win with fourth-quarter rallies, does that mean that "Lord Favre" can keep it up over a 16-game season and into the playoffs?

Think back to Week 12 with the Jets, who had just beaten the undefeated Titans right after beating the Pats on a Monday night game, and were 8-3, a game up on the 7-4 Pats, two on the 6-5 Fins and Bills. Everyone in New York was talking Giants-Jets Super Bowl.

Then Favre, a gunslinger with the most interceptions in NFL history, proceeds to show why he has that distinction, taking the Jets out of real contention before they even played Miami in that final game.

Conclusion: If you picked the Bears (or Packers, even) to win the NFC North, you might want to stay with your prediction!

But the reality is setting in, and David Tyree (the elder statesman of the Giants receiving corps in camp) will simply not be making this team.

The Giants, though they don't have a No. 1 type of WR, certainly have a deep group of young and exciting receivers. Thus far in camp, Big Blue has also seen Derek Hagan look impressive. Hagan wasn't even with the Giants until he signed as a free agent this offseason. 

Depending on if Jerry Reese decides to keep five or six players, the receiving brigade should include Steve Smith, Domenik Hixon, Hakeem Nicks, Ramses Barden, Sinorice Moss, and Mario Manningham. Of those players, one of those will have to contribute on special teams to fill David Tyree's void.

Ultimately, David Tyree is eighth on the depth chart right now, which is unfortunate for a fan favorite, but football is a hard business. What the Giants can do, though, is release him and potentially bring him back in a role with management or community relations if he can't find another team.

That would be the classy thing to do for an organization that has always acted with class.

I'd get decked out in my Redskin furbelow (okay, "furbelow" was dictionary.com's "word of the day").  I don't really dress in NFL clothing.  Even when I was buying into all the hype, I refused to pay for the overpriced garb.

I noticed my illness starting last season. 

Unless the 'Skins were playing I usually did not watch the Sunday night game or the ESPN version of Monday Night Football. 

This year, I could not be less excited. 

In fact, I just logged into my Yahoo Fantasy Football league with every intention of removing my team and sending an email to the commish and asking him to please inform me upon the start of next year's fantasy baseball season.

But I noticed that Yahoo had shaken things up a bit.  Our league is now separated into two divisions and has what is known as a "Rivalry Week". 

My rivalry is against Dead Prez.

I have nothing against Dead Prez's owner.  I don't even know him.  I don't know if it is actually a "him". 

But I do know one thing.

I hate the Dead Prez team.

Dead Prez was responsible for knocking me out of a playoff spot in the last week of the 2008 season.  And I always have trouble with the team—no matter how dominant mine is... which, not to brag, is pretty much every season.

So I didn't write the email to the commish.  I stuck with my Kurva Drát team.  Kurva Drát means "bloody hell" in Czech, and I am all about reminding the rest of the league that I spent two years in Prague.

I was in deep while overseas.  I missed the ESPN pregame.  Thankfully, there was an American Sports Bar in the neighborhood.  Aptly named, "American Sports Bar".  It was located under a brothel and run by Russian mafia.  

Night games did not end until 5 a.m.

But each Sunday I'd drag a different non-NFL fan to the bar and watch the Redskins, or any game where Chad Pennington or Byron Leftwich was quarterbacking.  They were both hometown boys... I felt the need to show them some love.

In fact, word around the campfire says that Byron used to live on the eighth floor of my apartment building. 

Unfortunately I was away at college at the time, or I would have stocked up on autographed footballs, photos, and bobble heads.

I would've definitely tried (begged) to hang with him—no doubt he was a lady magnet.  I'm sure he needed at least two or three wingmen.  That would have been sweet.

I just read yesterday that Byron is the front runner for the Tampa QB job.

Back to my "sick and tired" of the NFL speech. 

I'm not watching anything this season... with the exception of all Redskin games.

And, yeah, I'll have to watch Tampa and Miami games to support the homies.

I guess I'll have to watch NFC East game as well.  Anything that may alter the standings, and the number of games that the Giants, Eagles, or Cowboys are behind the first place Redskins.

