The Michael Vick Story

[-Jrabbit]

I thought this should be separated from the rest of the NFL news, thus a fresh thread.

Here's the latest.

Goodell orders Vick to skip Falcons camp

The first of what could be a handful of actions taken against Michael Vick by the commissioner's office has been decided.

FOXSports.com has learned that commissioner Roger Goodell has ordered the Atlanta Falcons quarterback not to attend the team's training camp as his first step in determining Vick's future in the league. That would give the league office more time to assess the facts and judge additional facts that may come to light in the next month.

This is just the first part of what could be an extensive punishment for Vick's alleged involvement in a gruesome dogfighting operation.

Full story

[SlowwHand]

I'm not an Atlanta fan by any means, but this sucks for people who are fans, for the team and the ownership.
I don't hate the Falcons or anything. They deserve better.
Vick made his choice. No one else got to choose.
He just went ahead and torched everyone while he was torching himself.

[Lord Avalon]

Falcons had planned to suspend Vick before NFL told them to hold off

ATLANTA -- Horrified by the dogfighting allegations against their star player, the Atlanta Falcons planned to suspend quarterback Michael Vick for four games until the NFL asked them to hold off while the league conducts its own investigation.

What remains unclear: Has Vick played his final game for Atlanta?

"This sort of behavior is really horrific," Falcons owner Arthur Blank said Tuesday, the team's first public comment since Vick was indicted last week. "This is certainly not the player or the person that I knew the last six years."

The Falcons said they have discussed cutting Vick and seemed to signal he will miss at least a fourth of the season even if NFL commissioner Roger Goodell doesn't impose his own punishment against the quarterback, indicted on federal charges of sponsoring a dogfighting operation.

Most tellingly, Blank said he would encourage Vick to give up any thoughts of playing while the case is pending -- even if it means sitting out the entire season. He is scheduled to be arraigned in Richmond, Va., on Thursday, the same day the Falcons open training camp.

"This is not about playing football in 2007," said Blank, who was joined at a news conference by general manager Rich McKay and new coach Bobby Petrino. "This is a very difficult process he'll be going through over the next couple of months. It's very difficult to do that and focus on football at the same time."

Goodell weighed in on Vick's case during a news conference with NFL Players Association chief Gene Upshaw in Washington, where the two discussed an alliance to help former players.

"Let me make it very clear that the National Football League is very disappointed that Michael put himself in this position," Goodell said. "In no way do we think that dogfighting or anything related to dogfighting is acceptable. We think it's despicable, frankly."

As for why he blocked an immediate suspension against Vick, Goodell said the league needed more time to study an indictment that is just a week old.

"We're looking at this from the long term," he said. "We understand how our fans are reacting to this. It is very emotional for all of us. But we have to remember that we are still at a state where these are charges. These are allegations."

Under the league's collective bargaining agreement, a team can impose a four-game suspension for detrimental conduct. The league's new conduct policy allows Goodell to hand down a stiffer penalty.

"Prior to this, we were pursuing the maximum discipline, which is a four-game suspension," Blank said. "We had gone so far as to draft the letter. But the commissioner asked us not to take action until they completed their review."

Clearly, the Falcons did not want to begin training camp with a quarterback who was under federal indictment, even though he led them to the NFC Championship Game during the 2004 season and last year became the first quarterback in league history to rush for 1,000 yards.

"There is certainly a reasonable potential that he's going to miss part -- a significant part -- of the regular season," Blank said.

In April, investigators raiding a home owned by Vick in rural Virginia allegedly found evidence of dogfighting, include dozens of pit bulls, bloodstained carpeting, treadmills rigged up for training, veterinary supplies and "breaking sticks" used to pry a dog's jaw apart.

At first, Vick denied any connection to the house, saying he never lived there and rarely visited. He blamed friends and family members for taking advantage of his generosity, an explanation that he apparently gave Goodell when the two held an impromptu meeting in New York during the draft.

Since then, Vick has denied any comment on the case.

Blank said he is deeply disturbed by the allegations, making a point to say that he counted Vick's name more than 50 times in the 18-page indictment. Vick and three associates are accused of killing dogs if they weren't strong enough to fight, with gruesome methods that included hanging, drowning, shooting and electrocution.

"There was no indication, no signs, no whispers that Michael could be involved in any of this kind of behavior," McKay said.

In 2004, the Falcons signed Vick to the richest contract in NFL history at the time, a 10-year extension worth approximately $130 million. At the time, Blank said the deal would allow Vick to play his entire career in Atlanta.

Now, there's a distinct possibility that Vick's career with the Falcons is over, even though the team would take a debilitating salary cap hit over the next two years if he's released.

Vick's salary this season is $6 million.

PETA -- People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals -- kept up its pressure on the Falcons, sending three people to protest outside the headquarters of Blank's foundation, where the news conference was held. One of them carried a sign, "Sack Vick."

PETA, which had planned to stage a protest outside Falcons camp on Thursday, said Tuesday it was satisfied with the Falcons' stance and it was suspending its protest plans.

