Vick may not be ready for what awaits him
Michael Vick looked grim when he began his prison sentence in November of 2007. Given circumstances, he may not look much better when he gets out. (AP photo.)
Sometime in the next few days, Michael Vick will step outside of prison walls and straight into hell.
He will have supporters. That’s fine. The man has paid his debt to society, slept on a cot in Leavenworth for several months and took a bigger hit to his status, his reputation and his income than possibly any athlete in history.
He will have detractors. That’s also fine. Because for as much as Vick has every right to resume his football career, you have every right not to like it. It’s why so many NFL executives are sitting alone in the dark today, weighing that risk-reward thing.
But Vick’s ability to return to football will be based on something far more impactful than the strength of his legs or arm. A New York Times story this week included a common but equally bizarre assumption: “Vick may still be better than half the quarterbacks on NFL rosters.”
If this were all about skill, Vick never would have been in jail to begin with.
This isn’t 2001, when he was embraced by a punch-drunk franchise in a lampooned sports city. This isn’t 2004 when he brought the Falcons to within a victory of the Super Bowl and was given a $130 million contract.
In 2009, Michael Vick is not a hero or a marketing centerpiece. He is an ex-felon and a marketing pariah.
He will be vilified by half the fans in the city he plays in and most fans everywhere else. He will have every move scrutinized by a public and media ready to pounce and mock and an NFL commissioner, Roger Goodell, who didn’t like being lied to.
He will be in a locker room where most teammates will say the right thing, something like, “He’s served his time. If he can help us win, I support him.”
But those same players will then step outside and see the picket signs, the news crews, the elephants, the 17 clowns trying stuff themselves into a Volkswagen and maybe that same plane that two years ago circled the field at Falcons’ training camp with a banner reading: “New Team Name: Dog Killers.” And they will think, “I don’t need this. We don’t need this. I wish he was someplace else.”
The success of any pro athlete, particularly an NFL quarterback, is not fast legs or a strong arm. It’s all of those things Vick failed miserably at: leadership, work ethic, resolve, toughness, maturity, teamwork, character.
Michael Vick’s failure as a quarterback had very little to do with his passing accuracy. It had almost everything to do with the intangibles. Vick must come by them in the worst of circumstances. He must come by them when our last memory of him was looking feeble in a season-ending game at Philadelphia, accepting no responsibility for going 2-6 down the stretch and losing 14 of his last 24 starts. He once reacted to the pressure by giving the middle finger to fans at a home game. He all but threw his coach, Jim Mora, and teammates under the bus after that loss to the Eagles. Then he began his off-season with a suspicious water bottle at the Miami airport, was eventually let go by police and rather than breathe a thankful sigh of relief, he suggested maybe somebody was trying to frame him.
Leaders don’t do that. Any of that.
If Vick can return, if he can endure the taunts and grow up and flash any semblance of the magic he once showed us on a football field, this comeback story will top all others.
Unfortunately, the backdrop suggests otherwise. And at least in prison, there has been solitude.
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451 comments Add your comment
James
May 17th, 2009
10:15 pm
I THINK VICK SHOULD GO INTO HORSE RACING, OR BRONCO RIDING, TO
LAWFULLY INFLICT PAIN TO ANIMALS.
dixiewife44
May 17th, 2009
10:16 pm
First and foremost, he needs to GROW UP. Secondly, he’s a convicted felon. No matter what the crime was, he is and always will be a con. I personally wouldn’t support his being back in the NFL if my life depended on it, but thats my opinion.
JD
May 17th, 2009
10:17 pm
if you can’t keep this civil I’ll simply close the comments section. It’s up to you.
haha, JS is going elementary school teacher on us. Makes me wonder what some people are posting. I’m not too sure how race started factoring into this whole fiasco.
Boots
May 17th, 2009
10:19 pm
Michael Vick and I have one thing in common: my golf game has not improved over time and he didn’t improve as a quarterback over time.
He reached the apex of his career early on and went downhill simply because he could not master the intellectual components of the came and was not motivated to put forth the effort necessary to excel.
Rabiddawg
May 17th, 2009
10:23 pm
In the NFL as well as in life. You either get it or you don’t. Vick just didn’t get it. Now having said that, absolutely he deserves another shot at playing. I hope that he does well for himself. He served his time and that should be that. People let the hate go.
jakedsnake
May 17th, 2009
10:23 pm
Leave it to the New York Times to get it wrong. Vick wasn’t better than half of the NFL quarterbacks when he was a starter. He might be gifted with speed and arm strenght, but not quarterbacking skills. Does anyone think it’s an accident that Roddy White began to come into his own AFTER Vick was gone? I’d love to see the Falcons get something in return for him after all he’s put them through, but I don’t think even crazy Al Davis is stupid enough to take on this cancer.
jacketbacker
May 17th, 2009
10:29 pm
keep him in prison….that’s where he belongs….
