Comparing Cam Newton or Lamar Jackson to Michael Vick Is Absolutely Unacceptable

I have been thinking about this tweet for more than 24 hours and I'm still upset about it. I don't know who's running social over at Pro Football Focus, but I know they're way too young. This is the work of someone with no damn respect.

I get it. The kids now love Lamar Jackson because he's fun and exciting — until Baltimore gets to the playoffs — and the kids of just a few years ago love Cam Newton for the same reasons. They're bold and brash. They've each won an MVP. They're great football players.

But I'm gonna need y'all to watch some highlights of the greatest to ever do it — who was doing it while Jackson was in diapers — because way too many people seem to forget that Michael Vick was doing this before all these guys now and was unstoppable in doing so.

Vick was the most dynamic player the NFL had ever seen. No defenses had any answers as to how to stop him. And while I'd argue the numbers aren't even very relevant in this situation, given the fact that Vick was the first guy we ever saw play the quarterback position this way, I believe they also illustrate my point.

Vick rushed 873 times for 6,109 yards, or 7.0 yards per attempt. Newton has amassed a comparable 5,398 yards in his career, but has done so with nearly 200 more attempts. Jackson has rushed for nearly 3,000 yards in his three seasons, yet his per attempt average is still a yard shy of Vick's. Even in an era where these guys have offenses meticulously designed to maximize their ability to run the ball, they're still not on Vick's level.

Newton has had a fantastic career. Jackson may well end up being the best quarterback in the NFL at some point in the next few years. But in terms of rushing quarterbacks, neither of those guys will be on the level of Mike Vick. Have some respect.