Falcons Felon

Falcon's Felon




I had moved on with my life but for some reason the Summer of Scandals seems to be breathing life into a whole new season. While Tim Donaghy is threatening to rat out 20 fellow refs in exchange for a reduced prison sentence, though his revelations could prove to be very minor, a highly ranked tennis pro is accused of fixing a tennis match and a doping scandal during the Tour de France which resulted in multiple raids of team headquarters, from the disqualification of multiple riders including the overall leader following the 12th stage. The address on 1915 Moonlight Road has cast a shadow on Vick's legacy and-- on my summer. Instead, the Most Exciting Player in the NFL has provided us with the final(hopefully) riveting melodrama in his celeb-reality public life and tumultuous year.

By pleading guilty to “conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce in aid of unlawful activates and to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture”, Vick is admitting to a crime that carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.

However, a more likely sentence is a year to a year and a half in prison, as prosecutors said they will recommend that the judge sentence Vick "at the low end of the applicable guideline range" if he "cooperates fully and truthfully." Judge Hudson could choose to reject the plea deal, and he does not have to follow the recommended prison sentence, which has been reported as 12 to 18 months.

Despite all of the negative publicity this is still Vick's first offense. albeit a serious one and even if he admitted to gambling, he is not Pete Rose and he did not bet on the NFL.

Has the government ever had evidence against a public figure so damning against one individual. The only way a jury would be even more sure of his guiltiness is if the prosecuting attorney uncovered his online dogfighting fantasy league, then caught Vick with the aid of an ESPN broadcasting crew while Mike wearing his drivers license on a keychain around his neck personally escorted his prized pitbull into the ring wearing an official #7 Falcons jersey, officiated a few matches with his grandmother and Jim Mora Jr. there to identify him.

Another interesting perspective which hasn't been explored by anyone has to be his brother Marcus' potential involvement. You can't tell me that sometime in between serving up liquor to minors, pistol whipping teenagers and doing his best Captain Morgan impression on All-American defensive ends, he surely had time for a late night diet of illegal dogfighting? He went to Virginia Tech and has publicly acknowledged living with his brother for a period time while he was suspended during the 2004 season from the Hokies football team. Do you honestly believe he kept Marcus out the family buisness the way Vit did Michael?

"I'm never there. I'm never at the house," Vick said. "I left the house with my family members and my cousin. They just haven't been doing the right thing. The issue will get resolved."
"It's unfortunate I have to take the heat behind it. If I'm not there, I don't know what's going on. It's a call for me to really tighten down on who I'm trying to take care of. When it all boils down, people will try to take advantage of you and leave you out to dry. Lesson learned for me," Vick added.

If Vick was any less unscrupulous he'd simply deny eyewitness accounts of his being at dogfighting by revising one of his earliest statements and offer up his brother as the sacrificial lamb. They look so much alike and Marcus has such a terrible reputation amongst law enforcement he'd probably be able to pull it off.

Our nation's correctional facilities are in an apparent arms race with Mark Cuban's upstart United Football League to stockpile talent and rival the NFL. All I know is that yard time in various prisons and penitenturies across the nation needs to be broadcast live on ESPN 2. Cuban's plan for his new league was to target prominent college football players drafted past the 2nd round, however he should be appealing to United States penal system which just released Tank Johnson, retains the playing rights to Maurice Clarett, former Panthers receiver Rae Carruth, Michael Vick, and is in the process of acquiring a star cornerback in Pac-Man Jones. They also have an illustrious history with the jerseys of Jim Brown, and former Super Bowl MVP Timmy Smith just to name a few hanging over their barbed wired fences.

The most elusive quarterback in the NFL seems to have found another loophole to dodge a potential lifetime suspension from the NFL. Sinced his indictment Vick seems to have manuevered the system to come out with the best possible outcome. By implying in his plea agreement that he provided the funds for the gambling but was never actually involved in the act itself, he distinguishes his actions from those of his fellow co-conspirators he is stil able to save face in the eyes of the NFL. The crafty part of this agreement is that the prosecuting attorneys probably agreed without much hesitancy because the gambling was a minor allegation in the grand scheme of things. Their ultimate goal is to put a stop to dogfighting not to end his career.