Sunday night games might be cool now that John Madden has retired.  I'll definitely be checking those out.

But Monday Night Football—no way.  Unless the Redskins, Jets, Bucs, or an NFC East team is playing.  Or say, that between now and then, I get a job that requires me to wake up before 2 p.m.

Other than that no NFL for me this year.

Legends of their sport who are unable to hang 'em up.

Sometimes the offense isn't outrageous. Jordan was the best basketball player of all time, and as the team owner, he felt he could still play effectively. Maybe so, but he certainly never came back as the MJ we knew, and his image suffered a tad for it.

Evander and Brett have done considerably more damage to their reputations and, certainly in Holyfield's case, their bodies.

As he wavers back and forth more times than your average politician, you have to wonder if Brett Favre is really worth all the hassle and media attention (not to mention the drama and stress that he has created for the Vikings). 

Yes, Favre is one of the greatest QBs of this generation. In his prime he was an amazing QB, but anybody can see that his prime is behind him. Last year, he undeservedly made the Pro Bowl after leading the NFL with 22 INTs, including at least one in each of the team's last six games as the Jets tried to make the playoffs.

In those last six games, he threw 10 interceptions, begging the question of whether he is conditioned for a full NFL season anymore. 

But even before the "final season," Favre's play was slipping.

At 40, he is a geezer for the QB position. The game might be taking its toll on the Mississippi native. He threw 29 interceptions in 2005, when his QB rating was 70.9, and followed that up with a 2006 season where he threw only 18 TDs and had a QB rating of 72.

But he was able to put all that behind him for that inspired title run in 2007. After his miraculous 2007 season, Favre seemed to have given us his best performances at the end of his career.

Yet now it seems as though he insists on dragging it out. He has come out of retirement twice so far, filling the media outlets with an agonizing number of stories and rumors; the case is such that he has gone from one of the most loved players to one of the guys fans are simply tired of hearing about.

It's also not benefiting the teams he might be playing for. It's not fair to the Vikings players to lead the organization around by its nose all offseason. The team is supposed to play its first game in three weeks, and its starting QB might not even be on the roster.

That doesn't bode well for achieving some type of chemistry with WRs and RBs.

If Favre should go down, which is not outrageous at his age, are Sage Rosenfels and Tarvaris Jackson really going to step in and be effective or dedicated after they have been shown little respect by an organization that has chased an aging veteran all offseason?

Not to mention the money Favre is getting: $12 million per year for two years for a guy that is turning 40. That's way too much money. When you have a grind-it-out RB like Adrian Peterson, the last thing you need is a QB that's going to turn the ball over through the air.

It'll just be another dreadful season, and another example of the sad endings that usually result when aging players are blind to their own limitations.

He won some sort of award, MVP or something. Yeah, now I remember him.

He had 100 rushing touchdowns and almost 10,000 career rushing yards. Three Pro Bowls and the 2005 MVP award. In that same year, he rushed for nearly 2,000 yards and racked up a stunning 27 TDs.

He had good hands for a power back, too: 1,520 receiving yards for his career that led to his 12 TDs.

So how does a guy like this go from top of the sporting world to becoming a free agent doomed to mediocrity?

He seemed like he was on the right track to stardom, drafted 19th overall in the 2000 NFL draft. However, playing behind starter Ricky Watters resulted in a subpar rookie season, rushing for 313 yards and a measly two touchdowns.

His sophomore season (2001) was a breakout year for the then-23-year-old. Due to Watters' decline in activity and eventual retirement, Alexander played his way to 1,318 rushing yards and a team-leading 14 TDs.

This immediate success was no surprise, as Alexander was a top candidate for the Heisman Trophy in college, setting and re-breaking his own school records many times while playing with the University of Alabama at the college level, as one of the premier players in the nation.

In 2002, he generated a NFC-leading (and franchise record) 16 rushing TDs. He went on to set an NFL record that season, against the Minnesota Vikings. Alexander produced four rushing TDs and caught an 80-yard reception into the end-zone for five first-half touchdowns.

