A Few Quick Thoughts

As Michael Vick returns to the NFL for his second go-round, we just learned that Plaxico Burress will be the next NFL star to spend some time in the joint. When the dust settles and Plax is released he will be 33 years old (assuming he will serve the minimum 20 months). My hope is that wisdom will take over and he will make better use of his time in prison than Vick…

A time in prison is generally seen as a time to reflect on what put you there and make a decision on whether or not you are going to change or stay on the same course that put you behind bars. From my first impression of Vick at his news conference after joining the Philadelphia Eagles it seems he has made zero use of his vast amounts of free time. How else do you explain this quote from him at his news conference - "For the life of me, I can't understand why I was involved in such pointless activity," Vick said. "Why did I risk so much at the pinnacle of my career?"

A lot of people have speculated what made him do it. Was it his culture growing up, his younger brother Marcus has had legal troubles too? Was it the people around him? Was it a sick, twisted idea of fun? Nobody knows for sure. Including Vick. That is what bothers me about the situation. Not that the Eagles are giving him a shot at redemption. He could make the most of the opportunity and do lots of good for animals and ex-cons in general which I’m all in favor of. But to spend all that time in prison and not have come to grips with why you did what you did, doesn’t lend itself to making many changes in the future.

Don’t think I wouldn’t mention that Brett Favre is returning. Good for him. Bad for the Vikings. This could be a colossal disaster if he doesn’t perform…or better yet, performs like he did the second half of the season in New York. I love Favre, one of the Top-10 players ever in my opinion. This doesn’t diminish his accomplishments, but it does diminish how I and many will perceive the end of his career. Far different than the perception of John Elway who didn’t hang on too long and left on top. Maybe Favre thinks he can play a season or two and go out on top in Minnesota, who knows. But I heard once that everything ends badly, otherwise it wouldn’t end….