, leaving Richards 14th on the team and seventh among forwards.

PHILADELPHIA -- Michael Vick took a pay cut and had to compete for his job when he returned to the Eagles. Part of the choice had to do with the up-tempo offence mapped out by new coach Chip Kelly. "I just thought," Vick said, "this was the best opportunity, the best fit for me." Turns out, Vick was the best fit for Kelly. With his first chance to put his stamp on Philadelphias offence, Kelly named Vick the starting quarterback on Tuesday, giving the veteran the nod over Nick Foles after a sterling effort in the preseason. "Hes our starter for the season," Kelly said. "Its not a one-game trial basis." There wasnt a lot of suspense with Kellys decision, which was announced after practice on Tuesday, and after the coach met with both players. About the only surprise was the timing -- Kelly had hinted he might not name a starter until closer to the opener. But Kelly, in his first season after coaching at Oregon, ended the mystery and will have Vick taking the snaps when Philadelphia opens the regular season at Washington Sept. 9. "Im not surprised at all," Vick said. "I told him, Thank you, I appreciate it and I wont let you down." Vick has been solid in two preseason games, and Foles, in his second season with the Eagles, has struggled to grasp Kellys multifaceted offence. Vick has thrown for 199 yards this preseason and will take a 113.2 quarterback rating into Fridays game at Jacksonville (0-2). Foles has been sacked six times in two games, and has a quarterback rating of 65.5, after showing flashes as a rookie last season while Vick was injured. Vick played in just 10 games last season, while Foles topped 340 yards twice as a rookie. The Eagles (1-1) are coming off a 4-12 season, coach Andys Reids last, and havent made the playoffs since they won the NFC East at the end of the 2010 season. "We had a good amount of tape, a good amount of us seeing them on the field," Kelly said. "And seeing them in a lot of different situations, and wanted to put a guy in place, if we could, in enough time to get us to prepare the season." Kelly has only shown flashes of his up-tempo offence in the first two preseason games and defences already seem tired and confused while the Eagles are moving the ball with ease. The first-team offence led by Vick and Foles has four touchdowns on eight-plus possessions in two games. One drive ended with an end-zone interception and two others ended with fumbles. Behind Foles will be Matt Barkley, a rookie from Southern Cal. "The competitor in me, you always want to be the one on the field playing," Barkley said. "At the same time, I love Mike. Weve gone about it the right way. Weve kept our great friendship and weve pushed each other. Im proud of him. Im going to do anything I can to help him become the best quarterback possible. "Im excited for him. Nothing changes in my preparation. Im going to prepare the same way." Vick had a breakout year under Reid in 2010, leading the Eagles to the division title, winning The Associated Press Comeback Player of the Year award and starting in the Pro Bowl. But hes battled injuries and inconsistency the last two years. Now 33, Vick sustained a concussion in Week 10 last year and Reid decided to let Foles play the rest of the way because the Eagles were in last place. Vick returned to start the season finale against the New York Giants because Foles was hurt. He finished the year with 2,362 yards passing, 12 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He lost five fumbles. "I think Mike is ahead right now. I think Nick made it very difficult," Kelly said. "It wasnt where one guy went north and the other guy went south. I think both of them upped their games. "But at this point in time Mikes ahead." The four-time Pro Bowl quarterback agreed in February to a restructured three-year contract with the Eagles, just two seasons after signing a $100 million extension that included $35.5 million in guaranteed money. The new deal is essentially for one year, however. Vick could earn up to $10 million in 2013 if he meets all performance incentives. He was slated to earn about $16 million this season, including a $3 million roster bonus. Vick has missed 11 games because of injuries over the last three seasons. A former No. 1 overall pick by Atlanta, Vick was signed by Philadelphia in 2009 after missing two years because he was in federal prison for his role in a dogfighting ring. He came in as the No. 3 quarterback behind Donovan McNabb and Kevin Kolb. After McNabb was traded and Kolb was injured in the season opener in 2010, Vick took over and was outstanding. He had career highs in yards passing (3,018), completion percentage (62.6), touchdowns passing (21), touchdowns rushing (9) and passer rating (100.2). He might not hit those numbers again -- even if Vick believes hes still capable of playing like his old self. "It dont stop here. This is just Day 1," he said. "Ive still got to prove myself." Andrew Norwell Jersey . -- Theres something about playing on Orlandos floor lately that seems to bring out the best in the Dallas Mavericks. Telvin Smith Jersey . - Titans quarterback Jake Locker will miss the rest of the season with a Lisfranc injury to his right foot, leaving Tennessee trying to rally with Ryan Fitzpatrick. http://www.officialjacksonvillejaguarsfootball.com/authentic-d.j.-hayden-jersey-womens . The 36-year-old said a few months ago he would hang up his boots at the end of the season, but has since changed his mind. "Its a pity the season is ending now, as I am in good physical shape and enjoying myself," Di Natale said. Carson Tinker Jersey . Whenever United loses, its crisis. When other top teams slip up, its the quirky nature of the Premier League. The predictable reaction speaks to the sky-high expectations for a team proven perennial contender and 13 times Premier League champion. DJ Chark Jersey .S. routed Sweden 7-0 Sunday to win its fourth straight title and seventh overall under-18 world championship. Olson earned his third shutout of the tournament and the Americans allowed only four goals in six games to set an International Ice Hockey Federation under-18 record.Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - Mike Richards boasts intangible qualities most NHL general managers only dream about. Too bad his contract has become a GMs nightmare. Although the Los Angeles Kings decision to place Richards on waivers was primarily a salary cap move, there is a sad reality at the heart of the story. The fact of the matter is the former All-Star forward who became a champion in L.A. simply isnt earning his keep these days. Richards was placed on waivers Monday and there was never a chance he wouldnt clear. Carrying an annual cap hit of $5.75 million through the 2019-20 season, the contract signed with Philadelphia in December 2007 has made Richards a wealthy man, but to NHL GMs the mammoth deal is an albatross around the 29- year-olds neck. Reports out of Los Angeles suggest Kings GM Dean Lombardi tried his best to deal Richards over the weekend, but nothing materialized. When Lombardi realized he couldnt dump Richards salary on another team via a trade, the decision to waive him became necessary. The deadline to claim Richards was Tuesday at 9 a.m. ET, and, as expected, no takers came forward. The Kings now can assign Richards to their AHL affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs, and see $925,000 of his cap hit come off the books. It may not seem like much, but even the tiniest bit of relief helps the cap- strapped Kings. Still, Lombardi has to be kicking himself for not using a compliance buyout on Richards when he had the chance. The NHLs collective bargaining agreement allowed teams to rid themselves of unwanted cap hits following the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons. To many in the media, it seemed like a foregone conclusion Lombardi would buy out Richards and make him a free agent, especially since the summer of 2014 marked the last chance for NHLs teams to use compliance buyouts. Instead, the GM opted to keep Richards in the fold and bet on the forward regaining his old form, and now it seems like a rare error in judgment from Lombardi. Of course, Lombardi was aware of Richards decline, but he chose to keep him around because of the intangibles he brings to the table. The former Flyers captain has a reputation as a guy who puts the goals of his team first while his personal achievements place a distant second. Youre loathe to ever give up on that kind of player, its very difficult to find that special ingredient, Lombardi said last summer while explaining why he declined to buy out Richards. Even through his negatives this year, who rises to the occasion in the end? Time and again he shows up at critical moments. There is little doubt Richards, who turns 30 in a few weeks, played a positive role in Darryl Sutters locker room during the Kings championship runs in 2012 and 14, but its clear the head coach is depennding less and less on the veteran when it comes to actual playing time.dddddddddddd When Richards came to L.A. in a trade with Philadelphia during the summer of 2011, he was seen as a potential missing piece for a Kings team with plenty of young talent and that proved to be true, in the short term at least. Richards averaged 19 minutes, 30 seconds of ice time per game in the 2012 playoffs, as only star centerman Anze Kopitar and captain Dustin Brown received more playing time among Kings forwards. During last seasons run to the Cup, however, his ice dropped to 15:32, leaving Richards 14th on the team and seventh among forwards. The trend of decreased playing time has continued this season with Richards logging 13:41 of ice time on average through 47 games. His production has fallen off, too, as Richards has managed only 15 points and the normally reliable two-way forward also is sporting a minus-seven rating. Lombardi spoke Monday to the Los Angeles Times about the decision to waive Richards and used a baseball analogy to try to make sense of his embattled forwards struggles. Mike, through his career, has shown he can be a .330 hitter, 80 RBIs, an All- Star player, Lombardi said. Maybe at this stage, maybe its not fair, but I still think he is capable of being a .280 hitter and (can) do a lot of those things for you that only he can do. Lets face it: right now hes batting .200. I dont see any reason why he cant get back to that. Hes gotta do what hes gotta do. For me, the world of the NBA offers the best comparison for Richards, who always seemed like the NHLs version of Allen Iverson. While Iverson was blessed with superior athletic ability that resulted in him getting selected No. 1 overall by the Philadelphia 76ers, Richards also was a first-round pick by the Flyers and became the face of a Philly franchise. Also like Iverson, Richards off-ice habits led him to spar with the Philadelphia media, but few people ever questioned either players work ethic when it came time to play a game. And although both Iverson and Richards were undersized for their respective sports, neither man ever blinked when it came time to pay a physical price for their teams. Sadly, its beginning to seem like the parallels may not end there. The wear and tear eroded Iversons ability until eventually he became a shell of his former self and quietly faded out of the NBA. Only time will tell if Richards can avoid a similar fate, but his struggles over the past two seasons are not a promising sign. Still, the veteran can count his coach among the folks who still believe he can get his career back on track. Lots of players go on waivers. Lots of players clear waivers, Sutter said. And lots of players still have great years in front of them. 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