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
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
12:56 am
Yeah Schultz and DELETE THE COMMENTS BY ANYONE WHO’S ID STARTS WITH THE WORD DIZZLE ! Did I spell that right?
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
1:01 am
By the way Dizzy d I might not be a college graduate but can you build a house?
DIZZLE D
May 18th, 2009
1:06 am
SORRY SURFDAWG, THAT COMMENT WAS NOT DIRECTED AT YOU – I HOPE THE ‘DAWG’ MEANS YOU ARE A UGA FAN.
e.hall of fame
May 18th, 2009
1:12 am
Old School here is your honest answer. Before your conviction there are hundred of thousand of people who could be a millwright/industrial mechanice at the level you were at. Before Vick’s conviction there were 32 people in the world who could do what Vick did. So it is a case of supply and demand. The demand for your skill set is easily fill with an overwhelming supply of qualified candidates. The demand for NFL QB’s is high but the supply is low especially with many teams having QB issues.
gp295
May 18th, 2009
1:12 am
It seem funny that the children and grandchildren of people who hung other because of the color of their skin is complaining about the abuse of dogs, they say forget what happen it was a long time ago, it happen. The children and grandchildren of slavery wants to be forgiven but no one else in society deserve this chance. Let see what happen with Mr. American who stole 65 billions dollar and peta and no one else have a problem with it. Because that the amercian ways to steal or take your way up the ladder, screw them every one accept the white man is dumb. In the bible its say dont commit adulety, chipper jone commits A. and is a Atlanta hero race plays a part in every things white do in the south but no one will admit it.
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
1:20 am
That’s cool, and yes I am. Looking forward to this season. I think Cox and the rest of the Dawgs are going to be just fine. Oh and sorry about the house comment. I’m sure you could build a great house. GO DAWGS !
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
1:27 am
GP295 you hit the nail on the head.
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
1:34 am
I think
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
1:48 am
Hey Schultz do I have time to crack a few more jokes on GP295 ’s post before you pull it?
David Smith
May 18th, 2009
1:56 am
Michael Vick made a mistake that he has paid for many times over already. I believe he shouldn’t have done a day of jailtime and that he was used as a pawn for various groups who still want to take away his livelihood. I have moved on from that horrible memory of the 2007 season and, have embraced Matt Ryan as our new leader and wish other fans/protestors would do the same. I wish Vick the best of luck as he tries to resume his career in the NFL and, hope that he uses this second chance to prove the many negative things said by fans/protestors wrong (some people should think before they judge another person).
Skee
May 18th, 2009
1:59 am
It is very interesting to see everyone’s opinion on this issue. It just looks like it’s never gonna die. You can’t fault Vick for the team’s downfall at that time. You see that I said the word TEAM. When you hope and depend on one person to win at a team game, you’re in trouble. I think the organization has learned from the mistakes they’ve made and has the team moving in the right direction. Hopefully, Mike has learned from his mistakes.
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
2:04 am
David you no you are the only one making a serious post at 2 am don’t you.That was well said.
Skee
May 18th, 2009
2:07 am
Was his arrest more about the gambling or the killing of dogs?
ken barrett
May 18th, 2009
2:11 am
A felony and bankrupt.I don’t know many Fortune 500 that would hire that. The guy killed dogs. If you have one, you know what I mean. Alot of us are just trying to make ends meet and they want to pay this guy big $$$. He’s a dime a dozen. Look at his brother. The apples don’t fall far from the tree. I am so tired of the give him a chance BS. You try and smuggle dope too and see what happpens.
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
2:16 am
Boy Ken you don’t forget anything do you.
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
2:20 am
I mean it was brilliant the way you were able to wrap Vicks whole family in there with the apple and the tree analogy. You get a GOLD STAR tonite Ken !!
surfdawg
May 18th, 2009
2:37 am
Alright I have to go to bed but it’s been fun .Remember keep it clean or Schultz will shut this thing down and he means it. He’s not playing around. Now move over Schultz I’m coming to bed.
mark
May 18th, 2009
2:54 am
Let the boy get on with his career, cleaning up job sites.LOL college has served him well. a scholarship is a terrible thing tp waste.
David Smith
May 18th, 2009
4:50 am
Thanks surfdawg (yes i’m still up). I just wish that people would learn to forget and forgive. Yes what mike did was wrong but, he is still paying for a crime when Leonard Little (killed a person while DUI), Adam “Pac Man” Jones (a security chief is paralyzed from the waist down after taking a bullet because of Pac Man tried to “make it rain” in a strip club), and Ray Lewis (and two other men) was involved in a dispute at a night club in Buckhead that left two men dead. Those players are still playing (Pac Man won’t for long if he doesn’t straighten up) but, their offenses are forgiven while Vick continues to be used as a poster child of what’s wrong with sports today.i hope and pray that mike will use his second chance wisely (if he doesn’t THEN he deserves your scorn).
