Slick Vick - Young QB nothing short of dazzling

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Michael Vick was on the move again Monday, rushing out the door to catch a flight home.

This guy never slows down.

Just ask the Carolina Panthers, who spent three futile quarters trying to chase down Atlanta's now-you-see-him, now-you-don't quarterback. They must have felt as if they were facing some freakish genetic creation, a guy who can run like Barry Sanders and throw like Dan Marino.

"When he's running, it looks like he has no upper torso," Falcons cornerback Ray Buchanan said. "He's all legs, running right past guys."

And to think Vick is in his first season as a starting quarterback, just his second year in the NFL. Imagine how good he's going to be when he really knows what he's doing.

Only half way there

"Let's say he's 50 percent of what he's going to be," coach Dan Reeves said. "When he starts keying in on things, gets himself up to 90 percent, he's going to be incredible. He's already pretty phenomenal."

Vick, in just his seventh pro start, turned Sunday's 30-0 victory over Carolina into his own personal highlight film.

How about that play when he took a lateral from an offensive lineman deep in the Falcons backfield and ran for 28 yards?

Or the play when he was almost sacked in the end zone, got away and completed a 21-yard pass to Shawn Jefferson?

Or the play when he cruised outside the pocket, lost one defender with a feigned pass, bounced off another like a pinball and tiptoed down the sideline for a 44-yard touchdown run?

"I was hollering, 'Get out of bounds! Get out of bounds!"' Reeves said. "All of a sudden, he's scored a touchdown. It's amazing how fast it happens."

Here's a few other amazing numbers:

Vick leads the Falcons (3-3) in rushing with 276 yards, even though he missed one game with a shoulder injury. He is averaging 8.9 yards a carry.

Vick hasn't thrown an interception this season. His streak of 139 passes without getting picked, dating to last season, is the longest active string in the league.

Vick completed 16 of 22 passes against the Panthers, spreading the ball around to nine receivers and attempting to hook up with two others.

"I thought I did pretty well," Vick said, calling from his car as he raced to the airport, trying to catch a flight to Virginia. "I did enough in the passing game, enough in the running game, enough for us to win. That's what is important. I would probably give myself a B-plus."

Defenses must be shuddering to think what Vick would have to do to earn an A.

Breaks his own record

On Sunday, he threw for 178 yards, ran for 91 yards, breaking his own team record for yards rushing by a quarterback, and was credited with 28 yards receiving when he took the lateral from tackle Todd Weiner, who had caught a deflected pass.

"It surprised me when he caught it," Vick said. "I just started yelling, 'Todd! Todd! Todd!' and he flipped it back to me. The guys downfield all had their backs turned. They didn't didn't even see it."

He didn't even play in the fourth quarter with the Falcons comfortably ahead.

"There's not many quarterbacks in the league that can outrun an entire defense," Carolina linebacker Will Witherspoon said. "He's pretty close to a cheetah."

Carolina came into the game as the second-rated unit in the NFL. Not anymore. Not after getting shredded by Vick.

"He's unbelievable," said Falcons owner Arthur Blank, who couldn't stop smiling as he cruised through the locker room Monday. "One of my friends in New York sent me an e-mail. He told me he had watched the game and just seen the new version of Superman."