Diagnosing Michael Vick's injuries

Michael Vick has missed 23 regular-season games (and two preseason) in his NFL career because of injury. Here's a breakdown, if you will, of No. 7's various troubles:

2001

Missed one game with a rib injury when Carolina safety Damien Richardson drilled him as he crossed the goal line scoring his first NFL touchdown. "You get hurt sometimes, you've just got to deal with it," Vick said. "I'll just rest a little bit and I'll be all right."

Bottom line: Injured while scrambling.

2002

Missed one game with a sprained right shoulder when he was driven to the Georgia Dome turf by Tampa Bay's Simeon Rice. "I can't really lift my arm up," he said. "I've never really been hit like that before, where a guy falls on top of me. And I've never really had any problems with my shoulder. So I knew something was definitely wrong."

Bottom line: Injured after being flushed from the pocket.

2003

Missed the first 11 regular-season games after he fractured his right fibula on a sack by Baltimore's Adalius Thomas. "He usually pops right back up," reserve quarterback Doug Johnson observed. "Every time he gets hit, he'll kind of roll around and figure it out and get back up. When I saw him not get up, I knew he was hurt bad." Atlanta went 2-9 while Vick was out.

Bottom line: Again, injured after being flushed from the pocket.

2004

Missed one game with an injured left shoulder after being sacked by Carolina's Al Wallace.

Bottom line: Injured while in the pocket.

2005

Missed one game with a strained right medial collateral ligament after he was planted by Minnesota's Erasmus James. "Your mind rushes," said Falcons defensive end Patrick Kerney, "until you realize you have a great backup player in Matt Schaub." Schaub threw for 298 yards and three touchdowns the following week, but the Falcons still lost to two-time defending champion New England, 31-28.

Bottom line: Injured while scrambling to keep a play alive. The result was an incompletion.

2009

Missed two games with a thigh contusion after being tackled by San Francisco's Takeo Spikes.

Bottom line: Injured while running a quarterback draw out of the Wildcat formation.

2010

Missed three games with injured rib cartilage after he was sandwiched by Washington's Kareem Moore and DeAngelo Hall. As if the injury wasn't enough, the 23-yard scramble was wiped out by a holding penalty on Max-Jean Gilles.

"He's always trying to make plays and do certain things," wide receiver DeSean Jackson said afterward. "I told him right before he got hurt, don't take no hits . . . We can't afford you taking hits. He's just trying to make things happen."

Bottom line: Injured while scrambling. He should have heeded Jackson's warning.

2011

Missed three games with broken ribs after Arizona's Daryl Washington drilled Vick helmet-first under the left arm on the second play of the game. Vick stayed in the contest, but went just 16-for-34 in a disappointing loss to the Cardinals. Vick left two games earlier in the season, one because of a concussion, another with an injured right hand.

Bottom line: Injured in the pocket when Washington went unblocked.

2012

Missed one preseason game after New England's Jermaine Cunningham busted through the line and drilled Vick in the ribs. Vick had danced around pressure before the hit. The Eagles said Vick was held out of action the following week as a precaution and could have played if it was a regular-season game.

Bottom line: Injured in the pocket when his line whiffed on blocks.

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INJURY SCORECARD

Scrambling/flushed from pocket: 17 games (plus 1 preseason)

In pocket: 4 games (plus 1 preseason)

Wildcat formation: 2 games

Atlanta without Vick: 4-11

Eagles without Vick: 4-4

We're not counting the fourth preseason game, which starters generally never play.

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Hit men

The guys who are responsible for Michael Vick (6-foot, 215 pounds) missing games because of injury:

Defender#Ht.#Wt.#Vick injury, season

x-Chris Canty, DE, N.Y. Giants, 6-7, 286: Hand, 2011

Jermaine Cunningham, LB, New England, 6-3, 255: Ribs, 2012

DeAngelo Hall, CB, Washington, 5-10, 197: Ribs, 2010

Erasmus James, DE, Minnesota, 6-4, 263: Knee, 2005

Kareem Moore, S, Washington, 5-11, 213: Ribs, 2010

x-William Moore, S, Atlanta, 6-0, 223: Concussion, 2011

Simeon Rice, DE, Tampa Bay, 6-5, 268: Shoulder, 2002

Damien Richardson, S, Carolina, 6-1, 210: Ribs, 2001

Takeo Spikes, LB, San Francisco, 6-2, 242: Thigh, 2009

Adalius Thomas, LB, Baltimore, 6-2, 270: Leg, 2003

Al Wallace, DE, Carolina, 6-5, 275: Shoulder, 2004

Daryl Washington, LB, Arizona, 6-2, 226, Ribs, 2011

x: Knocked Vick out of a game, but Vick returned the following week