Bewildered
May 18th, 2009
4:53 am
I have an enigma for all of you to ponder. Why do you think opinions and feelings about Michael Vick differ along racial lines. Just give it some thought. In our not too distant past, it was fashionable to believe and to propagate negative misconceptions of one race by the other(black and white). Are we all really disgusted at Vick’s actions or are we all disgusted with Vick? If so, why? How many of us were actually pulling for Vick to fail…and why? Jimmy The Greek once said “blacks lack the necessities to lead”. Therefore, playing QB was out of the question. Why did Warren Moon have to play five years in Canada? My sincerest wish is that we judge based on deeds alone. But our history tells me that is too much to ask.
DLANE
May 18th, 2009
5:29 am
Mike Vick has done his time. Therefore he’s even with the house. If I had one wish. It would be for him to get with a team, that has to play the Falcons. I then would wish for him to have the best game of his career. With Mr.Schultz in attendance of course. He killed some dogs. If any of you are really care that much about dog fighting. Google Floyd Boudreaux. He has been and still is. A major contributor to many local and national political campaigns. But then again. Floyd Boudreaux is a old white guy. Hell he can do whatever he wants to do.
Ryanreallyis#2
May 18th, 2009
6:13 am
Well Jeff, good job! I’m sure this is what the AJC wanted! Will you guys run stories all week long! Probably have a special edition – in full color out on Wed and on Sunday – with special commentary from Neal Boortz! Gotta get them all RILED up now! Will the AJC devote an entire section to Vick for the rest of 2009? Probably, its not like you can get this kind of attention for any current Falcon! I know the AJC is desperate to increase their numbers so why not use the one person who guarantees a spike!
Ryanreallyis#2
May 18th, 2009
6:17 am
On VS2, you can best believe the rapib heartbeating you hear is the haters who know realize the fallacy in their quest to try and keep Vick down….he’s not even 30 yet and OUT. So they realize the worst possible scenario has happened….A GREAT COME BACK. That will pierce them more than if he had been given the TOOLS to succeed before. Now they have to bear witness to him coming back and watching their little Todd’s and Noel’s ask for the new #7 jersey and once again watch him become the NFL’s prime highlight reel. They created a martyr. LOL…haters always do.
bull-gator
May 18th, 2009
7:07 am
Who really cares about this loser? Any NFL executive that takes a chance on this characterless punk is a complete screwball. Hey Al Davis, this could be another great addition to the silver and black. Anybody remember Warren Wells?
Ross
May 18th, 2009
7:20 am
Anyone who would organize and then enjoy a dog-fighting operation is so narcissistic and sociopathic that it’s almost certainly true that recovery, whatever that would mean, is impossible. That person is not going to suddenly realize that the Universe was not created around him. That person is going to use his main skill, manipulation of everyone in sight, to get what he wants. That person is going to be THAT person for the rest of his life. A crime this repugnant should get a lifetime ban from the NFL. Lacking that, I literally cannot wait to see the sh*tstorm that is about to beset MV7’s vacuum empty head and coal black heart. Let the flogging begin – and consider what sort of diseased enterprise is modern pro sports. We should not be having this conversation.
-drl
null
May 18th, 2009
7:25 am
Hey Vick….training is easy. When the buzzer goes off, dump the fries under the heat lamp, put a little salt on them, and wait for your manager to tell you what size somebody ordered.
Ken
May 18th, 2009
7:50 am
I’m in Atlanta now, but I used to live and work in Newport News, VA in 2006 where I volunteered at the local humane society. I’ve seen those fight dogs victims come into the shelters. These sweet mixed breed pit bulls were terrified and trembling with their faces and bodies all cut up and scarred.
Sadly these dogs had to be put down despite the fact that they were very docile as any dog given the tag of “fight dog” could not be adopted.
My eyes tear up as I remember how horrible that situation was. Until you have seen it first hand, you really cant comprehend what a horror the whole thing is.
Vick is a monster. He may have served some prison time but he’s nothing but a cold blooded killer.
Do you want your children to admire someone like that ? Vick needs to go away forever.
Scott
May 18th, 2009
7:53 am
I just think its so cool that VS2 discovered little smiley faces for his post! He probably looked for a different color but couldn’t find it!
al sharptongue
May 18th, 2009
8:00 am
Jeff you should not delete the so called racists threads. these people are expressing their freedom of speech and though we may not like it. I think it lets us know what people are really thinking and howuthey frame a particular issue..They are speaking from the heart and being honest so you may not like it but it is the way they see life and these people do exist so let them be.
jakedsnake
May 18th, 2009
8:12 am
Vick Supporter/Athletic Supporter, or whatever you call yourself. Regarding Roddy White. It’s called TOUCH. Something Vick couldn’t put on a football if his life depended on it. Not to mention that the ball spins backwards from a lefty. Vick might get another chance but he’ll blow that too. His sandlot ball style has no place in the NFL.
jakedsnake
May 18th, 2009
8:15 am
There’s always people a lot worse than Vick though…. Bob from Winder needs to be watched carefully. The idot even spells his first name backwards. He spells it Bob rather than Bob…..
