Let's Not Convict Vick Yet
Harold Wilson covers sports. He can be reached at 903.596.6293. e-mail: sports@tylerpaper.com
While his feet rarely failed him, Michael Vick's passes spiraled out of control often during the 2006 NFL season, when the Atlanta Falcons quarterback guided his team to the best rushing offense and worst aerial attack.
The downspiral effect trickled right into the offseason regarding the reputation of Vick, currently at the center of a large-scale investigation of a dog-fighting operation involving a home he formerly owned in Surry County, Va.
With the regular season still three months away, Vick finds himself in a familiar situation -- trying to dodge a furious pass rush like the one he usually faces on the gridiron, and prevail despite being constantly scrutinized.
Instead of defensive linemen applying the pass-rush pressure, federal authorities and the general public appear to be on the rush to pass judgment against the star-crossed celebrity.
The backlash from animal lovers holds weight because of the graphic nature of dog fighting and the senseless casualties caused. But, how many animal lovers/football fans criticizing Vick think about filing any complaints concerning the punishment his sport inflicts, or attempts to, on its participants?
Nevertheless, even as Vick's popularity pummels, he remains a free man - one yet to even be charged. Still, the case continues to gain steam as different people link Vick to the dog fighting ring.
The different sources popped up only after Vick's name surfaced in the aftermath of the arrest of his cousin, Davon Boddie, who resided at the property in question. Authorities arrested Boddie for possession of marijuana and the intent to distribute - later leading to a search of the home and the subsequent findings of more than 60 dogs and dog-fighting instruments.
Of note, Vick's offseason started on the wrong foot in January when security at Miami International Airport airport seized from him a water bottle with a secret compartment that allegedly smelled like marijuana. Vick, who claimed to use the compartment as a stash for his jewelry, avoided any charges after a lab test found no evidence of drugs.
A victory for Vick? Not necessarily, seeing more trouble found him not even four months later.
In the case of Vick, though, winning goes hand in hand with losing.
Last season, when he became the first NFL quarterback to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a single season, his team lost more games (nine) than it won (seven).
Two seasons earlier, and Vick one game away from leading the Falcons to the Super Bowl, he rushed only four times for 26 yards and attempted 24 passes as Atlanta fell to Philadelphia 27-10 in the NFC championship game in 2005. That, one week after Vick rushed for 108 yards in a NFC divisional playoff win against the St. Louis Rams.
Whether his celebrity, or even his race, fuels the fire - as some suggest - remains a guess. In 2004, Vick signed a contract for a reported $137 million for 10 years, which at the time made the left-handed speedster the game's highest-paid player.
That kind of price sometimes comes with one, as the second-guessing of Vick goes on-and-on.
Surry County Commonwealth's Attorney Gerald G. Poindexter, part of the initial investigation team, pointed out how perhaps Vick's stardom factors into the equation.
"What is foreign to me is the federal government getting into a dog-fighting case," he told the Associated Press earlier in the week. "I know it's been done, but what's driving this? Is it this boy's celebrity? Would they have done this if it wasn't Michael Vick? ... There's a larger thing here, and it has nothing to do with any breach of protocol. There's something awful going on here. I don't know if it's racial. I don't know what it is."
So, what exactly does Vick stand for - a vicktorius quarterback named to three pro bowls in his first six seasons, a future convickt for participating in malicious dog-fighting, or an innocent guy just once again a vicktim of circumstance?
An answer looms for another troubling situation that Vick hopes to flee.
This time, just let the play develop before sacking Vick.
The downspiral effect trickled right into the offseason regarding the reputation of Vick, currently at the center of a large-scale investigation of a dog-fighting operation involving a home he formerly owned in Surry County, Va.
With the regular season still three months away, Vick finds himself in a familiar situation -- trying to dodge a furious pass rush like the one he usually faces on the gridiron, and prevail despite being constantly scrutinized.
Instead of defensive linemen applying the pass-rush pressure, federal authorities and the general public appear to be on the rush to pass judgment against the star-crossed celebrity.
The backlash from animal lovers holds weight because of the graphic nature of dog fighting and the senseless casualties caused. But, how many animal lovers/football fans criticizing Vick think about filing any complaints concerning the punishment his sport inflicts, or attempts to, on its participants?
Nevertheless, even as Vick's popularity pummels, he remains a free man - one yet to even be charged. Still, the case continues to gain steam as different people link Vick to the dog fighting ring.
The different sources popped up only after Vick's name surfaced in the aftermath of the arrest of his cousin, Davon Boddie, who resided at the property in question. Authorities arrested Boddie for possession of marijuana and the intent to distribute - later leading to a search of the home and the subsequent findings of more than 60 dogs and dog-fighting instruments.
Of note, Vick's offseason started on the wrong foot in January when security at Miami International Airport airport seized from him a water bottle with a secret compartment that allegedly smelled like marijuana. Vick, who claimed to use the compartment as a stash for his jewelry, avoided any charges after a lab test found no evidence of drugs.
A victory for Vick? Not necessarily, seeing more trouble found him not even four months later.
In the case of Vick, though, winning goes hand in hand with losing.
Last season, when he became the first NFL quarterback to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a single season, his team lost more games (nine) than it won (seven).
Two seasons earlier, and Vick one game away from leading the Falcons to the Super Bowl, he rushed only four times for 26 yards and attempted 24 passes as Atlanta fell to Philadelphia 27-10 in the NFC championship game in 2005. That, one week after Vick rushed for 108 yards in a NFC divisional playoff win against the St. Louis Rams.
Whether his celebrity, or even his race, fuels the fire - as some suggest - remains a guess. In 2004, Vick signed a contract for a reported $137 million for 10 years, which at the time made the left-handed speedster the game's highest-paid player.
That kind of price sometimes comes with one, as the second-guessing of Vick goes on-and-on.
Surry County Commonwealth's Attorney Gerald G. Poindexter, part of the initial investigation team, pointed out how perhaps Vick's stardom factors into the equation.
"What is foreign to me is the federal government getting into a dog-fighting case," he told the Associated Press earlier in the week. "I know it's been done, but what's driving this? Is it this boy's celebrity? Would they have done this if it wasn't Michael Vick? ... There's a larger thing here, and it has nothing to do with any breach of protocol. There's something awful going on here. I don't know if it's racial. I don't know what it is."
So, what exactly does Vick stand for - a vicktorius quarterback named to three pro bowls in his first six seasons, a future convickt for participating in malicious dog-fighting, or an innocent guy just once again a vicktim of circumstance?
An answer looms for another troubling situation that Vick hopes to flee.
This time, just let the play develop before sacking Vick.
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