Is this it? Is Michael Vick now up for hire in the NFL?

Because last night, after SI.com reported that Vick had a private meeting with Commissioner Roger Goodell in what sounds like a secret location in New Jersey, we have to believe that this process is for real—and that Vick will be playing football this season in the NFL.

After SI’s story hit the wires, ESPN then reported that the suspension would likely be for the first four games of the 2009 season, pushing the notion further that after all the drama that has surrounded Vick, he’s coming back.

Michael Vick

But where, and when?

If these reports hold true, we will finally see not only what Vick’s worth is on the open market as a free agent, but what his worth is in terms of public relations to the team—or teams—that make a play for the former Falcons QB.

And that will be fun to watch.

Last week, we learned that Vick hired renowned NFL trainer Tom Shaw, someone who has been in the business a long time and has trained many of the guys I played with in my career.

But Vick has been away from the actual game of football for two years, and those two years weren’t spent working another job, selling insurance or trying out something different in life while trying to get back into the league.

He was in federal prison, and from my point of view, it’s going to take more than a couple of weeks to get back into football shape.

But if or when the NFL makes an official statement that Vick is indeed reinstated, it’s up to him to use his time and dedicate himself to training his body not only for playing football, but also for auditions, because that will be the first step.

I expect Vick to travel to camps or hold private workouts of some sort for teams to come and watch him run, do football-specific drills and throw—because that’s what everyone will want to see.

In this league, no street free agent—and that’s what Vick has become after his prison stay—can sign with a team without being judged by coaches, scouts and, given Vick’s celebrity, most likely members of the front office of the teams that are interested.

Roger Goodell

Sure, there’s still plenty to play out before we can look at Vick as an NFL player again, but the meeting with Goodell is the first, if not the biggest, step in this process to at least get a chance to come back and compete.

Now we can sit back and see who has the need for Vick and who has the courage to take a chance on him and face the public backlash that’s sure to come along with it.

And don’t kid yourselves, because all it takes is one team to sign a player, just as it only takes one person to buy a house that’s been sitting on the market for months.

It will happen, and when it does—when Michael Vick is actually playing in an NFL game—then we can see what’s left of the former superstar.

Until then, we’ll just watch it like a movie and wait for the next interesting turn.

I’m a big fan of the Terrell Suggs deal with the Baltimore Ravens that was announced today, giving the linebacker a contract reportedly worth $63 million.

Our own Andrew Brandt broke down the deal earlier, and for a variety of reasons, I think the Ravens made the right choice in offering the extension.

For starters, the Ravens play a certain brand of football. They win—and have always won—games by playing a certain style of attacking defense that produces turnovers and points, and to be honest, Suggs is the future of this defense.

We all know that Ray Lewis—the unquestioned leader of the franchise—can still play at a high level, but he’s lost a step and will soon have to turn over his leadership role. And what better player to hand it to than Suggs?

In this regard, the Ravens just spent money that will produce a quick return in terms of production and leadership. There was a reason Baltimore let Bart Scott walk and sign with the Jets earlier this offseason, and in my opinion, it was because they were sold on the fact that Suggs—not Scott—was the eventual replacement as the team’s cornerstone.

Because that’s what wins in Baltimore.

Few teams still do it outside of New England, Indianapolis, and Pittsburgh in the AFC, but all of those teams—including the Ravens—have a certain style they play, a certain culture they live, and a certain accountability they place on all of their players.

By signing Suggs to a deal that will most likely keep him in Baltimore for the rest of his career, the Ravens can continue to build their franchise on strong defensive talent from within.

That’s something that gets overlooked in cities like Washington and Dallas, which scour the free-agent market every offseason looking for a quick fix.

Real good move by the Ravens and GM Ozzie Newsome.

I’m not a big fan of the Matt Cassel deal that was announced Tuesday with the Kansas City Chiefs and that— like Suggs’ deal—is reported to be valued at $63 million. I still see it as a leap of faith on the part of the Chiefs.

Now a member of the Chiefs, Cassel is making more money than Tom Brady.

Brandt did an excellent job today breaking down the deal, and despite the fact that all starting quarterbacks in this league are paid top dollar—or should be—I’m wondering if the Chiefs really know what they have.

It’s easy for us to put Cassel into the upper echelon of quarterbacks because he played in a big market last season, was a top story after replacing the face of the league in Tom Brady, and won some games.

