The Michael Vick Show pulled into Chicago with perhaps its most hype yet.
The Eagles’ quarterback graces the cover of Sports Illustrated and he’s constantly being mentioned as a leading MVP candidate. The Bears, however, found Vick’s kryptonite in Sunday’s 31-26 win. They call it Cover 2.
“That’s our patented Cover 2 that nobody else in the league plays,” said Bears safety Chris Harris, who became the first player to intercept Vick since 2006. “You don’t see a lot of true Cover 2 in the NFL anymore, so I think that kind of messes with quarterbacks.”
Vick’s stat line didn’t appear too frazzled, as he finished 29-of-44 for 333 yards and two touchdowns. Dig deeper, though. Vick seemed to freeze up when his speedy receivers were blanketed, often staying in the pocket instead of pulling it down and taking off.
“Usually, I do everything on feel,”?said Vick, who had just 44 rushing yards and was sacked four times. “So, if I take off and run with the ball, it’s because somebody is not open or because we have some slip up in protection.”
Or, maybe the Bears have laid down the blueprint for stopping the NFL’s human highlight reel.
“In Cover 2, we have a lot of eyes on the quarterback, so everybody sees him, so when he breaks our guys are converging,” Harris said.
That’s not to say Chicago didn’t walk away from the game unimpressed.
“Anytime you play against a player like that, it makes you raise your level,” said Bears defensive end Julius Peppers.
