Dockett wary of Vick and McCoy
Nov 10, 2011, 8:38 PM | Updated: 10:18 pm
With their six-game losing streak behind them, the Arizona
Cardinals are looking to start a winning streak when they
visit the reeling Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial
Field on Sunday.
A lot of the talk coming out of Philadelphia is centered
around the Eagles’ offense–namely quarterback Michael
Vick
and how he hasn’t
been the same player that he was year ago when he
finished 2nd in the voting for the league’s MVP award.
Cardinals defensive lineman Darnell Dockett isn’t
necessarily buying into those comments about Vick.
“You rush him and he takes off running,” a talkative
Dockett said following Thursday’s practice. “You sit back
and let him pass, and he’ll pick you apart too. But we’re
going to treat him just like any other quarterback, you
just go out there and play your game, and hustle to the
ball.”
Vick has had a down season when using 2010 as a measuring
stick, but so has the rest of the Philadelphia’s passing
game. The Eagles have only 15 pass plays of 25 or more
yards, which ranks tied for 17th in the league in that
category.
But where the Eagles have improved is in the running
game. Philly ranks 1st in the league, averaging 172.3
yards per game on the ground, after ranking 5th in that
category a year ago.
A big reason for the improvement has been the play of
running back LeSean McCoy, who leads all NFL ball carriers
with 825 yards. Dockett is also well aware of number 25
in
green heading into this game.
“Their running back, to me, is probably the game-changer
for them,” Dockett said. “I think he’s probably one of
the most underrated players on the team.
“You hear about a lot of people, but you really don’t hear
about McCoy enough.”
While Dockett is aware of Vick and McCoy’s ability to
change games, he says once the ball is kicked off on
Sunday, it’s all about relying on the week’s preparation.
“You just go in and follow your game plan and just play
ball,” he said. “Don’t go in and think about that speed
and athleticism, you go in and play football and play
hard.”
Arizona Sports’ Kyndra de St. Aubin contributed to
this report