But the bottom line is that Cassel didn’t win enough games to get the Patriots into the playoffs. Those are just the facts.

Now Cassel is in K.C. with a new deal that pays him enough money up front that the Chiefs are committed to him for the foreseeable future. And he steps under center without Randy Moss or Wes Welker—and without Tony Gonzalez for that matter.

Yes, I agree that the Chiefs are a in a building process right now. They have one weapon on the outside in wide receiver Dwayne Bowe and are lucky enough to play in the AFC West, which puts them in some matchups that they could win. But how much do we believe in Cassel?

Is he a product of the Patriots’ team or is he the next big thing at the quarterback position like, well, Brady was before Drew Bledsoe went down with an injury all those years ago?

This remains to be seen, but this kind of commitment speaks volumes for the faith that Chiefs GM Scott Pioli and new head coach Todd Haley have in Cassel. They know you need a quarterback to win in this league, and they’ve watched him all offseason, while we haven’t.

For the sake of Chiefs fans, I hope Cassel proves me wrong.

Follow me on Twitter: MattBowen41.

The NFP Fantasy Football Draft Guide is now available for purchase, offering insight and analysis you can only get from people who are connected to the NFL.

I’m starting to question the talk about Warrick Dunn heading to Philly for one reason. Why would the Eagles want him?

For one, it takes away valuable reps in training camp from LeSean McCoy, and this is something the Eagles can’t afford to do. McCoy is here for one reason, and that’s to split carries with Brian Westbrook, keep him healthy and fresh for a tough month of December and a hopeful long run into January—all the way to Miami.

Bringing in Dunn, who doesn’t provide much outside of leadership at this point in his career, just adds congestion to practice time in camp.

Sure, I could see the Eagles bringing in Dunn if they have injuries next month, but outside of that, there’s no reason to prevent McCoy from taking every possible rep until Westbrook is 100 percent and ready to go—because he needs them. Dunn is more of a name than a player these days.

I still think Bubba Franks has some value despite his recent release from the Jets. I thought he would be a key member of the New York offensive attack last season with Brett Favre under center, but the emergence of rookie Dustin Keller put an end to that.

Franks is still a big, physical tight end who could catch on somewhere as a No. 2 on the depth chart—and I still like his ability to get open near the end zone.

If you haven’t read Michael Lombardi’s last two posts on the Super Bowl coaches who are presently out of coaching, you’re missing out. Lombardi takes you where no one else can go, and he also offers up some good resumes for Redskins owner Daniel Snyder—who loves to go after big names when it comes to coaching (I was part of two regimes in Steve Spurrier and Joe Gibbs).

If I’m Jim Zorn, I know that it’s a postseason run or else. There are too many big-time coaches who will be looking for work in 2010, and Snyder will put out offers that might be impossible to refuse.

The Derrick Mason retirement surprises me because of its timing, and whatever the real reason is—which we don’t know yet—it’s a move that leaves the Ravens in some trouble at wide receiver.

Right now, Mark Clayton returns as their No. 1, but outside of that, there isn’t a receiver on that roster who would scare me if I were a defensive coordinator in the AFC.

Is it possible that the Ravens and GM Ozzie Newsome could go after Cardinals WR Anquan Boldin and try to pull off a move this late in the summer? If Mason is indeed retired from the NFL, I make a call out to Arizona and at least check it out.

The Tarvaris Jackson talk that our own Lombardi is hearing and discussed on NFL Network Monday night makes sense if you’re Jackson—who will be pushed down the depth chart if Brett Favre signs. But if I’m a team looking for a QB, Jackson provides backup quality at best.

The Vikings didn’t sign Sage Rosenfels—before the Favre talk started—to sit him behind Jackson. They wouldn’t have paid the money to bring in Rosenfels if they had full confidence in their former starter to begin with.

Jackson can ask for a trade all he wants, but at this point in the summer, who’s going to put together a deal for him? He might just be caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The Bills start camp early, thanks to their appearance in the annual Hall of Fame Game after induction weekend at Canton, Ohio.

I can tell you from my own experience in this game that players can’t stand it for obvious reasons: more chances to get hurt, five preseason games instead of four, another plane trip during camp, and of course, an extra week of practice.

But the Bills and their offensive line can still use the extra time to their advantage. After the turnover they had up front this offseason, the extra practice time on the field might just be a necessity.