Essentially Vick comes out with a SuperFriends type association with the U.S. government by agreeing to be an informant in other criminal related cases. One can only hope he also has to co-star in an animated Scruff McGruff commercial and agrees to help take the bite out of crime.


Why should I care any more? Because nobody from Congress, CNN, ESPN or Dave Chappelle will let me forget it.

Sports has become so broad and vital to our nation that it should have it's own agency in the Department of Homeland Security with David Stern, Roger Goodell and Bud Selig serving as advisors to the president along with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman back at his old job serving coffee to Stern. The only problem would be Bud Selig's reluctance to show up to important engagements such as cabinet meetings.

In the wake of the tragic Minnesota bridge collapse, the most heated debate to emerge was whether or not lawmakers should siphon off taxpayer money to fund the Twins' proposed new ball ballpark. Let's see: Does public safety outweigh building a park which would allow Joe Mauer to hit more home runs? Next on the docket should whether the location of the Giants and Jets new joint stadium should be in New Jersey or on top of Ground Zero.

"Let that word resound from hill to hill and from mountain to mountain, from valley to valley across this broad land," he thundered in reverance "May God help those poor souls who would be so cruel. Barbaric! Hear me! " "One is left wondering," he said. "Who are the real animals: the creatures inside or outside the ring?"" Those were the over dramatic the words of the Senate's longest serving member last month in a teary eyed speech on Capitol Hill in front of Congress. May Spike, Lassie and Old Yeller rest in peace.

On the ther end of the spectrum, however, I understand the universal support from athletes better than most fans seem to. For all the backlash from envious fans who use the unwavering support from athletes as another excuse to express their thughts on the elitist, arrogant attitudes of athletes thinking they are above the law, where was the outcry from fellow Congressmen when Gary Condit was implicated in the suspicious disappearance of a female aide he was having an affair with? That's because athletes just like politicians, actors and members of any other occupation are part of a select fraternity.

How exactly do fans feel betrayed by Vick's trangressions? Are they betrayed that he won't be able to help their despondant franchise anymore or because he committed a heinous crime? He may be the face of the team, a celebrity and a iconic figure but outside the football field, he is still a human being and priority number one was to mount a defense or manuever the system to whittle his jailtime down to as few time as possible.

While the reaction to his apology has been mixed and has been analyzed and debated on by fans, reporters, columnists and Public Relations consultants as well as apology experts, one thing has stuck out in my mind though. Has anyone ever noted his apparent inclination to refer to himself as Michael Vick? During an interview following the news of his indictment "Every where around the world, people still support loves Mike Vick." Then during his contrite apology on Monday morning he referred to himself in the third person on three occasions which makes one wonder how much more he has to be be humbled.

Now Michael Vick has a lot of downtime for self reflection to redeem himself in the eyes of Charles Dunson and fans everywhere. In an act of cruel symmetrical irony the Falcons will host the New Orleans Saints, December 10, on Monday Night Football, the same day Michael Vick's immediate future will be decided by an unforgiving judge in a Virginia courtroom.

If anything this summer has opened my eyes to the varying levels of sports controversies. In this era of intense scrutiny and intrusiveness into the lives of athletes it's important to know what your dealing when you hear breaking news, sound bites from an exclusive interview taped yesterday or an excerpt from a soon to be released novel. Scandals are a lot like an exclusive club, everyone might not get in and even if you do there's no guarantee you'll gain access to the VIP section. Just think of the codes like you would if you were ordering hot wings; atomic,hot, medium, mild and apply them accordingly.

Code Atomic: Transcendently Scandalous(Kobe Bryant's Rape Accusation, Michael Vick Interstate Commerce, Floyd Landis Testosterone Levels, BALCO, Jose Conseco's "Juiced", etc.)

The Ebola virus of scandals latches itself onto every aspect of our society, provokes a response from everyone and things can get ugly. These usually stem from a single event which branches into a full blown disaster and it's impact extends beyond ESPN and into other non-traditional sports networks. The beauty of these scandals is that they don't even have to involve a high profile athlete as long as it threatens to hang a black cloud over the the landscape of an entire sport.

