May 20: Michael Vick Won’t Be a St. Louis Ram
As the Michael Vick controversy begins to reignite and take off, let’s clear one thing up right away, and in no uncertain terms:
Vick will not be a St. Louis Ram.
Forget it, not going to happen, put it out of your mind.
If/when he’s reinstated by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, Vick won’t be welcomed back by the Atlanta Falcons. But the Falcons control the quarterback’s rights, and will try to trade those rights to another NFL team.
Multiple league sources tell me that the Falcons called the Rams twice to gauge their interest in Vick, and in both instances the Rams told the Falcons that they had no interest.
And a source with the Rams organization confirms that. Moreover, I am told that the Rams would not be interested in Vick as a free agent even if the Falcons release him.
Why?
Vick isn’t a West Coast offense QB.
The Rams don’t want the distractions.
They don’t think he’s worth the trouble.
The owner of the team, Chip Rosenbloom, is said to be emphatically opposed to the idea — not that anyone at Rams Park is pushing for Vick, because they are not. But anyone who has seen Rosenbloom’s excellent “Shiloh” trilogy would understand Chip’s feelings on Vick.
Meanwhile the debate continues on Vick.
My three quick comments on the Vick situation:
1. I don’t like Vick or what he did in funding a dog-fighting ring and engaging in despicable acts of animal cruelty, but he should be allowed to play football again, because that’s his profession. Vick spent 21 months in a federal prison and will spend the next two months in home confinement. He’s lost millions of dollars. His reputation is ruined. He paid a price for what he did, and wasn’t given any special treatment. When people get out of jail, they have the right to seek a job. Vick is no different. If someone wants to give him a football job, then so be it. That’s the way we do things in America.
2. I don’t think Vick is a very good quarterback. The Falcons were 9-15 in his last 24 games and fell apart down the stretch in 2006. His accuracy was erratic. His fundamentals as a QB were sloppy. He peaked in 2004, and never played at that level again. That was a long time ago. He can still run, and is probably still a top athlete. But he never developed into a smooth QB. Don’t see why he would do that now. And he wasn’t much of a leader or a teammate.
3. A team that signs Vick will also bring in a circus, and controversy, and it will be a mess. TV cameras all over the place. Questions and questions and questions being pitched to teammates concerning Vick’s past. Protests from animal-rights activists at the team facility and stadium. A potential loss of commercial sponsors for the franchise. Fans who will give up their tickets in protest. Distractions galore. A never-ending story about one guy … and that takes away from the team concept. How many teams will want to bring all of that into their house?
Vick should get another opportunity to be eligible to play.
But no team is under obligation to sign him.
And if Vick doesn’t get an opportunity with an NFL team, then that’s just the way it is. He put himself in this position.
-Bernie
Bernie, there is one thing that keeps creeping into my mind. That is, it is a privilege to play in the NFL, or any other major sport. With that said I don’t think he should enjoy that privilege anymore. He may have paid the debt given to him by the courts, but I think as a society we shouldn’t reward him because he can still run fast.
For all of the comparisons with Leonard Little, that was a stupid accident. Most certainly it was avoidable, but it was still an accident. Vick planned to do what he did. He had an ultimate goal in mind. Two different situations.
Thanks.
I agree… but I’m still going to wear my Virginia Tech #7 Vick jersey whenever I feel safe doing so (nothing like riding the fence).
As a person who has been given a second chance in life (no legal troubles, but personal battles, I’ll let you read between the lines) I find not supporting a favorite player difficult to do. He made a mistake. Yes, a big, egregious, sick mistake. But so did I, and here I sit making a solid contribution to society (I did learn from my mistakes).
As for this not being about Little, I agree, but at the same time, what else do we have to measure this against? Little is the closest person in the league who has gone through something this horrible. Adam Jones isn’t close, T.O. not in the same breath (that’s an odd one), Rae Carruth…???
And that’s about where I think Vick stands - right between Carruth and Little. Carruth intentionally took a human life (at least helped), Little was “accidental” (although drinking and driving is no accident), and Vick is a weird combo of both - intentional harm against an animal. Not as severe as intentionally taking a human life, and certainly not accidental. All three, though, are a result of pee-poor judgment.
Count me in the minority who will still cheer for him when/if he gets reinstated and steps back on the field to play.
But if he screws up his second chance… as us Pollacks like to say, toughskie sh!tzkie.
ExistentialHumanist said,”Vick, dog abuser/killer, would be playing football in PETA’s backyard.”