Zizzle
May 18th, 2009
8:30 am
I hope Peter from family guy doesn’t bring Vick over for dinner! Brian will have to bolt!
Rico
May 18th, 2009
8:32 am
You know, many of these same people whom are scorning Vick for trying to return to the NFL are nothing but Hypocrits. They too have done things wrong in their life and expects others to give them a chance. The majority of these people responding negatively to Vick in my opinion have never liked him even before his troubles.
Sometimes we have to let go and see what happens next. Be careful how you treat Vick and others like him because you might be the next one to be judged.
Rico Niles (Kissimmee, FL)
May 18th, 2009
8:36 am
Get Better Michael!
Mac
May 18th, 2009
8:38 am
The Texans gave a big contract to a big free agent QB nobody else wanted, maybe they’d like the Vick-Schaub drama, too.
Mac
May 18th, 2009
8:38 am
that should have been “bad free agent QB.” Monday morning.
Joey Porter
May 18th, 2009
8:39 am
damn ajc still talking about vick? This is why he will be back. Besides who said going to prison stops you from playing in the league?
Ahmad bradshaw, donte stallworth, and adrian mcpherson are two examples of why rodger has to lift the suspension
How many articles have been written about him?
Vick will be fine now all you grown men need to stop talking about another grown man’s business.
Come on don’t you folks have pitiful and miserable lives to attend to.
If folks do not gripe about being screwed by both parties what makes you think they will gripe about mike vick.
At least vick didn’t offer a reward for the ears of a human being.
he bought the dogs he sure as well can do what he wants with them. It’s his property.
Enough of the closet communists and their communist agenda. MV7 is entitled life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness because this is what all real americans believe.
You communists can go hang in cuba.
Sun Tzu 7
May 18th, 2009
8:57 am
My concern with Vick is his understanding of what the situation is going to be.
Vick’s #1 concern is going to be making $$$ because he’s going to be several million in debt and I don’t think his earning potential is anywhere close to what he thinks it is. For example in his bankruptcy hearing didn’t they propose he was going to make several million a year from the NFL?
I think his NFL situation will be closer to Ricky Williams than people think. I believe Ricky is making close to the minimum and I think Vick will be also.
Let’s aslo keep one things in mind. He’s going to be on probabtion as a federal felon so the rules are going to be different for him. If he fails a drug test he doesn’t just get suspended… he may have to go back to prision. If he gets a DUI he may go back to prison.
Any team is going to take this into consideration so his contract isn’t going to be loaded and will probably be close to the vet minimum with lots of incentives.
I hope he does turn it around but it’s not going to be easy for him…. not at all.
eBuzz
May 18th, 2009
9:00 am
The Michael Vick saga has many facets riveting to both sides. Even prior to his conviction, he was controversial, vilified or adored, and a box office draw regardless. And, it is the latter that may ultimately play a role in the NFL and Roger Goodell’s decision on reinstatement, because when the chips are down, it’s all about money, and the NFL has a steady history of hypocrisy. They will rapidly ban those that dare gamble, such as Art Schlicter, Alex Karras, and Paul Hornung “to protect the integrity of the game”, but anything else is totally acceptable, murder, drugs, drugs, drugs, (did I mention drugs?), rape, robbery, as long as the perpetrators generate revenue. The NFL, like the other professional and college sports, simply has no moral compass, and as such they are far more despicable than the corporate America that is being bashed by the media and current government as being “greedy”. At least most of corporate America still rapidly addresses grievous and illegal transgressions by dismissal, but not the sports entities. Talk about runaway priorities.
What!!!
May 18th, 2009
9:04 am
Mike Vick a QB!! HA! HA! HA! I just love how idiots try to defend this guy! He let his team and fans down himself, no one forced him to do anything unlawful! Get real people, Vick screwed you over and you want to set back and place the blam on his coaches, the owner, blaa blaa blaa!! I’m ashamed that I defended this thug the last 3 years he was a Falcon and has to eat alot of crow when he walked into that court room amd con”vick”ed. I hope he never steps on an NFL field again. And I’m 100% sure he want!!
falconman
May 18th, 2009
9:07 am
I’d like to send out a big THANK-YOU to the former Falcon’s season ticket holder for giving up his seats. After Arthur Blank hired Thomas Dimitroff, I decided the time was right to buy tickets. We had a blast last year watching the Birds go 7-1 (at home) from the 40 yard line. And take it from me, the fans at the GA Dome did not miss Michael Vick at all.