Characteristics of these sports scandals include a bevy of live press conferences which involve a lot of reveal nothing we didn' t already know except giving us another grasp of the gravity of the controversy at hand. They usually cause normally rational people to become irrational, overreact and to side with either the radicalists or the pacifists. In Vick's situation, there were the extremists who used the details in this case to vent against the ahem... sociopathic, criminal thuggery in professional sports today meanwhile, the pacifists tended to overlook and ignore overwhelming evidence in order to blindly follow an iconic quarterback. Most often, the participants become infamous figures synonymous with their respective scandal no matter what they've accomplished before or after.

Hot:Code Black: (Patrick Dennehy Murder, Punter Stabs Teammate)
Though usually underreported by the media, these are brought about by the most tragic of events and sometimes can reveal an even darker secret or a deep underbelly of more illegal activity. The most infamous example of this type of scandal was the Baylor Basketball Scandal in 2003, which was set off by the disappearance of junior basktball player Patrick Dennehey. Soon after teammate Carlton Dotson was implicated in the murder, Bliss confessed to a major violation of NCAA rules school investigators by making payments to Dennehy, estimated at $7,000. After Bliss resigned, it emerged that he had told players to make up a storyabout Dennehy being a drug dealer in order to pay for his tuition as a cover-up for Bliss paying Dennehy's tuition.

Medium: The Faux Pas(tennis match fixing scandal, Jose Conseco's "stuff" on A-Rod, Reggie Bush's Illegal Benefits)

This type of scandal is usually a diabolical creation of the media's which usually fizzles out after the media realizes they've jumped the gun. This usually occurs when the media sees smokes, senses fire and chooses to fan the flames while their reporters disperse to warn the citizens of the forthcoming catastrophy. In the end though, the flames usually promptly simmer out, but not before burning down their entire camp. Kinda like when Gerald Rivera hosted a live primetime special to open up Al Capone's vault and instead of finding Jimmy Hoffa's body or great riches they uncovered a dirty tub and illegal moonshine. Whatever happenned to the uproar over Jose Conseco's "stuff" on A-Rod's steroid use or the fallout of Reggie Bush's illeged illegal benefits while at USC?

Mild: The Sheffield(Rush Limbaugh, Kobe Shaq's media sparring, anytime Gary Sheffield speaks, Irvin's Romo comments )
Named for the King of Controversy, The Godfather of Mouth Diahrea himself, Gary Sheffield who creates a controversy everytime every time he gets in front of a mic. These are usually the foot in mouth stuck in cow maneur brain freezes which often possesses people when they get too comfortable behind a microphone and forget that they are on television not at one of their klan meetings or in a confessional with their priest. There are variations of the Sheffield ranging from the conspiracy theories ffered up by the Godfather of Controversy, to the entertaining verbal sparring between teammates such as Shaq and Kobe using ESPN's Jim Gray and Ric Bucher as their personal relationship counselors. These can best be avoided by not using tv personalities as your confidants or by avoiding the bar during happy hour for a little buzz to take the edge off when your about to sit down for a light hearted interview with Stephen A. Smith. Don't do it reporters, can small weakness... and alcohol. If your a racist rehearse the racial equality questions, and if you hate your star teammate don't call Chris Mortenson at 3 in the morning to vent because he has the World Wide Leader on speed dial . The end result is that these guys become pariahs and the bud of everyone's joke as a result of their respective comments until the outrage eventually subsides.
-- D.J. Dunson Jr.

Random Rant: Fallen Falcon

Random Rant: Fallen Falcon




The first time I watched college football's National Championship Game on January 4, 1999, I was in awe over the elusive quarterback clad in maroon and orange from Virginia Tech weaving through the garnet and gold defenders of Florida State. For the next two years I watched him develop from the most exciting player in college football into the clear cut #1 overall pick in the 2001 NFL Draft and the last place I ever thought of seeing him was in a courtroom. Oddly enough as Vick, sits on the shakiest ground in his career, Ladainian Tomlinson, the player he was essentially traded for is coming off a record breaking season which affirmed his status as one of the top running backs of his generation.
(The Chargers are becoming masters of this dodging a bullet act: See Eli Manning for Shawne Merriman and Phillip Rivers)

Unlike PacMan Jones and Chris Henry's respective legal run-ins, it appears the Vick bandwagon has run head on into an armored vehicle, the federal government. Now as immovable object meets elusive force Vick has no choice but to stand tall in the pocket and face the rush head on. Sure he may play in 2007, but the outlook beyond that appears gloomy and shrouded in mystery. This case is so high profile I half expect ESPN to add a "Vick Trial Tracker" to their BottomLine right next to their Bonds Chase For 756.