Since 1998, PETA has opted to “put down” 21,339 adoptable dogs, cats, puppies, and kittens instead of finding homes for them. During all of 2008, PETA found adoptive homes for just seven pets. Just seven animals — out of the 2,216 it took in. PETA just broke its own record.
Who cares about PETA when they are far worse than Vick could ever be?
Just to see what slambino might been talking about…
I just Googled “peta statistics” and came across this article.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/06/23/EDG11DC9BK1.DTL
excerpt
The Center for Consumer Freedom, which represents the food industry, a frequent target of PETA campaigns, released data filed by PETA with the state of Virginia that shows PETA has killed more than 10,000 animals from 1998 to 2003. “In 2003, PETA euthanized over 85 percent of the animals it took in,” said a press release from the lobby, “finding adoptive homes for just 14 percent. By comparison, the Norfolk (Va.) SPCA found adoptive homes for 73 percent of its animals and Virginia Beach SPCA adopted out 66 percent.”
People will say “at least those that were put down had a better chance than with Vick”. Maybe. Maybe not.
Marc Bulger can’t take the heat when Kurt Warner is in town. Bulger would fold like a old dollar bill with any kind of viable QB behind him. Anyone who thinks that Michael Vick will not be a success in the NFL because of his law enforcement issues is living in another decade. THIS IS THE SECOND QB THAT CUD DO BETTER THAN BULGER THAT THE RAMS ARE PASSING UP ON. Sanchez was the first and now Vick. I am not sure where Bernie and the rest of you have been the past three or four years. Bulger has been horrid. There is no way that Vick or Sanchez would be worse. And even if they were, at least we would have hope that they come around. With Bulger, it is over week one.
The Leonard Little comparison is invalid on its face.
There is a little matter called INTENT. While it unfortunate that people in the United States are permitted to consume too much alcohol and drive cars, (since a breathalyzer ignition lock costs about $14 a copy), the fact remains that Mr. Little and other unfortunates like him had their judgment impaired by a drug and relying on that impaired judgment resulted in trajedy. But no matter how sad the outcome, Leonard Little didn’t say to himself, “Hey! I think I’ll get toasted and then go look for someone to gun down with my car!” In other words, there was no INTENT. Just negligence. Not murder.
Mike Vick, on the other hand, knew exactly what he was doing and his actions were intentional.
I have a difficult time believing that the Leonard Little incident doesn’t apply. If you decide to lower your standards, by marching L.L. or Vick out there, and accept a players’ or a teams actions thats up to you. But I’ve always thought that while Leonard handled the situation as well as it could be handled, the least the Rams could have done was to release or trade him instead of marching him out there celebrating his successes in the face of the poor Guttweiler family that was left with a hole in their family. Of course people have the right to earn a living in the career they’ve chosen but I refuse to support them. Now, maybe this isn’t the place for thoughtful debate in this testosterone laden blog but, I for one try to use a little perspective and demand more. One more thing, Vick is poison and mentally ill just like the people who think his behavior is acceptable. But that’s just me…..
I usually don’t post here, but this article left me less informed than before I read it. No, I haven’t seen “Rosenbloom’s excellent “Shiloh” trilogy” so I have no idea what point Bernie is trying to make - bad writing, Bernie. Overall, the Ram’s owner would seem to me to be the most vital component in the debate over Vick, so if there is some deep meaning or information relating to him in this issue, it wasn’t presented except vaporously…which to me means that Bernie is basing this article on thin air or some type of Deep Throat relationship with the ownership that only Woodward and Bernstein could appreciate. Waste of time, this article, and by the way, I’m sick of the lousy pop-up ads that keep hounding me whenever I come to this site. Respecting its readers is evidently not one of this newspaper’s interests. Goin’ broke?
Hey retard. Why don’t you try doing a little research before posting dumb comments. The “Shiloh” trilogy is about an abused dog. Get off your lazy azz and educate yourself a little before posting. It doesn’t take a “Deep Throat relationship” to figure out the meaning. Maybe you should stick to your first comment and never post here, you azzhat.
Also, pertaining to comments regarding Little’s accident…the truth is, if he hadn’t had a pro team standing by his side during legal proceedings, he would have gone to prison. Intent is held by the law as including your acts prior to the accident…as in, the period of time you toss back the beers, wine, or whatever, is considered your decision, and therefor your intent.
I’m just saying that both Little and Vick made mistakes that cost them, their loved ones, other families, and our society. Stuff happens, and second chances are more valuable because of it. If animal right groups are a reason to avoid Vick, as compared to Little, that’s BS, cowardly, and not a small amount of hypocracy.
Cast the first stone, Bernie. Then grow some stones of your own.