His reputation as one of the league's elite offensive players continued to grow, as did his statistical accomplishments; over the next two seasons, he garnered a combined 30 touchdowns on 3,100 rushing yards.

Alexander's 2005 MVP season registered an NFL record 28 single-season touchdowns on over 1,800 yards. For his historical efforts, he became the league's MVP, the first Seahawk to do so.

So, what happened...?

Why did the league's best player suddenly plummet to become a bottom-dweller among the NFL's peasantry?

2006 saw the running back's productivity take a shocking hit, as many serious injuries and key player departures took their toll on No. 37.

Alexander's offensive line began to weaken drastically over the next two years, as Seattle said "goodbye" to vital component Steve Hutchinson.

The retirement of Pro Bowl center Robbie Tobeck further enfeebled the Seahawks' once-dominant offensive line, further contributing to the diminution of Alexander's productivity. Mack Strong suffered a career-ending injury, and as Alexander's lead blocker left the franchise, so too did his hopes of returning to his old, record-breaking form.

The fact is, after his MVP campaign Alexander went on to generate only 11 TDs for the rest of his anticlimactic career, in two seasons with the Seahawks ('06, '07) and one with the Redskins ('08).

So as Alexander's pending, inevitable retirement looms, I have to ask myself: Was it his fault?

Luck played the biggest factor in the unfortunate end to this gifted athlete's career. It's sad, isn't it?

James Joyce once said "Life is a cruel game of chance."

Truer words have never been spoken, James.

Philadelphia is called "The City of Brotherly Love"—it's anything but a city that loves brothers!

Racial profiling among the city's police department is on par with the LAPD and NYPD and Prince George's County Police Department in the state of Maryland.

Vick's first appearance in a home game in a Philadelphia Eagle football uniform will set American sports back 52 years. Remember 1947 and Jackie Robinson?

Don't be surprised to see a black dog instead of a black cat released on the field of play. The No. 1 played song on the radio in cities that the Eagles visit will be, "Who Let the Dogs Out?"

Vick and his family will need an armed escort to and from games. The best advice his legal team could give him: "Tell your family and friends to stay home and watch the games on television."

Vick's No. 7 jersey was the biggest seller in the NFL before his dog conviction. It has sold out in Philly, but don’t be surprised to see his jersey being used to start bonfires at Eagles pep and tailgate rallies and parties. Racial tensions will run high in the city during the season.

When the race card in America is played, it's clear that there are no "good sports."

When a man serves 18 months in jail for making a "stupid" mistake and gives back $113 million dollars in salary and says, "I am sorry," who are we to say in America, "You don’t deserve a second chance?"

How many times must he say, "I am sorry?"

Baltimore Ravens LB Ray Lewis got away with murder in Atlanta, and WR Donte' Stallworth of the Cleveland Browns walked away a free man after he killed a man with his automobile.

Brendan Haywood of the NBA's Washington Wizards said it best: "When is a dog’s life worth more than a human life?"

The reason Vick chose the Eagles was, the owner wanted him, the coach wanted him, and last but not least, first string quarterback Donovan McNabb wanted him.

The city is another story. 

Philadelphia sports fans are known nationally to be the worst in America. Their sports history speaks for itself—ask the guy who played Santa Claus. While he was being parachuted into the stadium, his arrival was met with a barrage of snowballs from every corner of the stadium.

How can Washington Redskins fans ever forget how their NFL Hall of Fame mascot Chief Zee was almost killed when he was attacked after a game in Philly in 1983? He has not been back since and refuses to even fly over the city. He said, "I would not put it past them to shoot planes down."

It has been proven that most Philadelphia sports fans are not as smart as "Fifth Graders."

Philadelphia is the worst among major cities in America when it comes to college-educated adults; less then 21 percent are college graduates.  

They are definitely not playing with a full deck.

The Eagles were the first team in professional sports in America to have an on-site jail for rowdy and drunken fans.

