The rise and fall of Michael Vick: After dogfighting case, controversial Nike deal, where's ex-NFL star now?
August 27, 2007, saw Atlanta Falcons' star QB, Michael Vick, go from being the highest-paid NFL player at one time to having suffered ignominy when he fessed up to a felony related to a dogfighting ring. It screeched his lucrative and famous career as a footballer to a grinding halt as he was sentenced to 23 months in federal prison. In 2004, he signed a 10-year contract for $130 million with the Atlanta Falcons, and following the controversy, it all came crashing down.
According to Daily Mail, the gambling activity he was involved in saw high stakes for the dogs that would fight mercilessly in the ring. As per court documents, the dogs that weren't up to the mark were killed by torture that included drowning, shooting, or electrocution. This had the animal rights activists go against Vick and the entire news saw the QB earn the wrath of the public. The fall from grace was as swift as his success. This was a man who was touted as a big-game player and was the first Quarterback to register rushing 1,000 yards in a season. And when he pled guilty to federal charges, the NFL suspended him indefinitely as he violated the player conduct policy. While all these followed by the Falcons releasing him shortly after his sentence announcement was one part of the story, Vick's return to the field was even more controversial.
Vick signed with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2009 and where he had a stellar five seasons. He was caught in the middle of a controversy again when sports giant Nike signed him up with a four-year contract in 2011. CBS News, which was one of the media outlets to report the story, said it had spoken to Barbara Lippert, an advertising expert, who termed the brand did what it had to. "They also love controversy, it keeps them socially current and it makes sense now that he's playing well with the eagles to pick him up again; he's going to sell a lot of shoes," she said.
The fact that Nike welcomed him back saw the brand and Vick go through intense criticism. In its statement, Nike said: "Michael acknowledges his past mistakes. We do not condone those actions, but we support the positive changes he has made to better himself off the field." In his final seasons in the sport, Vick played for the New York Jets and the Pittsburgh Steelers before hanging up his cleats in 2017. 2019 thrust Vick into public hate again when old news that he had been designed by Nike resurfaced. However, while the initial outburst was rage-filled with the brand and Vick receiving backlash, it was actually the 2011 news that was just being recirculated. Popculture published a copy that explained what the hullabaloo was.
In an interview with SB Nation, Vick reflected on his mistakes. "I understand the forgive-but-not-forget mentality. That’s supposed to be logical and the way we supposed to live. Just know that I’ve done everything in my power to make amends, and that’s about all I can do," he said. "And I’ll continue to do that for the rest of my life because it’s a lifetime commitment. The person I have to make happy at the end of the day is myself; only God can judge me just like he’ll judge everybody else.
"So I’d say to those people just let God judge me and kind of ease on out of it. I’m finding my way in life. Allow me to find my way and everybody do them. Fight for their cause, but do it with integrity — do it without bringing down another individual or another man who has a family to feed and a lot of opportunity in life to help. We’re all human, and we all make mistakes."
After calling time on his playing career, Vick was roped in as the offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Legends of the Alliance of American Football. He now spends a major chunk of his time as an NFL Analyst on Fox NFL Kickoff and working with the Team Vick Foundation.