VICK SUPPORTER 2
May 17th, 2009
10:33 pm
TRIVIA QUESTION:
1. HOW MANY PLAYOFF WINS DO THE FALCONS HAVE SINCE 1999?
2. WHO WAS THE WINNING QB IN THOSE WINS?
WE ARE TALKING 10-SEASONS FOLKS. SURELY A GLORIFIED QUARTERBACK COULD NOT POSSIBLY HAVE ALL THE PLAYOFF WINS FOR THE LAST 10 YEARS
GO FALCONS!
VICK SUPPORTER 2
May 17th, 2009
10:36 pm
THE NEW YORK TIMES ROCKS
THE TRUTH HURTS
VICK SUPPORTER 2
May 17th, 2009
10:40 pm
ANY NEWS ON THE PROSECUTION FOR THOSE 21 DEAD “POLO” HORSES? OH THAT’S RIGHT HE ATE MAYONAISE
CAN I SAY THAT ON HERE?
Coon-Dawg
May 17th, 2009
10:54 pm
Why are we still talking about this “joke of a quarterback, joke of a person” ? … Go Ice Go !!!
alan
May 17th, 2009
10:55 pm
Okay. What Michael Vicks did was wrong, immoral, and illegal. I own a dog. He deserved what he – jail time, financial loss, etc. But, where is the forgiveness? The bible states “blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” We don’t extend mercy to people because they deserve it. But we extend mercy because the time will come when we will need mercy. Why not give the man a second chance?
Finally, suppose God have the same attitude towards forgiving us like most people have toward Michael Vicks? As heard as it may seem for a large number of people leaving comments, the day will come when you will surely need mercy.
Vick Supporter
May 17th, 2009
10:56 pm
You people keep saying that Roddy got better when Vick left,lol. I f any of you watched the games, Roddy dropped so many passes that were right in his hands, also, Roddy himself ADMITTED that he didn’t know how to play WR in the NFL at the time, or how to prepare. He learned this from Petrino, of all people. Roddy is good now because RODDY DEVELOPED AS A WR. I gurantee, you will turn on Roddy again, yet you’ll never blame Ryan for anything and we all know why. I saw no one saying ANYTHING about his arm looking like a noodle in week 10,lol. Redemption is near…..ON WEDNESDAY,LMAO.
Vick 09
Ted Striker
May 17th, 2009
10:57 pm
Yo, Dixiewife44 — 1) He needs to “grow up”? That might make sense if you were talking about a guy coming out of juvie. 2) “He will always be a con.” Clearly you never watched Rockford Files; he’ll actually be an ex-con. 3) “I personally wouldn’t support him being back in the NFL if my life depended on it.” Yeah, yeah, whatever. Whenever someone says something flighty about a trivial topic and they add “if their life depended on it” then they’ve never been in a situation that their life depended on. 4) I’ve always wondered who the mayo-sandwich eatin’ bambi blaster was married to.
eddiedawg
May 17th, 2009
11:02 pm
90% of the people on this blog are Vick fans.
I am proud to represent the sane 10%-who are FALCONS fans-and we could care less what color the QB is-just win baby.
GO FALCONS
TO GREEDY
May 17th, 2009
11:04 pm
No one is praying for his downfall. That is just the Obama mentality. Having a chip on your shoulder and saying everyone hates you. Always find someone to hate or hold a grudge against than lash out your. vegenance
Vick Supporter
May 17th, 2009
11:05 pm
Redemtion is near…………
thunderlee
May 17th, 2009
11:06 pm
If God can forgive us, why can’t we forgive one and other. I am sure he has learnt a lot from this costly mistake.
Vick Supporter
May 17th, 2009
11:06 pm
Wow…the Falcon fans talk more about The Great Mike Vick than they do their own noodle armed QB
VICK SUPPORTER 2
May 17th, 2009
11:07 pm
I WAS WATCHING DRAFT DAY AND I ALMOST FELL ON THE FLOOR LAUGHING WHEN THE HOST ASKED RON JAWORSKI (GREAT DROP BACK PASSER) ABOUT THE RETURN OF MIKE VICK.
RON JAWORSKI SAID THAT MIKE VICK TOOK THE WHOLE CITY OF ATLANTA AND PUT THE TEAM ON HIS BACK & PUT THEM ON THE MAP – THE SAME THING I HAVE BEEN SAYING FOR THE LONGEST!
