Simms Would Be a Better Choice at QB Than Vick

It's clear. The Bears need a new option at quarterback. Rex Grossman and Kyle Orton are both not working out, but when you look around the league, pickings are slim. They could hope to catch lightning in a bottle through the draft like the Falcons did with Matt Ryan, or the Ravens did with Joe Flacco, but that sort of gamble is scary for a team who hoped that Rex Grossman would pan out as a draft pick. Two viable options are Chris Simms, and, as tough as it is to say it, Michael Vick.

Simms hasn't seen much playing time since he ruptured his spleen in 2005 in a game for the Buccaneers. He spent the past season as the third quarterback for the Tennessee Titans, throwing two passes over the entire year. Behind Kerry Collins and Vince Young, he didn't have much of a chance at taking any snaps. His lack of recent experience forces us to look back to 2005, the last time he played at least half of a season. In 2005, he was something special. With a passer rating of 81.4, he led the Bucs to the playoffs.

With Vick, the Bears would get a boost in their running game and a passer with a completion rate right around 53 percent. In 2006, the last time he played professional football, he rushed for 1,039 and passed for 2,472 yards. However, he turned the ball over 22 times, and his playmaking didn't amount to much as his team went 7-9 and ended the season with three straight losses.

Neither man has played much meaningful football since at least 2006, so their previous stats and accomplishments don't mean squat when looking for a new QB for the Bears. Simms has expressed interest in the Bears, and needs a new home for football. He has at least worked out with a team in the past year. Vick is an unknown entity as the only working out he has done has been in a prison yard as he serves time on a dog fighting conviction.

Of course, football reasons are not the only ones why Vick should not be in a Bears uniform this season. He has paid his debt to society, but society has a long memory when it comes to a man who has hurt animals. There will be a never-ending circus surrounding Vick that will only serve to distract the team. We don't know what Vick will bring to a team, and that kind of sideshow would only be worth it if Vick would unquestionably bring the team to the Super Bowl. There is no guarantee that he would, so why take the risk?

 Maggie Hendricks is a lifelong Chicagoan who has loved sports since the punky QB known as McMahon was mooning helicopters. She also writes for Cage Writer, Yahoo! Sports' MMA blog, and worked on Fourth-Place Medal, Yahoo! Sports' Olympic blog.