But that's the thing, he's not that good IMO. I think you could make an argument that he's not even in the top half of best QB's in the NFL.
I kind of agree. He is not a great passer but his athletics make defenses changes their game plan. He can be an important offensive asset. It's not like he is Ryan Leaf.
Oh yeah, agree with that. He is a big weapon on offense. I just don't think his on field performance is so great that a team would be willing to deal with the public backlash that would be sure to come.
That's just the thing. I don't believe people will still be fussing over this in a couple of years, or even one year from now. PETA picket at a lot of places, and people generally don't have a positive view about them. Our society is so You could also make the argument that he can be the most potent offensive weapon in the game. There's a reason why the Falcons traded away Schaub to make Joey freaking Harrington his backup. They obviously believed in him, and I'd imagine there are enough teams out there with similar sentiments. All it takes is ONE team to make it happen. Heck, if Vick is willing to be a backup, I'd imagine he's better than ever single backup QB in the NFL today.
Lawyers Tell Vick to Accept Plea Deal By MICHAEL S. SCHMIDT Published: August 17, 2007 RICHMOND, Va., Aug. 16 — Michael Vick’s lawyers have advised him to accept a plea deal from federal prosecutors in his dogfighting case, according to a person with direct knowledge of the case. Vick has until 9 a.m. Friday morning to accept the deal, the person said. The deal would most likely come with a recommendation from prosecutors that Vick, the Atlanta Falcons quarterback, be sentenced to one to two years in prison. The person was granted anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the case publicly. If Vick decides not to take the deal, prosecutors plan on bringing more charges against him. Vick faces three felony charges related to dogfighting and could face up to five years in prison and as much as a $250,000 fine. Two of Vick’s three co-defendants — Purnell A. Peace, 35, of Virginia Beach, and Quanis L. Phillips, 28, of Atlanta — were scheduled to plead guilty Friday morning at the federal courthouse here in front of United States District Judge Henry E. Hudson. Tony Taylor, the third defendant, pleaded guilty in the case July 30 and agreed to testify against the others. Peace and Phillips are also expected to help the government’s case in return for lighter sentences. Despite the absence of Vick’s name on Judge Hudson’s schedule for Friday, Vick could still make his plea in an arrangement between his lawyers, the government and the court. Although time appears to be running out for Vick, a guilty plea would put the National Football League on surer footing. Last month, Commissioner Roger Goodell appointed Eric Holder, a former deputy attorney general, to investigate the Vick case and recommend a punishment for Vick. Holder, who is relying only on public documents, has not made a recommendation to Goodell, the league said. Although public support has turned against Vick, it may be harder for the N.F.L. to suspend him for a long period of time if he has not admitted to or been convicted of a crime. But if Vick agreed to plead guilty, the league could suspend him for violating its conduct policy because he would have admitted to violating the law. His penalty would be decided by Goodell, who has wide-ranging powers to punish players. As Vick’s lawyers negotiated with prosecutors over the past week, the person with direct knowledge of the case said that people who represented Vick tried to reach out to the N.F.L. to find out how the league planned to punish Vick. But the N.F.L. refused to discuss Vick’s punishment. “We are not in discussion with anyone about his possible suspension,” Greg Aiello, a spokesman for the N.F.L., said in an e-mail message. “The commissioner cannot make a decision until he has the report from Eric Holder. So we do not have a timetable on making a decision.” Collins R. Spencer III, a spokesman for Vick’s five-member defense team, declined to comment. When indictments are brought against several defendants, legal experts said that prosecutors were more likely to seek lighter sentences for the first defendants who decide to help their cases. Because Vick could be the last defendant to make a plea, he could face the longest sentence. “The government certainly needed Taylor more than the others in this case because he helped them build leverage,” Carl Tobias, a professor at the University of Richmond Law School, said Thursday in a telephone interview. “Cooperation is critical to the government’s recommendation at sentencing. But if Vick pleads with the two others tomorrow, there isn’t much difference between his cooperation and theirs.” If Vick accepts this plea deal he'll never play for the Falcons again and will be out of the league for quite some time. We'll have to see what happens later today.
15 minutes until the supposed deadline.... I'm thinking he takes it, and pushes hard on the spin that he was "forced" to accept the plea under duress of the "false" witnesses and he didn't want to risk doing 20 years for something he "never did." Evan
Put Vick and one of his co-defendants in the same prison cell, stick a camera in there, and watch the hilarity ensue. Ratings gold!
I think they did that once on The Shield. It'd be funny to see Vick walking out of the room later covered in blood. Evan
If the deadline passes, and there is no news, could he be negotiating to extend the deadline/get a better plea deal? My guess is that he wants to make a deal, but doesn't want to spend any time locked up.
Considering how hard the Feds are pushing, the threat of more charges and having 2 of his co defendants make agreements to testify against him; I just don't see how he wouldn't take a deal, unless he had some excellent proof that he was in no way involved
I think he's that desperate to get the NFL to give word that he can play in 2009. But if they're refusing to give him any promises, he's got to cave before too long. Evan
If that even on his radar at this point, jezz, I don't even know what to say. His personal freedom is at stake and there is a chance he could only do a year or 2 or up to 25 yrs if he doesn't take the plea agreement, if what I heard is correct.
I predict he'll spend two years in the clink, come back to the NFL, and be the Super Bowl winning QB.... .....for the Oakland Raiders.
Maybe when he plays Madden 11. Vick could go the Maurice Clarett route and play minor league arena football.
Apparently the two who turned on him are saying that he didn't merely give orders on executing the dogs...but he actually participated in drowning and hanging dogs. http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/08/17/ap4031293.html So this is why I said this case was the perfect storm. Because it has two huge elements: 1. the legal reality -- the potential for RICO charges. connections to organized crime/gambling. being the "money man" for a gambling ring. etc. 2. the PR reality -- that he was involved was with dog fighting bad enough...but the notion of him actually being there and carrying out these things to these animals...that's just horrific. i've been a huge critic of vick on the field...but i've qualified that time and time again by saying i actually like the guy. and i did. but this is nuts.
Why don't they just make Mr.Vick fight some pitbulls himself? See how it feels. All he can use is his bare hands and he must fight them without any clothing on. Then if he performs poorly he has to be drowned or let another pitbull rape him.