I GUESS YOU WILL MAKE UP EXCUSES ABOUT RON JAWORSKI (PAID ANALYST) NOT KNOWING WHAT HE IS TALKING ABOUT TOO
GO MATTY ICE – GET A PLAYOFF WIN BEFORE YOU GET OLD
JJB
May 17th, 2009
11:09 pm
So what is it going to be Vick Supporter. On some blogs you state that you have nothing against Ryan, he is a good quarterback but Vick is your man. And then we get the above “noodle armed” comment. Sounds like you got something against Ryan after all. Could it be his race?
Vick Supporter
May 17th, 2009
11:18 pm
JJB….are you saying that it wasn’t? He was damn near throwing jump passes at times. I guess that’s the “touch” that Ryan has. And yes, I think Ryan is a good QB, but he’ll never be great….at least not playing for this franchise.
Vick 09
Dr Soul
May 17th, 2009
11:20 pm
We have Presidents who lie on a consistent basis and some who will send people into a war zone that will never be won, but will sacrifice a human being much like an animal… Vick certainly made his own bed of problems and at the same time has paid in many ways for his societal sins… if he goes forward leading a life that precludes criminal or repulsive societal activity, then I do not think that there is one human who has a right to be critical of him again.. he has almost paid what the legal system prescribes in personal confinement and will still have another 3 years to show a different person… I think that he will probably surprise most people as he is not a bad person; maybe misguided in some ways and has walked a path that many before him have made and survived… give him room to decide how he wants to live the rest of his life and what contribution he will make to society…. what a judgemental society we have become..!!! sit back, close your eyes and put yourself or one of your family in his place and truly think it through… and for the scribes that want to crucify him further for press time and transparent validation, find something to write about that is informative and rewarding… don’t continue to fall under the soles of the old Vick…!!!!
Vick Supporter
May 17th, 2009
11:30 pm
Mike Vick. 2009 NFL MVP
Harper Collins
May 17th, 2009
11:35 pm
Mike Vick’s Life Story: From Teammate to INMATE
surfdawg
May 17th, 2009
11:39 pm
Vick supporter 2 You do know this was Matt’s first year right? He made it to the playoffs, your boy Mike did’nt. So bark at that.
Dr Soul
May 17th, 2009
11:39 pm
Life Story???? does not end with inmate… and, there have been a lot of people let back into and/or allowed to stay in the NFL that there are more reasons to keep out than Vick….he will be TEAMMATE again..!!!
VICK SUPPORTER 2
May 17th, 2009
11:44 pm
JOE FLACCO’S 1ST SEASON = 2-PLAYOFF WINS & CHAMPIONSHIP GAME…..
ANYMORE EXCUSES FOLKS
surfdawg
May 17th, 2009
11:49 pm
What did Vick do his first year? So by your own account that makes Matt Ryan and Joe Flaco better than Vick.
Dr. Warren
May 17th, 2009
11:50 pm
I agree with everything you say but that Vick lacked toughness and resolve. The guy took some hits that would have killed an ordinary guy but kept going. He also willed the Falcons to victory himself on more than several occasions. Good guy? No. Leader? No. But let’s be precise with the adjectives, Jeff.
VICK SUPPORTER 2
May 18th, 2009
12:00 am
JOE FLACCO = 2-PLAYOFF WINS & CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
MIKE VICK – 2-PLAYOFF WINS & CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
MATT RYAN “LEAF” = 0-PLAYOFF WINS & 0-CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES
HAVE A NICE DAY
Shelt99
May 18th, 2009
12:01 am
A part of living is making mistakes. Many people and professional sportmen have done far worse things than Vick. He is human and he has paid for his mistakes. Lets not forget we had a president that did coke.
Dr Soul
May 18th, 2009
12:04 am
Ryan will fare well in the years to come….don’t throw him under the
train just yet…!!!
Michelle
May 18th, 2009
12:07 am
As long as Mike Vick has GOD in his life he’ll do just fine….Prayerfully he’ll be able to return to playing with the NFL and all his wrong doings will be behind him………There is too much going on in the world to concentrate on what he’s going to do….he made a bad decision as we all have; let’s move on people, keep him in prayer – LET IT GO….
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
12:09 am
So Vick supporter 2 You refuse to compare apples to apples when you are called out and start repeating yourself instead. That tells me all I need to know about you.
