Michael Vick - Days Away From Being Pete Rosed From the NFL
As predicted in my July blog Michael Vick is literally days away from being the biggest waste of god given talent the NFL has ever known. With today’s revelations that Vick will plead guilty to illegal dog fighting, betting and mistreatment of animals it is all but guaranteed that Vick will never play another down in the NFL. In fact, it is being speculated that Commissioner Goodell will announce after the sentencing on Monday that Michael Vick will receive lifetime banishment from the league. The justification is accredited to not only his guilty plea to felony charges but also the fact that he lied while looking at the commissioner directly in his eyes that he was innocent of any illegal activity. Although this is still speculation I believe Vick deserves getting “Pete Rose(d)” from the NFL in consequence of his actions.
Many people may think I am a hard a$$ for making such of statement but I think I am in the majority of former and current professional players. Clearly this belief lies on a couple of facts.
First – Michael Vick has pleaded guilty to felony charges. From now and forever, no matter what Vick does to repair his image he will always have the title of “convicted felon”. As I stated in my July blog Vick would be a public relations nightmare if a team tries to sign him to a contract. The PETA people will be relentless in protesting against not only Vick but the team he signs with and even the NFL for reinstating him. Yes I understand people must be forgiven, but he should of thought of the possible consequences when participating in illegal behavior.
Second – He lied to the commissioner. The NFL is like any other business in the world in the fact that everyone has to answer to a boss. In Vicks case he had to answer to the Commissioner for his actions. No matter the size of contract a player would sign (in Vicks case $130 million) or the control an organization would have on a players future, every NFL player is accountable to the “Commish”. In Vicks case, the moment he told his boss, Commissioner Goodell, that he was innocent and then today pleading guilty to felony charges, Vick lost all respect and trust from his boss. As the acting CEO of the NFL Goodell has the right to hire and fire any employee if they betray his trust. Therefore, even though we may forgive Vick of his mistakes and he may do everything to recompense his actions, the “Commish” of the NFL will never be able to trust Vick in being a capable representative of the league again.
It is clear that Michael Vick has made some serious mistakes and now he is accepting responsibility for them. However, in this case it is a great example to all that when you engage in illegal activities you risk not only millions of dollars but displaying your talents at a level the world will never see again.
August 22nd, 2007 at 11:40 pm
Pleading guilty isn’t admitting guilt. That just means you know that you are in serious trouble and you had better get it on and started. Vick has more to risk by going to trial and losing and gets forced into the guilty plea. I hope he doesn’t get banned because i don’t think killing dogs is that big of a thing in most states. I don’t agree with how they were killed but as of now it is all speculation and hearsay and who’s to say that these guys wouldn’t say whatever about Vick so they could get a more favorable sentence. Happens all the time.