hagan714

Vick issues a nightmare for Blank
By Jeff Schultz | Saturday, May 19, 2007, 07:00 PM

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Jeff Schultz In a recent Forbes list of the 400 wealthiest Americans, Arthur Blank ranked 297th with a net worth of $1.3 billion. The assumption here is that even if 297th out of 400 doesn’t get you to the gold card playoffs, $1.3 billion keeps the image fairly well intact.

At the end of the 2004 season, Michael Vick was the centerpiece of this city. He was 23-12-1 as a starter, had just led the Falcons to within a win of the Super Bowl and radiated like a 100-watt bulb. Since then, he is 15-16 as a starter and the bulb has been crushed.

If image if everything, Vick is on the way to bankruptcy.

The herpes case, which led to lampooning (Ron Mexico) and an out-of-court settlement.

The picture of Vick possible holding a “blunt” on his girlfriend’s MySpace page.

Flipping off home fans.

The fake water bottle with alleged marijuana particulates (later cleared) at the Miami airport, a situation Joe Montana and most leaders have managed to avoid in their career.

Subsequent suggestions he might’ve been “framed” by Miami police and claims of his explanation for the water bottle, which were disputed.

Blowing off Congress, then giving an alibi that even his own endorsement partner (AirTran) stomped on.

Now comes possibly the worst of all: Allegations of a connection to dogfighting. It’s not merely a felony, it’s a pastime for the bottom-feeders of society.

If anything that has been alleged in this case is true, there’s one thing I never want to hear about Michael Vick again: “He’s a good kid, he just hangs around bad people.”

That Vick may not be a very good quarterback is suddenly the least of his problems. It’s certainly the least of Arthur Blank’s problems.

The Falcons’ owner longs for the days when his biggest concerns were fitting Vick with the right offense. Now he finds himself trying to pitch a headache to the masses. He is all about team and presenting a unified front. But if you believe that everybody in the Falcons’ organization is universal in their belief in Vick, you’re deluded.

Blank knows all about image. He must know that Vick’s has been damaged beyond repair, regardless of whether the quarterback gets charged or suspended in the dog case. The Humane Society, PETA, a California congressman — who hasn’t weighed in? Blank can read. He can hear. He can sense. The man made his fortune reading the retail tea leaves better than anybody.

There was a time when Vick pulled this city’s fans together. Now, he divides them.

Welcome to Blank’s nightmare. The Falcons are married to a quarterback with a 10-year, $130 million contract. Dumping Vick at some point projects salary cap hell. But the Falcons’ fan base is divided: half angry, half defensive. There’s no middle. Another concern is that much of the split may be along racial lines.

It’s one thing to lose a game. It’s another to have your team’s identity hinged to an image wrecking ball. Repeated incidents diminish Vick’s already in-question ability to lead and Blank’s ability to sell.

“There’s no doubt Vick’s image has taken a huge hit,” said Frank Mahar of Genesco Sports Enterprises, a sports marketing firm in New York. “It’s been one incident on top of another. For some people now, the question isn’t, ‘When is it going to stop?’ but ‘What’s next?’

“When Vick came into the league, he had multiple TV spots — Nike, a video game, Powerade. I would guess we’re not going to see him on much this year.”

The national and local perception of an athlete often differ. Barry Bonds is vilified in every stadium but one — his home park in San Francisco. But Vick is no longer universally embraced here. Boos and no-shows at home games provided sufficient evidence last season. So do sports talk shows today.

“Blank’s in a hard place,” Mahar said. “If the town is really that split, it almost like no matter what he does he’s going to upset somebody. He wants to sell tickets but he doesn’t want to upset people in the process. It almost comes down to, ‘What’s the lesser of two evils?’ “

Nobody could have predicted that a case involving fighting pitbulls may provide that answer.

That alone should tell you that Blank has a problem.
http://www.ajc.com/blogs/content/sha...ssues_a_n.html

Ok lets review.

Michael Vick rap sheet:

• The herpes case, which led to lampooning (Ron Mexico) and an out-of-court settlement.

• The picture of Vick possible holding a “blunt” on his girlfriend’s MySpace page.

• Flipping off home fans.

• The fake water bottle with alleged marijuana particulates (later cleared) at the Miami airport.

• Subsequent suggestions he might’ve been “framed” by Miami police and claims of his explanation for the water bottle, which were disputed.

• Blowing off Congress, then giving an alibi that even his own endorsement partner (AirTran) stomped on.

• Allegations of a connection to dogfighting. It’s not merely a felony, it’s a pastime for the bottom-feeders of society.
Posted May 21, by Ben Maller
http://www.benmaller.com/nfl_rumors_notes

Well that about sums it up. In another thread some stated we would be better off facing Vick than his back up ...Joey.. Makes me wonder if we should, on this thought alone, start to back Vick so we can have an easier chance at 2 wins against the dirty birds?
Nah hang him

"We may have lost the game, but you'll be hurting tomorrow." Doug Atkins

WhoDat205

Can you imagine how hard it would be to trade Vick right now? Who would take him? 10/$130M is a noose of a contract. Nobody's shelling that out for a run-first QB nearing 30 with a laundry list of off-field issues that dosen't manage pro-style offenses well. They'd be lucky to get $0.25 on the dollar for him even if all the dog fighting stuff miraculously dissapears.

scott406

clip from SI.com:

GRAND CAYMAN, Cayman Islands -- Michael Vick, wearing a black Atlanta Falcons jersey and slinging passes in front of a crowd for the first time since his Virginia home came under investigation for an illegal dog fighting ring last month, was greeted by a chorus of barking fans and chants of "Who let the dogs out?" as he participated in the NFL Quarterback Challenge at the Cayman Islands International School Park on Saturday.

I think he can expect to hear that song every away game.

SapperSaint

I wonder if ATL had some kind of clause in Vicks contract?

You just don't had a guy 130 million dollars without some sort of safety net.

Do you?

SoulStar

He is the highest paid player in the NFL. Not Brady, not Payton, not LT....its micheal vick. Sure they can cut him, but the cap hit to the team would hurt the team for two to three seasons. There is no clause in that contract that would allow them an out in this case.

SapperSaint

That is absolutely crazy for a team to to have some sort of deal breaking clause.

If the Home Depot boycott happens, I think Mr Blank lose more money than if he got rid of Vick.

ScottF

This guy is a great writer- very objective, and certainly not a homer (a rarity around here). I have never met him, although I work with his wife.

I think he hits it on the head with how ATL feels about Vick. The best thing the Falcons can hope for is that Vick DOES get disciplined, so then they can void his contract based on 'conduct unbecoming' or whatever wording the PA and owners decided on.

Otherwise they are screwed.