Former Season Ticket Holder
May 18th, 2009
9:10 am
LOL @ “What!!!”…yeah he “want”…exactly!! LMAO The inbreds are hilarious! Guess what haters! You never figured on the Come back!! You created a martyr! Kudos! Now get ready to hear the complaints of how the national sports media pays the Falcons little to NO attention again….but what you SHOULD complain about is how your local paper will give more coverage to the FORMER QB than the present one! Your local AJC newsletter will devote as much coverate to Mike Vick as ESPN. Who can blame them though? He sells!
Former Season Ticket Holder
May 18th, 2009
9:12 am
Falconman the TV didn’t lie…neither does the official attendance count from ESPN. The GA Dome missed on average 9,000 people who USED to be there. LOL! I know you wished such statistics weren’t available but guess what! THEY DO! Oh…and guess which playoff game had the lowest viewing since 1999? Yep! The Falcons road loss to the Cardinals! Apparently, the “hunt” is on for a reason! Operators are STANDING BY and FALLING ASLEEP!
John Hancock
May 18th, 2009
9:13 am
I think Vick should be allowed back in the NFL. However, I can assure you that he isn’t the least bit remorseful about his dog fighting activities; he only regrets getting caught. Dog fighting is part of his culture, it’s part of who he is, and for him there’s nothing wrong with it.
michaelgee
May 18th, 2009
9:19 am
for Vick Supporter 2, it isn’t about HATE, it is about the disappointment that an entire City got for supporting someone who doesn’t have RESPECT for anybody or anything. Your guy is NOT the guy we all thought he was, your guy is a deeply troubled man who fails to make rational decisions.
You can call it HATE if that makes you feel better but it really is about the FAILURE of Michael Vick as an adult MAN.
JG
May 18th, 2009
9:31 am
Those of you calling Michael Vick a worthless “thug”, stupid, etc….are just as bad as him in my opinion. Unless Vick has stolen your dog and killed it, I imagine you’ve never met him.
You probably also don’t live in Newport News and have children who benefitted from Vick’s contributions to the Boys and Girls clubs.
It’s like anything else. If you have an agenda of hate, you’ll only look at the negatives. For those who are fair and balanced, and want to see it, you’ll find that Vick was giving, his teammates really loved him, and he was popular with them and children in the community.
What he did was horrible and surprising to those who saw the good in him before.
I’m not saying he should be GIVEN anything…he has to EARN back respect and a measure of dignity.
The ones not willing to give him a CHANCE are the ones who are WRONG NOW!!
PMC
May 18th, 2009
9:49 am
The question here is why? Why are people STILL up in arms about it. They got justice. He paid an incredibly steep fine and he did time in prison with all that goes along with that. Falcons fans have moved on. Dog fighting got a face and many in that illicit industry have been incarcerated. Why is Habitat for Humanity turning him down? Really? Charities are turning him away? Ok, he committed a crime and he did the time… now let him come back and try to redeem himself. Who honestly has the time to waste “protesting” Michael Vick… Really? Seriously… NOW? People are STILL upset?
PMC
May 18th, 2009
9:50 am
If he wants to come out and do good in the community let him… even if it is for selfish reasons to try and get back in the good graces of the NFL… Hopefully he will continue to try and do good things in the community. I don’t understand the hatred now. It’s not like he got away with anything.
Jeff Schultz
May 18th, 2009
9:56 am
EddieDawg: I don’t think supporting Vick makes you insane. Like I said, everybody has a right to support or not support MV.
Mr Obvious: It’s not just intelligence. It’s maturity and work ethic and coolness. Trust me, I’ve covered a lot of QBs who weren’t very “smart” but they were successful because they studied and worked hard.
Blank: Won’t happen.
Joey: Communists?
FormerSeasonTix: No question the team lost season tickets when Vick went to prison. But I also think if the team continues to win (as it did last year), crowds will comeback. Ultimately, it’s about winning.
Dr Soul
May 18th, 2009
9:56 am
I think that it is scary that ‘Bob from Winder’ is the role model for raising a kid..!!!! to the ‘former ticket holder’, good for you, as no team deserves a ‘fair weather fan’… to these ‘Monday morning psychologists’ who have diagnosed Vick as sick, troubled, etc.., you need to find a new profession or look deeply in the mirror of your own soul… JG got it right and I doubt anyone on here would survive a glass house.. there are some very sad and judgemental people, who at the same time call themselves fans, citizens, christians, etc… how easy to criticize someone when you have some very basic and misguided assumptions and probably cannot even delve deeply into the ENTIRE situation to understand the issues… I pray that none of you are ever held in total judgement forever for your worst mistake.. really pathetic on some of the blogs here..