The NFL's most polarizing offensive player must now mount the most solid defense of his life against the federal government and I emphasize "federal" government because of their unreal 95% conviction rate while 90% of all federal cases plead out. However, the Feds have had their bulls eye on Vick since Day 1 in part because of his celebrity status but mostly the property belonged to him.

Even Surry County prosecutor Gerald Pointdexter, speculated about federal involvement when he said that he was "absolutely floored" that federal officials got involved, and that he believes he and Sheriff Brown handled the investigation properly. "What is foreign to me is the federal government getting into a dogfighting case," Poindexter said. "I know it's been done, but what's driving this? Is it this boy's celebrity? Would they have done this if it wasn't Michael Vick?" He went on to say "There's a larger thing here, and it has nothing to do with any breach of protocol." "There's something awful going on here. I don't know if it's racial. I don't know what it is."

Had Bad Newz Kennels merely fought local dogs in Virginia, it would have been a local matter, however, the moment it was discovered that dogs were transported across state lines it became a much more serious issue.

Even before the indictments were handed down and the rumors surfaced 3 months ago, Vick had shown signs of becoming a thorn in the side of the NFL's PR department. There was the infamous 2004 Ron Mexico incident which spawned a litany of herpes jokes which were granted new life each time Vick's name showed up on the tabloid pages and nearly on the police blotter. The underground movement for Ron Mexico apparel was so strong that the NFL had to issue a statement announcing a ban on the sale of any gear bearing the name 'Ron Mexico' on it.

Just last season, Vick was booed by home fans following a home loss which he responded to saluting them with his middle finger and in February of course, there was the Magic Bottle Incident at a checkpoint inside a Miami airport.

In a matter of two years Vick's reputation has spiraled downward from media darling, face of the NFL, and franchise savior to questionable quarterback and that of a salary cap burden on the field as well as radioactive spew to possible endorsments.

It is amazing how a simple drug raid and mystery informants have evolved into the Big Bang in Vick's NFL career and more importantly, his life.
Now it seems quarterback Michael Vick may have dug his NFL grave behind the brick mansion on Moonlight Road in rural Surry County, VA beneath pounds of dirt and a sea of swirling speculation which will certainly be unearthed in the coming months.

Now Vick will watch to see which of his three co-defendants will be the first to make a deal with federal prosecutors. Each of them will think seriously about turning on Vick and offering testimony against him in return for less time in jail.

Say what you want about Barry Bonds' alleged steroid use, Pete Rose's gambling or Kobe Bryant's adultery but the crimes Vick is accused of point to something darker and more sinister in Vick, if they are true. Chris Benoit's whose crimes were far worse, was another one of my childhood heroes, though to a lesser extent as I outgrew my wrestling infatuation. However, the effect when I heard the news was the same.

Whats most troubling is why Vick, a quarterback who has earned roughly $37 million of a 137 million dollar deal he signed in 2004, not including endorsements would risk his livelihood and over $100 million dollars on something as trivial as $6,000 here, $4,000 there and the occasional $60,000 purse baffles me. At least PacMan Jones went out on that fateful Vegas night 6 months ago under the assumption that he would not get involved with illegal activity. Vick on the other hand knew full well what he was doing as evidenced by the fact that he took the precaution of having the outhouses where the dogfighting took place painted in black ink so that they would not be seen at night.

The best explanation I could offer is that dogfighting began as his secondary career option/hobby in case that whole quarterback career didn't quite pan out. However, six years, 100 million dollars later, he was still at it. Why?

It seems as if everywhere we turn these days, in this increased age of media scrutiny, exposure and exorbitant contracts we've become privy to the private lives of professional athletes and the painting has been no Michelangelo. In fact, you'd think these athletes decision making was handled by toddlers.

