Ashley Fox: Mora and Vick clear the air

Sunday at 9 a.m., the NFL Network will show a fascinating interview between Jim Mora and Eagles quarterback Michael Vick. Mora coached Vick for three seasons in Atlanta, from 2004 to '06, before Vick pleaded guilty to federal felony charges for his role in an illegal interstate dogfighting operation.

At one point in the interview, Mora asks Vick about his time with the Falcons: "Were you conning me?"

"I think about it a lot, Coach," Vick said. "I was selfish in some aspects. I didn't dedicate myself. I didn't listen. Ya'll was only trying to help me in so many ways. And I was just young. I can't blame myself for that, neither. I can't put 100 percent of the blame on me being young, because I was 25, 26 years old then. So you're old enough to make rational decisions for yourself. You're a grown man.

"My life has just changed drastically. When I sat in prison in Leavenworth, I was thinking, how do I want to live my life moving forward? How do I want to change things? What can I do better this time around, if granted a second chance? I just tried to educate myself on what I would do moving forward and how important the future is going to be to me leaving my legacy and how much I would appreciate life this time around."

Mora then asked Vick how he felt when Andy Reid called to tell him last week that he had supplanted Kevin Kolb as the Eagles starter.

"I was shocked," Vick said. "It took a while for me to digest everything he had told me on the phone. First, I'd heard Kevin was going to be the starter, and I was like, 'Cool.' Then I get a call and he's telling me that I'm going to be the starter. I went back into backup mode. I'd kicked back a little bit. I was just like man, this is an opportunity of a lifetime and now I've got to lead by example and go out and lead the team and do what's right and take on that role. I've been down that road before and just thought about the past and what I didn't do and what I could do better moving forward."

First Bill Cowher. Now, Bill Parcells has hinted at the possibility that he'd be interested in getting back into coaching, a hint that undoubtedly will prompt any number of NFL owners to grab their checkbooks.

During a conference call with New York-area reporters regarding his induction Sunday night into the Giants' new Ring of Honor, the 69-year-old Parcells said that he wants to do something in the NFL, although he wasn't specific. "I'm not a sit-around-the-

fireplace guy," Parcells said, shocking no one.

On Sept. 7, Parcells resigned as the Miami Dolphins' executive vice president of football operations and now is serving as a "consultant" to the Dolphins, who have not explained Parcells' new role. Under the terms of his contract, Parcells reportedly is free to walk away at any time. Give it another couple of weeks and his phone should start ringing.

Tiki Barber didn't much care for Tom Coughlin when he played for him, and it doesn't sound like he much cares for him now. The Giants are 1-2, have had a horrible time protecting the football, and have gotten shaky play from quarterback Eli Manning. A loss Sunday night against the undefeated Chicago Bears would send the Giants into a free fall.

"He's at a crisis, because the perception is that he is losing his team," Barber said, also on a conference call with New York reporters about his induction into the team's Ring of Honor. "We all know, especially in New York, once the media and the perception becomes reality you start fighting against it, and when you start fighting against something that is not real, you make it real.

"That's why he's at a crisis. He needs to figure out a way to get control of this situation."

It's very simple. Win, and the crisis disappears.

The Oakland Raiders have not had a home game televised since the 2009 season opener. Their game against Houston will be the ninth consecutive blackout due to an inability to sell out the game.

Steve Mariucci was at the NovaCare complex last week, in to interview his former colleague in Green Bay, Eagles coach Andy Reid. Asked for his impressions of Reid heading into a super-charged match up with Donovan McNabb and the Washington Redskins, Mariucci said this:

"You know Andy in interviews, he might [mumble]," Mariucci said, imitating Reid's frequent news-conference demeanor. "Today he was animated. He was big-eyed. He was smiley. His biorhythms were way up today. I think he's at peace with his [quarterback] decision. I think he likes where they're heading. He feels good about where they are right now. He was really in a good mood."

Reid's mood on Wednesdays is a pretty good indication of his confidence level heading into the next game.