Give Michael Vick a chance to coach. It will help shine a light on dog abuse issues

It’s not surprising, nor is it unfair, that Michael Vick’s sordid past as an abuser/killer of dogs gets revisited whenever the once-upon-a-time star NFL quarterback is in the news.

And here we are. Vick has accepted an offer to become football coach at Norfolk State in his native Virginia, and, yes, various news accounts are mentioning that he once served 21 months in prison after pleading guilty in 2007 to providing funding for a dogfighting operation in which gambling was involved. Per Michael S. Schmidt of The New York Times, who covered the 2007 hearing at the United States District Court in Richmond, Vick also pleaded guilty to being complicit in the killing of “approximately 6 to 8 dogs that did not perform well in ‘testing’ sessions.” The dogs “were killed by various methods, including hanging and drowning.”

To avoid burying the lede here, I am a dog lover. And I’m a dog lover who has no quarrel with Norfolk State’s decision to hire Vick, who was born and raised in nearby Newport News and was a star football player at Warwick High School before bursting into prominence at Virginia Tech.

I’ll address my love of dogs — and how I’ve been co-raising Labrador retrievers since 1996 — in a moment. But for those of us who also believe in redemption, rehabilitation, second chances and so on, Vick is entitled to coach football if a job is being offered. That he has never coached at any level of football is a separate matter that’s not related to what we’re discussing here.

GO DEEPER

With Michael Vick headed to Norfolk State, here’s how other NFL stars fared at HBCUs

On Aug. 27, 2007, after accepting a plea agreement from the federal government, Vick appeared at a news conference and said, “I was ashamed and totally disappointed in myself, to say the least.” He also said, “Dogfighting is a terrible thing. I reject it.” At that point in his career, Vick had played six seasons with the Atlanta Falcons and was a three-time Pro Bowl selection. In 2004, he placed second to runaway winner Peyton Manning for NFL MVP. But Vick lost two seasons in the NFL — 2007 and 2008 — due to jail time and an NFL suspension.

Vick was reinstated in 2009. In a letter released by his agent, Vick wrote, “As you can imagine, the last two years have given me time to reevaluate my life, mature as an individual and fully understand the terrible mistakes I have made in the past and what type of life I must lead moving forward.”

He returned in 2009 and played five seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, followed by journeyman stints with the New York Jets (2014) and Pittsburgh Steelers (2015).

Vick lost millions of dollars in salary and endorsements. A case can be made that the screeching halt to his playing career and the two lost seasons also cost him a chance at one day being considered for enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He paid a very high price for abusing and killing dogs.

Michael Vick has been hired as Norfolk State’s next Head Football Coach pic.twitter.com/ByGd6v58eo

— HBCU Premier Sports & More (@HBCUSports1) December 17, 2024

So, yes, let him coach. And yet I write these words as someone who’d rather have great dogs than great furniture; anyone who’s ever been in my house can attest that the dogs generally have the run of the joint. You can take all the cliché and folklore that apply to dog ownership — man’s best friend, unconditional love, Rainbow Bridge — and they apply here.

Our dog Chamois, who was just over 15 when she died in 2008, was a big bear but always gentle, always happy. Zoe, 14 years and eight months when she died in 2011 was so smart that she’d take it upon herself to get her leash and drop it in my lap when she wanted to go out for a walk. Billie, who died in 2017, lived 14 years and four months. Our WrestleMania battles were epic. Roxy died just over two years ago, another old-timer who lived 14 years and eight months. She was practically housebroken at seven weeks and was a veritable Super Dog who seemed to fly through the air when diving off the dock we’d sneak onto at Upper Mystic Lake.

Our current crew consists of Lola, 13 1/2 and a little limpy but still overjoyed when taking her nightly solo walk; Maggie, a little over 7 and to everyone’s surprise a wonderfully mature dog who overcame being a total-pain-in-the-arse puppy; and Sadie, going on 2, who, as my Irish grandmother used too say, “is a house angel and a street devil.” In other words, she’s a sweet, cuddly girl who, once she’s outside, wants to catch every rabbit within five miles.

My apologies. But I tediously cite the dogs and their ages because that’s important information. It takes some good fortune and lucky rolls of the genetic dice to have dogs who’ve lived so long, but it also requires seeing to it that dogs, all dogs, have a proper diet, get plenty of exercise and medical care, and are introduced to a social life that includes other dogs and lots of people. It’s also important that dogs are well-trained and made to know there are expectations. As one of our vets once said, “There’s no such thing as a free lunch — even for dogs.”

So there. I’m an all-in dog person. In that spirit, of course, I was disgusted by Vick’s actions. As were others. About five years ago, when the NFL invited Vick to participate in the Pro Bowl as a “legends captain,” it inspired a change.org protest that garnered more than 800,000 “verified signatures.”

Lisa LaFontaine, president and chief executive officer of Humane Rescue Alliance, authored an essay arguing against the NFL inviting Vick to the Pro Bowl. To make her case, she cited an example in which a young man who’d been guilty of animal cruelty received a second chance and actually turned his life around. LaFontaine wondered if Vick learned that lesson.

“I don’t know whether Vick is truly remorseful,” LaFontaine wrote. “His public appearances and his meetings with elected officials could have been authentic — or opportunistic.” LaFontaine also wrote, “I suspect those who support having Vick honored at the Pro Bowl don’t appreciate the brutality of his crimes.” (A spokesperson for Humane Rescue Alliance, responding by email, said LaFontaine wasn’t available to be interviewed for this story.)

Nor do I know if Vick is truly remorseful. What I do know is that the Vick case, then and now, shines an important light on dog abuse. I suppose we were all at least aware that dogfighting was going on before Vick came along, but it’s not something we thought much about. Leastways, I didn’t.

I like to think there’s much less dogfighting going on these days, post-Michael Vick. At least we’re talking about it — such as now, with Vick about to take control of the Norfolk State football program.

Dog lovers should wish him success because success will keep Vick in the news. And when he’s in the news, it’ll give us occasional license to talk about dog abuse. That’s a small price for Vick to pay.