Free At Last

Today, July 20, 2009, marks the day Michael Vick became a free man once again. After months in jail and two months in home confinement, Vick has paid his dues. Vick is currently in the process of patching up relationships with family and the community. Tom Shaw, an NFL trainer and longtime friend of Vick's said, “Vick is ready to start the second half of his life.” He also suggested that Vick is in good spirits and is mad at no one.

While I find it highly unlikely that, once Roger Goodell grants Vick reinstatement into the NFL, no team will take a chance on him, Vick is prepared to move on with life with or without professional football. So far, in life after prison, Vick has found himself working a construction job and is doing work with the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Hampton Roads, Virginia. I'm sure Vick will be doing more volunteer and community work in the future, which will help him repair some of the relationships he has severed with those followers who abandoned him. In general, society is not ready to forgive Vick, especially the people who were never a fan of his to begin with.

A lot of scouts and analysts have questioned if Vick will be able to play quarterback again, which seems pretty silly to me. Vick played quarterback in the NFL for six seasons, and besides him being a highlight reel waiting to happen, he was a successful quarterback. As I look at a few rosters in the NFL right now, I refuse to believe Vick can't compete for the starting job in say...Cleveland, Denver, San Francisco, or Carolina. Even if he isn't going to start, he can be a very effective quarterback in the wild cat formation. At the age of 29, Vick may not “wow” us the way he used to, but he can still play in the NFL. If Goodell allows Vick back into the league, it will be interesting to see what teams are willing to take a chance on him. I just hope wherever he may land in the future, he is able to contribute and leaves his past behind.