Former Georgia star Bailey will face old rival instead of Vick

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Posted 5:44PM on Thursday, September 11, 2003

When the Washington Redskins announced their schedule five months ago, Champ Bailey circled Week Two on his calendar. He finally would face the Atlanta Falcons and their superstar quarterback, Michael Vick, in a regular-season game. The three-time Pro Bowl selection said, ``I'm kind of disappointed he's not playing because I want their best players on the field. Of course, Doug Johnson's a quality quarterback. He's going to come in and do some good things also. It's still a good Falcons team that we're going to be playing.'' Bailey faced Johnson twice in college, going 1-1 in 1997. Former Florida coach Steve Spurrier, now in his second year with the Redskins, benched Johnson midway through a 37-17 loss to the Bulldogs. The following year, the Gators won 38-7 as Johnson accounted for three first-quarter touchdowns against Bailey's Bulldogs. An opportunity to avenge a loss in college, though, doesn't compensate for missing a chance to face Vick, who broke a bone in his lower right leg last month and is expected to miss all of September and maybe a game or two in October. Bailey, the prototype for NFL cornerbacks, has heard, read and seen so much about Vick, the prototype for quarterbacks, in the last five years. After leaving Georgia as a junior and getting drafted Number seven overall by Washington in 1999, Bailey enjoyed a solid rookie season that included the Redskins' first playoff victory in six years. Media outlets in and around the District of Columbia, however, made a big deal of Vick as he led Virginia Tech to the national championship game that year as a redshirt freshman. By 2001, the Falcons traded up to acquire the Number one pick, which they used on Vick. Atlanta visited Washington that year in preseason, but Bailey, a starting cornerback, left the game before Vick, who was a rookie backup to Chris Chandler, played in the second half.