"Hey Barry! Try this creme it's got lots of Vitamin A for buildin' strong bones. No you don't put it on you bagel, it's for your bicep, like your tryin to quit smoking."
"Yo PacMan, screw it just bring all 80,000-- in cash. You'll be putting a pretty girl through school. Think of it as a scholarship fund"

The Falcons front office could also be faced with a very difficult decision come next April when Vick's trial may just be beginning. If Vick can remain above the fray and translate his talent and the Falcons roster upgrades into a Pro Bowl-caliber season and a trip to the playoffs, the front office could become torn between whether to weather the storm with Vick or cut him immediately and draft a quarterback in the NFL Draft.

The first thing I did when Vick was convicted was relate his predicament to the case of another talented quarterback-- Charles Thompson(not to be confused with 2006 starter Paul Thompson) of the national champion Oklahoma Sooners who in 1989 was convicted in federal court of one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and sentenced on August 31, to two years in prison, effectively ending his dreams of ever embarking on a successful NFL career.



Though, the changes against Vick have no connection to drugs, they are considered especially heinous. Page 17 of the indictment indicates that on one occasion, Vick and two others killed eight fighting dogs that had shown in testing sessions they weren't strong enough to win fights:

In or about April 2007, PEACE, PHILIPS, and VICK executed approximately 8 dogs that did not perform well in "testing" sessions at 1915 Moonlight Road, by various methods including hanging, drowning and slamming at least one dog's body to the ground.
Page 12 of the indictment refers to one of the more chilling accounts:
In or about March of 2003, PEACE, after consulting with VICK about the losing female pit bull's condition, executed the losing dog by wetting the dog down with water and electrocuting the animal.

The words sprayed, splattered splashed and smeared in reference to the blood sound found lend to even more negative and gruesome images. The lengths he went to organize these events would make Preakness organizers jealous.

You see Vick is described as a professional, who pays as much as $40,000 for a dog, breeds animals from past champions and and participates in well-organized, high-stakes fights often planned months in advance, with purses of up to $100,000..think UFC meets Animal Planet. Savagery meets barbariasm.





However as I write this I must also elaborate on a perception which has been expressed in the media regarding the cruelty of hunting versus dog fighting. They may serve different purposes but their fates are still the same. Yet even as I try to create an argument, the comparisons are laughable.

From first hand experience I can tell you the biggest difference between dog fighting and say, deer/duck hunting for example. Dogs, including rottweilers and pit bulls are peaceful creatures by nature as are most animals in the wilderness. However, when bred to be fighters, these dogs become dangerous to society. While you may be skeptical to the idea that dogfighting is rampant throughout professional sports it's all too real for me and starting to make sense. I have the scars to prove it.

However, one interesting subplot which has emerged has been the emergence of the informant(s) who appeared an ESPN interview and provided prosecutors with the evidence necessary to bring an indictment against Vick. Conspicuously absent from the indictments was cousin Davon Boddie who stayed at the residence and at one time, Vick had indirectly, thrust the blame onto when he said back in April when he said, "I'm never there. I'm never at the house," Vick said. "I left the house with my family members and my cousin. They just haven't been doing the right thing."

How this revelation about Vick's dogfighting ring will resonate with me 1 year from now, 10 or 20 remains to be seen and depends on the outcome of his trial however, this hit me like a sack of bricks and could surely sting for a while. More than any other quarterback I wanted to see him succeed in revolutionizing the quarterback position and I still wish him all the best on the field in 2007, but I harbor no regret or sympathy for him in this situation. It doesn't seem fitting that instead of Ray Lewis or the Tampa Buccaneers, a dogfighting ring called the Bad Newz Kennels could eventually sack Vick permanently.
Expect 2007 to be a year to remember for Michael Vick and here's to hoping that this grounded falcon will keep on flying well into 2008... and beyond. So brace yourself for another year of fresh legal jargon, speculation, "motions" in no way related to the gridiron, press conferences and reintroduce yourself to Roger Cossack because it's been a while but don't fret because the at the rate today's athletes are going, he'll have a full time gig.
--D.J. Dunson

Full Michael Vick coverage
P.S. Is it just me or am I the only one not questioning the Falcons trading Matt Schaub. I'd take D.J. Shockley's potential and Joey Harrington's proven talent over Schaub's $48 million dollar mystery any day.