Despite the first African-American President in the history of the country, race relations are in a sad state. Before President Barack Obama, U.S. Presidents usually received an average of 3,000 death threats a month. Obama receives 12,000 monthly.

In Philadelphia there is a possibility that Vick death threats might just surpass the President’s.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, which has a long history of waging legal battles on behalf of civil rights, warned, "There is a rise of violent and well-armed White Militias. They are driven by the recession and hatred of Obama."

The Center concluded, "There are at least 50 new militia groups in the nation over the past two years. They are mostly located in the Midwest, Pacific Northwest, and the deep South."

A spokesperson for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) added, "You are seeing the bubbling right now. You are seeing people buying into what they’re saying. It’s primed to grow."

In the meantime, CBS News carried a lengthy report on the groups last week that concluded, "The right-wing extremists, historically motivated by a distrust of government, are now especially angry about the election of America’s first African-American President."

Last week during one of those public forums on Health Care, a woman yelled, "We must take back America." 

My question: "Take it back from whom?"

Dog fighting in America is as American as apple pie. Michael Vick didn't bring dog fighting to America; it was here when his ancestors got off the ship. It's still a thriving business today.

Thanks to the overkill in media and its double standards, the Vick conviction opened up Pandora’s Box.

I was watching the popular America’s Got Talent show on NBC television last week. The show is one of my favorites. The show has moved into the semifinal round.  The winner will receive $1 million and will headline a show in Las Vegas.

What happened next really confirmed my fears that Vick is in real trouble in Philly. 

The host is Nick Cannon (Mariah Carey’s husband), and the judges are Piers Morgan, Sharon Osbourne, and David Hasselhoff.  

A national television audience voted the first four contestants into the semifinals. The last two contestants for this segment were a man and dog act against a talented brother that sang and played a mean piano. Their fate would lie in the hands of the judges instead of the national television audience.

The man and dog’s performance was mainly the dog running through the owner’s legs chasing Frisbees. The dog missed seven out of 10 Frisbees thanks to his trainer. He tossed the Frisbee as if he was drunk. The brother’s performance was flawless.

Osbourne was asked to vote first, but she claimed she was in such a dilemma. She begged Hasselhoff to vote first instead, and he voted for the man and dog act. 

Morgan could not believe his ears, and he said, "If this man does not win this competition, the show is a joke." He voted for the brother, and Sharon voted for the dog. Piers sat in stunned silence and disbelief.

This was a sign of the times and a warning to Vick to watch his back in Philly. It's definitely dogs over black men.

This whole issue of white America and dogs cannot be laid at the feet of all white folks.  There are some blacks in America that are just as dangerous. 

In media there are Juan Williams, Roland Martin, Armstrong Williams, Tavis Smiley, James Brown, Eugene Robinson, and the NABJ (National Association of Black Journalists).

In the case of Vick, these brothers and sisters are sounding more like Rush Limbaugh, Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Lou Dobbs, Pat Buchanan, and last but definitely least, "Mr. Pitiful" himself, Richard Steele. He is Chairman of the Republican Party (designated gofer).

For example, there was an email exchange between Jamie Zalac, who is the media liaison for PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and Barbara Ciara, an African-American television reporter on WTKR News Channel TV3 in Norfolk, Virginia. Ms. Ciara carries the titles of the President of the National Association of Black Journalist and Vice President of UNITY: Journalists of Color.

First, Ms. Zalac thanks Ms. Ciara for contacting her about the despicable acts of Michael Vick, as it relates to dogs in America and asking for a statement from the group.

Ms. Zalac tells her new friend that PETA and millions of decent football fans around the world are disappointed that the Philadelphia Eagles chose to sign a man who hung dogs from a tree! I wonder who took the worldwide poll, Rush Limbaugh?

Where were Ms. Zalac and PETA and her parents when black men and women were being hung from trees all over America from one decade to another? Where was she when law enforcement blew up a whole city block in Philadelphia, killing innocent women and children while looking for a cop killer? Where was she when the city bulldozed the whole block to destroy any evidence to hide this despicable act? 

