The Facts: Vick, who turns 34 in June, remains one of the NFL's most compelling figures, a precursor to the dual-threat QBs who now captivate talent evaluator. And very soon, he will be something else: a free agent, likely the most interesting one of the offseason. "There are too many teams that are in need of an upgrade for him not to be looked at as a starter," a personnel executive said. "I could see a team signing him, and developing a young guy. Vick could be a very good bridge starter for two to three years."

Diehards Line: As previously noted, Vick wants to be a starter, and because of how he handled his final season in Philadelphia -- when he was playing out his contract, when he lost his starting job -- his time on the bench probably won't hurt him in that pursuit. The above-quoted NFL personnel executive told NFL.com's Judy Battista that teams undoubtedly will rate Vick the best of a middling quarterback free-agent market -- one likely to include Matt Schaub, Matt Cassel and Mark Sanchez -- and the exec said he would rate him as a mid-tier starting quarterback, somewhere between 13 and 16. In a league with 32 teams, that's better than half. And that, as Battista added, despite his advancing age, is a remarkable improvement from where Vick was the last time he hit free agency. ... Among the neediest teams? Oakland comes immediately to mind. But the Jets, Browns, Texans, Buccaneers and Vikings will all be looking for help at the position -- arguably starting-level help.