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
12:14 am
I was a huge Vick fan but he let me down when he put himself first over the falcons and the fans. Fool me once shame on you . Fool me twice shame on me.
lololo
May 18th, 2009
12:16 am
Ray Lewis is the poster child of the NFL.. Leonard Little still draws a paycheck. Christian Peter was signed by an NFL team. Lawrence Phillips got paid by someone. I could go on and on and on. Yet, Michael Vick is a villian and people have decided that he should never be allowed to earn a living again. There is just something very wrong with that reasoning, I’m sorry..
Curious George
May 18th, 2009
12:23 am
Why are so few of the people on here who support Mr. Vick able to write, spell or communicate in English?
Would any of these people support Vick after the crimes he has committed if he were not famous and/or (formerly) rich?
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
12:28 am
Whats your point curious george?
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
12:29 am
If Vick was’nt famous we would have never heard about it.
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
12:36 am
lololo I think he has a right to make a living and play in the NFL. I far as I’m concerned he paid his debt to society.I just don’t want him with the Falcons. I think the quarterback we have now will be a much better all around quarterback than Vick would have ever been.
Vick Supporter
May 18th, 2009
12:37 am
http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-game-highlights/09000d5d80165a6f/Falcons-21-Chargers-20
http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-game-highlights/09000d5d801b7e24/Falcons-47-Rams-17
http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-game-highlights/09000d5d8018a170/Falcons-41-Broncos-28
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
12:38 am
Vick suppoerter 2 do you have anything to repeat at this time?
DIZZLE D
May 18th, 2009
12:42 am
OKAY EVERYONE, JUST A FEW YEARS AGO KOBE WAS ACCUSED OF RAPING A HOTEL EMPLOYEE – HE’S FORGIVEN – RAY LEWIS [MURDERER?] – FORGIVEN – SAME THING FOR MV AS SOON AS HE HAS THAT 1ST GREAT GAME. OH BY THE WAY JS, PLEASE DELETE THE COMMENTS BY PEOPLE WHO CAN’T SPELL, PLEASE!
Nique
May 18th, 2009
12:44 am
Ppl forget Vick NEVER HAD ANY RECIEVERS! White SUCKED while Vick was here, Jenkins made his 1st real strides last year & Alge was his ONLY relaible target, until Vick’s last year when he really went down heel, which is why he wasn’t resigned the year after! The falcons were in the top 5 in the league in drops 2 of his lat 3 years as QB, so when ppl look at his completion percentage that should be factored in as well, as well as the fact that White & Jenkins got NO seperating their 1st few years & as stated about when they did, it was a toss up as to if they were gonna catch the ball. Robiski wasn’t here yet & he’s done wonders with both guys. All that is to say, Vick was a much better QB, not just runner, than ppl give him credit for, now with that said, he was still to inaccurate & needs to really focus on that aspect & reading Defenses better in his return attempt, but hell, 90 % of the Qb’s in the leauge have those same things that they need 2 focus on. Poiint blank, Vick is a STARTING QB in this league & hopefully someone will stick their neck out & allow him to reward them for it. This Vick is gonna be a student of the game & apply himself like never b4, which is unfortunate that it took this, but it’s a reality & a necessity now, watch & see! I hope he goes to S.F.
Vick Supporter
May 18th, 2009
12:47 am
Right on, Nique
Mr. Obvious
May 18th, 2009
12:47 am
Vick lacks the basic human intelligence to play QB in the NFL. Sadly, though, Vick is still marginally more intelligent than the majority of his “supporters.”
DIZZLE D
May 18th, 2009
12:50 am
BY THE WAY, I’M NOT A MV FAN – HE CAN PLAY IN THE NFL – NOT IN THE ATL – LET HIM BE SOMEONE ELSE’S PROJECT. ALSO, COULD YOU DELETE THE BAD GRAMMER COMMENTS, TOO?
Blank sux
May 18th, 2009
12:51 am
Anybody else get the feeling that somehow that snake Blank is trying to maneuver Vick into the Falcons game plans.
Najeh Davenpoop
May 18th, 2009
12:53 am
Do y’all really, really think successful NFL QBs have above-average intelligence?
Like, the same way doctors, lawyers, engineers, pilots, and astronauts have above-average intelligence?
Really?
Playing QB is about instinct. Seeing that the defense is showing blitz and audibling to a hot route is something an eight-year-old can do. I’m as big a Vick supporter as anyone and I fully agree with those of you who say he’s a complete idiot. But you’re a damn fool too if you think the likes of Brett Favre have any more real-world intelligence than him.
And you’re also a damn fool if you think anyone is giving up anything, even a 7th-rounder, in exchange for Vick with that contract on the books and his playing status up in the air. Dimitroff would have to be a miracle worker to find a way to get something in return for him. Most likely he gets cut and signs with someone else as a free agent.