Where was she when white cops in New York City were frequently using black men as target practice? Where were Ms. Zalac and Ms. Ciara when a young black man was denied his right to a judge and jury here in Prince George's County last year? He was accused in the hit and run death of a police officer. He was found in his jail cell dead from a broken neck. No one has been brought to justice, and the cover-up continues.

This hideous act took place in the shadows of the nation’s capital and PETA Headquarters in downtown Washington, DC. There was no outcry from PETA or the NABJ!

Then there is the cheerleading email from Bob Butler, a reporter at KCBS Radio in San Francisco. His credentials read, Vice President of Broadcast for the NABJ and President, Bay Area Black Journalists.

Mr. Butler’s email read, "You go Barbara."

I had to go backtrack and double-check the emails to make sure I had not missed an earth-shattering development that Ms. Ciara had uncovered, like a formula for preventing teenage pregnancy among black girls in our community or breaking news of the first black owner of a NFL team! No such luck.

Mr. Butler thought congratulations were in order because on Aug. 13, 2009, at 7:42 PM, Ciara, Barbara wrote:

"NABJ Family, at this hour, PETA (homebased in Norfolk) has not issued a statement regarding the signing of Michael Vick. However, I would like to note that I along with NABJ member Jummy Olabanji broke the story of Vick's contract with Philly at 7:25 on WTKR NewsChannel 3 a full hour and five minutes before anyone else. We got it first—and we got it right."

Ms. Ciara, I will be sure to nominate you and your station for the upcoming Emmy Awards. 

You really must have some slow news days in Norfolk. When I was an on-air personality, I broke community and sports stories days before the Washington Post. It got so bad George Solomon the sports editor assigned his reporters to tune into Inside Sports for breaking news stories.

This dog charade took a turn for the worst when CBS Sports and NFL host James Brown sat down with Vick on 60 Minutes. 

This was a bad news day for Tiger Woods and Michael Vick fans on CBS (I am sure the ratings went through the roof).

For the first time in his professional golf career, Tiger lost a tournament going into the final round leading the field. The No. 1 golfer in the world lost to Y. E. Yang, ranked No. 155. 

Since the death of Ed Bradley, 60 Minutes has yet to find another black man capable of filling the void he left. He was, in my opinion, the "black Walter Cronkite" of television news. 

Ed, like Mr. Cronkite, had an air of honesty and integrity, something rarely found in the news media today. You could carry what they said to the bank.

Brown was like a bump on a log during his one-on-one interview with Vick. He sat there like he had no idea what it was like to be black in America. The whole interview was well rehearsed. Tony Dungy was the only believable voice on the entire show.

The race card never came up during the entire interview; it was like it never existed. It was obvious they were told not to mention race as being a factor for all the hate being shown to this young man.

I am still trying to figure out what the purpose was of showing Vick's legal team (Billy Martin and company) without a word.

The bottom line: Instead of Michael Vick being a spokesperson for PETA, he should be going around visiting schools, playgrounds, and youth facilities in our cities talking to black youth.

Black on black murder. Over half of minority students in America are dropping out school.  The youth facilities and prisons are busting at the seams with minorities. Black youth are fouling out of the game of life at record rates. 

My advice to Michael Vick: Save a child’s life, and let PETA and the National Association of Black Journalists save the dogs.

Now, he is a man fighting his own demons. What came to light Tuesday afternoon was the obvious battle each player must deal with that fans of the sport could not possibly know about. As fans, we only see the players on the field, at practice, or on TV.

We can't possibly understand the temptations that confront players on a daily basis. How making the wrong choice could not only wreck your career but your life.

"It was something that was before I got into this league,'' he told the St. Petersburg Times, ''but it kind of lingered on and led to my suspension."

To be suspended by the league for substances abuse, you have failed one test and then either failed a second or have not met the terms while being in stage one of the substance abuse program.

"I had to comply with some things and as a result of that, that's what led to my suspension," Jackson said.

