Michael Vick's Return to the NFL
Former Atlanta Falcon Quarterback’s Second Chance
On June 26, 1980, Michael Dwayne Vick was born to Brenda Vick and Michael Boddie in Newport News, Virginia. Michael’s athletic talent and lightning speed was evident long before he entered Homer Ferguson High School.
High School Football for Michael Vick
By the time he graduated from Warwick High School in 1998, four years after Virginia’s other football standout, Allen Iverson, left for college at Georgetown University, Michael was considered one of the best quarterbacks in the region.
Following high school, Michael enrolled at Virginia Tech. Postsecondary education took him away from the housing projects that he had grown up in as a young boy. It was a welcomed change, a chance to see another side of life.
Vick’s quick feet and hands didn’t miss a beat during the shift from high school to college. In fact, during the first game Vick quarterbacked for Virginia Tech he scored an impressive three touchdowns in one quarter of play.
It wasn’t long before Vick caught the attention of national media outlets like ESPN The Magazine and The Sporting News. He quarterbacked Virginia Tech to the Sugar Bowl, won the Archie Griffin Award and an ESPY. He also kept in close contact with his family while he looked to the future.
After The Virginia Tech Era
After two years at Virginia Tech, Michael Vick entered the NFL Draft in 2001. His prospects were high. As it turns out, he made history when he was drafted as the overall number one pick by the Atlanta Falcons, making him the first African American quarterback to be drafted at the top spot. If attention had been focused on the young quarterback before, it was glaring now.
Criticisms that Vick ran too much and that he didn’t stay in the pocket enough were heard on sports networks. Yet, that was the way that Michael Vick played the game and it had always worked before. When the Atlanta Falcons made their long awaited playoff appearance in 2004, Vick’s persona shined brightly. He gave back to the community by starting the Michael Vick and the Vick Foundations. He hadn’t forgotten his roots.
There had been no deeply disturbing media reports about his behavior. Troubles that pointed back to Vick beginning in 2004 were incidents directly related to his friends or hangers on. As far as Michael Vick’s professional football career was concerned, the thing that continued to irritate football purists most about him was his glaring ability to run down field. There were times when he put enough yardage under his feet while he carried the football that he could have passed for a running back.
Michael Vick Pleads Guilty to Dog Fighting
Then in August 2007 and after months of investigation, Michael Vick pleaded guilty to dog fighting. The confession followed weeks of media speculation and sportscaster analysis. Viewers struggled to come to terms with video and audio tapings that showed the viciousness of dog fighting, a gruesome sport that is much older than football itself.
Similar to cock fighting, another vicious and illegal sport that is practiced around the world, professional dog fighting rings can generate thousands of dollars a fight. People from a wide spectrum of professions and walks of life in areas like South Africa, Russia, Italy, Argentina, Afghanistan, Japan, America, Australia, Brazil, India and the United Kingdom practice dog fighting.
In some areas the fights draw large crowds similar to how crowds gathered in ancient England and Rome to watch the gladiators battle to the death in walled coliseums. Michael Vick’s admission of guilt and sentencing put the spotlight on a very old sport. The Humane Society reports that approximately 40,000 people participate in the sport in America alone. The Animal Legal and Historical Center reports that dog fighting is a nearly $500 million dollar a year sport.
The Cost of Forgiveness
For his cruelty to animals, Michael was sentenced to serve 23 months in federal prison. Following his guilty plea, he was suspended from the NFL by Commissioner Roger Goodell. The media frenzy quieted after Vick began to serve his prison term. It was as if dogs were no longer being forced to fight anywhere in the world after Michael Vick was sent to federal prison.
Then in May 2009 as Michael Vick neared his release from federal prison in Leavenworth, Kansas, media attention swelled around him again. On July 27, 2009 Commissioner Roger Goodell reinstated Vick to the NFL, a move that infuriated some animal rights activists.
NFL teams have been reluctant to sign Michael Vick, a quarterback who was selected as the number one overall pick in the 2001 NFL draft. The reluctance could be due to Vick’s two year absence from the game, a demanding sport that offers rarely matched rewards while it punishes grown men’s bodies. The reluctance could be due to fear over public perception, a high risk if Michael Vick has not been deemed worthy of forgiveness.
Sources:
“Vick Cleared For Preseason Participation.” July 28, 2009. ESPN. 12 August 2009.
“Michael Vick Biography.” Jock Bio. 12 August 2009.
NFL Quarterback Mike Vick
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