Vick is an Eagle

Photo courtesy of the New York Daily News.

On Friday, Michael Vick was officially introduced as the newest member of the Philadelphia Eagles. His contract is a two-year deal. The first year, Vick will be paid $1.6 million and the second year is worth $5.4 million. Also, his contract has $3 million in incentives. All told, he could receive as much as $10 million.

Does Michael Vick deserve to be in the NFL? It ultimately depends on your view of forgiveness. One can say, "He doesn't deserve the privilege of playing in the NFL for the awful things he did." True, he did some despicable acts of murder, but how long can one hold that against him? It's the same question posed against kids in juvenile hall, the unfaithful wife or husband, or any other case where someone or something is wronged. My family owns two cats and has owned dogs. I despise what Michael Vick did to the dogs he had, but I also know that I can forgive a man for his deeds. To quote Ephesians 4:32, "And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you."


Photo courtesy of OregonLive.com/Associated Press.

In terms of football, this is a peculiar move by the Eagles. Why take on the risk of having Vick on your team? It certainly took guts to sign him in spite of the public outrage over his past deeds. Why sign him when you have a franchise quarterback in Donovan McNabb? When I first heard of the signing, I thought, "Poor McNabb." When Philly drafted him in 1999, he was booed by Eagles fans for not being Ricky Williams, a star running back from Texas that eventually turned out to be a bust. There have been moments where the fan base loves Donovan, than weeks later, calls for him to be traded. Philadelphia sports fans in general tend to be among the most mercurial in the country, especially regarding Eagles football. How will they react to Vick? I sense that this may be the last season McNabb wears an Eagles uniform, or Vick will be traded next year. No way will those two be on the same team with the other offensive playmakers they have.


Photo courtesy of NJ.com

I'm glad Michael Vick has Tony Dungy, in the above photo, far right, as a mentor. Dungy was known as a coach that commanded his players respect in a far nicer way than other famous coaches like Bill Parcells or the New York Giants' Tom Coughlin. Dungy invested time into not only his players' skills on the field, but also their lives as a whole. Were it not for Dungy, I'd have serious doubts about Vick returning and succeeding in starting a new chapter of his life.