Jackson didn't elaborate on which particular demon he is dealing with but its apparent that its been getting the better of him. It's such a shame. On a young football team he was an emerging force, one the Buccaneers were looking toward to take the torch from the Ronde Barber's and Derrick Brooks' of the world. He was to fill the leadership void caused by NFL attrition.

Now, the one kid you didn't worry about, you must. Its well documented that some athletes cannot overcome their demons. Guys like Darryl Strawberry, with all the talent in the world, saw their careers derailed by substance abuse. Jackson has a promising career in front of him—but there's one last difficult choice he will need to make.

Are the drugs more important to him than playing football? For Ricky Williams, marijuana was...until he realized that he couldn't feed his habit without an income.

Jackson is at the crossroad.

Down one road is denial. "I've got it under control, I'll just do it in the off-season and cut it out during the season."

Down the other is redemption. "I've got to get this in check. I can't let down my family, my team, my coaches and fans anymore."

Ricky Williams is a league success story as are some other players who struggled with their own demons and went into the substance abuse program. Williams returned from his self exile and has not relapsed. He's been a contributor to the Dolphins resurgence and a poster child of redemption.

Still, each day he is tempted. Sometimes, the temptation gets the better of you. Look at Texas Rangers and former Tampa Bay Devil Ray Josh Hamilton. He too struggled with drug and alcohol addiction. The Rays finally had given up on the promising outfielder after several relapses.

Hamilton finally conquered the demons and became an All-Star. Not even that could prevent him from having a setback. One moment of weakness and he was in front of Ranger nation having to own up to his weakness.

With so much money in your pocket and the forces of evil surrounding you, if you have that weakness its difficult to "Just say no."

At this point, the Buccaneers have big question mark in a spot they thought was one of the few answers on the team. The team not only is scrambling to fill the void for the four games Jackson will not be allowed to play, but they may need to start to look at long term solutions to protect themselves in case Jackson slips again.

Derrick Brooks was fond of saying, "Every day, the team is looking to upgrade on you."

While the team will be supportive of Jackson and try to give him the help he needs, the NFL is a win now business. At the end of the day, Raheem Morris must win to remain employed. If Jackson can't be counted on to help him do that, the team will need to move on at some point.

Hopefully for Jackson, this latest setback will be his last and he can become the next success story in the NFL substance abuse program.

Yet that’s all it was. Vick ran the scout team offense on Tuesday, calling plays for Westbrook and other starters who are injured or recovering from injury, and not ready to play in Thursday’s preseason game against Indianapolis.

In Vick’s ideal scenario, he would be taking snaps with the Eagles' first-team offense in a regular season game, not just a routine preseason practice.  But he’ll take what he can get right now as he progresses back into the NFL.

“Best scout team ever,” Celek said with a smile on his face.

In October and beyond, Vick could be taking snaps with the starters in a game that counts.

“I don’t necessarily know where he’s going to fit in as a player, where he’s going to fit in this offense,” Westbrook said.

The Eagles are not in any rush to find out either.

It’s been all about normalcy so far in Vick’s first week of practice with the Eagles. No special looks, no Wildcat packages, just a fourth-string quarterback watching, learning and taking in the Eagles playbook.

He will also not be traveling with the team to Indianapolis because he cannot play in the game—this is Andy Reid’s usual policy for players that are not playing. Vick can only play in the last two preseason games, starting with a home matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Aug. 27.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said he would consider Michael Vick for full reinstatement by no later than Week 6 (Oct. 18-19).

“He looks good to me,” Celek said of Vick. “He throws the ball real well and can read the defense.”

Vick is not getting any special treatment in practice either. He takes his reps at quarterback behind Donovan McNabb, A.J. Feeley and even undrafted rookie Adam DiMichele.

Reid has insisted that Kolb will be the No. 2 QB when the season starts, but only two quarterbacks are normally active. Once Vick is eligible for a regular season game, Coach Reid could activate him at the expense of a player at another position, likely a special team’s player. Reid also could make Kolb the No. 3 QB. 

But if he stands behind his insistence on Kolb being the No. 2 guy, this is highly unlikely.