Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer explored an interesting angle of the Michael Vick story. NFL teams can only dress 45 players for each game. Typically, only two QBs will be listed as active and then the 3rd QB can inhabit a special 46th “emergency QB” slot. However, there are specific rules about how the emergency QB can enter the game. The emergency QB must enter the game and line up under center or dropped back in shotgun. The emergency QB must also continue to play quarterback on subsequent snaps. Additionally, the emergency quarterback can’t play at the same time as the active quarterbacks. When all is said and done, it’s most likely that the Eagles will just list three active QBs including Vick.
Via Philly.com:
When it comes to the NFL rule book, being a “third quarterback” is more complicated than just being third string on the depth chart.
That difference now matters to the Eagles – and their fans – because of Michael Vick.
Teams can dress 45 players for a game, and most use two spots for quarterbacks, though there is no limit. The rules allow for a 46th player if it’s a quarterback and if two quarterbacks are among the first 45 players.
The “third quarterback rule” was created 18 years ago to allow teams a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency quarterback in case the first two were injured. But the rule has a string of stipulations to keep NFL coaches from sneaking an extra player onto their 45-man, game-day rosters while gambling that they won’t need a third quarterback.
Coach Andy Reid has deemed Kevin Kolb the No. 2 quarterback behind Donovan McNabb, but there wouldn’t be much purpose in carrying Vick as the emergency third quarterback.
The Eagles signed Vick after he spent 18 months in prison on dogfighting charges, which angered some fans and prompted speculation about which quarterback might be the starter years into the future. It’s unlikely the Eagles went through all of that just so Vick could carry a clipboard this season.
Vick can play in the last two preseason games, including Thursday’s contest against Jacksonville at Lincoln Financial Field. He can’t play in the regular season until NFL commissioner Roger Goodell says so, a decision likely before the sixth game.
If Reid uses Vick as he has hinted he would – as a multipurpose threat used anytime, anywhere – the coach would have two options on game day: Promote Vick as the backup quarterback or activate three quarterbacks.
“The Eagles can carry three quarterbacks on their 45-player roster,” NFL spokesman Mike Signora said, “but if they have three on their 45, they are not entitled to a 46th player/fourth quarterback. A team is entitled to the 46th player/third quarterback if and only if it has two, and only two, bona fide quarterbacks on the 45.”
It seems like a small price to pay: Sacrifice a special-teams player to have both Vick and Kolb at your disposal. Of course, the price won’t seem as small if an opponent returns a punt for a touchdown. Regardless, if Reid knows now what he intends to do, he isn’t telling.
“You have a variety of things you can do there,” Reid said last week. “I’m not exactly sure what I’m going to do there. Something will happen.”
Tags: andy reid, donovan mcnabb, emergency quarterback, football, kevin kolb, michael vick, NFL, philadelphia eagles