"Because of the Falcons' willingness to suspend Vick, PETA is canceling plans to protest outside the Falcons' training camp on Thursday," PETA said in a statement. PETA said it will instead protest outside a NikeTown store in Atlanta on Thursday and other Nike stores around the country to protest the shoe company's corporate partnership with Vick.

Joey Harrington goes into camp as Atlanta's starting quarterback. His career record as a starter (23-43) hardly makes him a promising alternative, especially for a team that hired Petrino specifically because it felt he could bring out Vick's full potential.

The Falcons sure could use Matt Schaub, who was Vick's backup for three years. He was dealt to the Houston Texans just before evidence of dogfighting emerged when police raided Vick's house in April.

"This is a big obstacle, there's no question about that," Petrino said.

Since the end of last season, Goodell has used the new conduct policy to suspend Adam "Pacman" Jones of the Tennessee Titans for the entire 2007 season. Chris Henry of Cincinnati and former Chicago Bear Tank Johnson were given eight-game suspensions for various run-ins with the law.

The commissioner isn't ready to impose sanctions on Vick.

Not yet anyway.

"I would like to, before any decisions are made about the futures of any player, understand the facts as best as possible," Goodell said. "I thought it was in our best interest to make sure we did do that."

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2947821&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines

[SlowwHand]

Goodell is handling it well.

[DanS]

I disagree. He's keeping the story on the front page. If Goodell talks, he's making news. So he shouldn't talk until he has something to say that is final.

[-Jrabbit]

Goodell had to do something before the arraignment. Which is Thursday.

Now the league -- and Blank -- can wash their hands of it and let the legal system do the heavy lifting.

[SlowwHand]

If he hadn't said anything, the silence would have been deafening. He's waiting and asking the club to wait. Good.

[-Jrabbit]

The falcons opened camp today. Meanwhile in Richmond...

Linky to full story

Vick Pleads Not Guilty in Dog Fighting Case
By JOHN HOLUSHA

Michael Vick, the starting quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons, pleaded not guilty in federal court in Richmond, Va., today to charges that he was involved in a dog fighting conspiracy on property he owns in rural Surry County.

U.S. Magistrate Dennis W. Dohnal released Mr. Vick and three other defendants without bond, according to the Associated Press, and said the principle that a defendant is innocent until proven guilty should prevail, "no matter how heinous the allegations may be."

The judge set a Nov. 26 trial date.

(snipped)

Mr. Vick faces a maximum penalty of six years in jail and a $350,000 fine if convicted. The N.F.L. could also take punitive action against Mr. Vick, perhaps jeopardizing the 10-year, $130 million contract he signed with the Falcons in 2002.

“We are disappointed that Michael Vick put himself in a position where a federal grand jury has returned an indictment against him,” a league spokesman said. “The matter will be reviewed under the league’s personal conduct policy.”

Mr. Vick’s legal troubles prompted Nike, the sports apparel maker, to suspend the release of the latest product in a line named for him, the Air Zoom Vick V athletic shoe. The company said that four other shoes and three shirts that that bear Mr. Vick’s name will remain in stores.

With Mr. Vick removed from the team for the foreseeable future, the Falcons’ head coach, Bobby Petrino, is expected to turn to Joey Harrington as his starting quarterback. Since Mr. Vick had participated in training minicamps even as the investigation swirled around him, the abrupt switch to Mr. Harrington will prompt adjustments to the team’s offense.

[Lord Avalon]

The trial date was set for Nov. 26 at 9:30 a.m. Vick waived his right to a speedy trial.

from ESPN

With the trial date so far away, does Goodell suspend him for the season? Or let him play at some point but suffer the PR nightmare?

[Guynemer]

Suspend him. If he is acquitted, reimburse his lost pay. If convincted, ban his ass for life.

[SlowwHand]

At the very least, it was on his property. He's owed nothing if he just misses a season.

[SlowwHand]

He's losing sponsorships left and right. This may go down as one of the biggest individual sport screwups ever.

[Zopperoni]

Tony Taylor, who was indicted on conspiracy charges along with Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, this morning made his guilty plea official. And the news keeps getting worse for Vick.

The Smoking Gun has the statement of facts filed in court today. Here's the summary:

--"Taylor implicates Vick ... in an array of criminal activity. ... Taylor contends that Vick provided most of the gambling funds staked by Bad Newz Kennels when its dogs faced off with other pit bulls in fights in Virginia, New Jersey, and North Carolina."


As far as the NFL is concerned, there's no greater crime than gambling. Even if Vick is acquitted of these charges, he could conceivably be banned for life if the NFL is convinced that he's deeply involved in illegal gambling.

If there's any good news for Vick, it's that Taylor's statement of facts does not include any eyewitness testimony about Vick killing dogs, as has been alleged in the federal indictment. But the feds say they have other eyewitnesses who will testify to that.

This is going souther than south for Vick...

[SlowwHand]

Send him to Detroit. It's like a racketeers retirement home.

[DanS]

On one hand, the gambling issue is a real hot potato. But it was well publicized that Michael Jordan would bet unreal amounts of money on a golf game or similar. The NBA didn't seem to mind.