Over the last ten years there have been numerous sports stories that attracted attention and spawned emotional reactions from people all over the world. For example, LeBron James signing with the Miami heat, (which had fans burning his jersey and sending hateful messages on twitter) or Reggie Bush returning his Heisman trophy to the NCAA. In my opinion the biggest story of this decade is the Michael Vick Dogfighting incident. Before I reminisce on the heartbreak I felt from this poor choice one of my childhood icons made, I would like to embrace his present. For that is exactly what he has been to NFL fans since his release from prison in 2009. Vick won the comeback player of the year award and was recently runner up to Tom Brady in Offensive Player of the Year votes last season. In this year’s offseason he added a new 6 year 100 million dollar contract with the Philadelphia Eagles to his legacy.
However, his fall down the sports icon mountain was one of pure uncertainty and disdain amongst his character image. In 2007, he was one of the highest paid players in the NFL, and he had just come off a season where his former team, the Atlanta Falcons came just a game short of reaching the Super Bowl. Though he had plenty to celebrate on the field, it was his off the field dogfighting ring, which led to him becoming one of the most hated sports icons of the decade.
He wasn’t just some run in the mill dogfighter who occasionally let his pet pit-bull square off in battle, but rather he was what they call in that sector, “One of the big boys”. A guy who contributes a large amount of money towards the bets placed on the fights. When asked how many dogs he was responsible for fighting Vick told ESPN he was responsible for training and fighting an estimated 2,000 dogs. Not to mention the results of his case revealed he and a couple of his partners killed underperforming dogs by a range of methods including hanging and drowning. In the end Vick served a 23-month prison sentence for his role in the incident.
This was the hugest sports story of the decade due to his loss of steady income, endorsements, two football seasons, friends, fans, pride and influence Vick had over the generation. It is also a huge story due to its humanitarian outcome. Not only did he accept responsibility for his actions and pay his debt to society, but, he also contributed time to the humane society after his release, this in an effort to end dogfighting nation wide. Overall, people got the chance to witness the villain become the hero. In the end, I am proud to say I am a fan of Michael Vick and may his story continue to unfold for the better.
Other Sources:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/179439-examining-michael-vicks-dogfighting-2009-edition
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