The Land of Second Chances

EL HOMBRE KNOWS SPORTS

Michael Vick is scheduled to play quarterback for the Eagles tonight in an exhibition game against Jacksonville. He could take two snaps or 20, perhaps out of the shotgun or under center. He’ll no doubt show some rust, but he’ll probably make some plays, too. When it’s all over, and the protesters have screamed themselves hoarse, and players return to the numbing march of the pre-season, Vick will do what tens of thousands of released felons have done for centuries in this country.

He’ll return to work.

Every person who writes about the Eagles QB feels compelled to include an almost-boilerplate disclaimer in any column regarding the former dog-fighting kingpin and the heinous nature of his crimes. So, here is this missive’s obligatory proviso: Vick’s actions were terrible and unconscionable. They displayed an appalling lack of respect for other living things. When he was caught, he tried to hide behind the “culture” defense, as if any horrific crime can be explained away by the twisted logic that if others are doing it, it’s not so bad. Psychologists say that cruelty to animals (along with an unhealthy obsession with fire and rooting for Ohio State) is an indication of potential disregard for human life down the line. Vick was wrong and deserved to be punished severely.

And he was. He served a stiff, 18-month prison sentence, forfeited millions of dollars in assets and future income and was transformed from the face of the NFL to pariah and had his name attached to the horrible crime.

It’s hard to find someone outside of the dog-fighting arena that believes Vick wasn’t given what he deserved. And, now, he is being given what he also deserves: a chance to put his life back together. There are provisions, of course. He had better stay away from any situation that could bring a sniff of suspicion from the gendarmes. He must show contrition for the rest of his days, no matter how irritating the questions become and how stridently the animal activists protest his inclusion in society. Vick has to be a perpetual spokesman against dog fighting – even after his playing days are through. His rehabilitation will be done in a very public way, and one misstep will bring a firestorm of criticism and invective. This is Vick’s life now and forever. He created it and must live with it.

That’s how it goes in America. You mess up, you do your time, you try to move on. In the vast majority of cases, that process takes place far away from the headlines and TV cameras. Vick’s situation is different, because his high-profile profession made him the poster-boy for dog fighting, despite thousands of other miscreants who partake in the ugly pursuit on a daily basis. But make no mistake, he deserves no less of a second chance than anyone else who has paid a debt to society. No matter how you want to play it, Vick deserves to be playing football tonight.

There seems to be a new approach in America to forgiveness and rehabilitation, and Vick is getting the full effect of it. Maybe it’s the economy. Maybe it’s global warming. Maybe it’s reality television. But for some reason, we really want to see people pay a heavy price for whatever they do. For years, we have said America is about second chances, but it would appear as if the toll for those opportunities has risen at a pace that outstrips inflation. Yeah, we’ll forgive you, but only once you’re destitute and laid completely bare. In Vick’s case, he hit that bottom when he and the rest of the Bad Newz Kennels crowd started copping pleas, and the $130 million man became Inmate Number 7. It’s time for him to move on. And if you think that playing football gives him some kind of magical free pass from what he’s done and what he has had taken from him – rightfully – over the past several years, then you are either naïve or cynical. Keep one thing in mind: If Vick starts reverting to his Ron Mexico days, even a little bit, he is done. He’ll be tossed out of football, hoisted up on the highest yardarm and made to walk the plank. And he’ll deserve it. For now, however, give him the chance to make good (or bad). That begins tonight, when he takes a snap and tries to ply his trade.

Meanwhile, Plaxico Burress meets with his prison consultant about how best to approach his pending two years in stir. He finally copped a plea after realizing the New York authorities were intending to hit him harder than Troy Polamalu for bringing a loaded semiautomatic pistol into a nightclub last November. His sentence may seem excessive to some, because the only person hurt as a result of the stupid move was Burress himself. But since clubs like the Latin Quarter often attract an element for whom bringing roscoe along is de rigueur, the NYC crowd wants to send a message. Pack, and you will be slapped down.

Two years from now, Burress will be out, and no doubt looking for employment to support his family, which will swell by one during his time in stir. And when he does, the NFL should allow him back in. He’ll have to prove himself contrite, of course, and the media will help him do that, just as 60 Minutes did for Vick. Burress will deserve a second chance, just like Vick does. It’s up to him whether he makes the most of it or tosses it away.

That’s how it’s supposed to work in this country. Right?

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EL HOMBRE SEZ: As one of the largest critics of Majoke League Baseball’s steroid abusers and enablers and the inflated performances they have fostered, El Hombre feels like a hypocrite when he celebrates Usain Bolt’s ridiculous exploits. The Jamaican sprinter has been absolutely electric since the ’08 Olympics and watching him run is pure, unadulterated pleasure. But is he clean? Please, oh, please say it’s so…Is there a player in the majors dumber than Billy Wagner? Probably not. Now clear of Tommy John surgery and hoping to become a reliable pitcher again, he seriously considered staying with the sad-sack Mets, rather than joining the Red Sox as a set-up man for Jonathan Papelbon. A key consideration was whether the Sox would pick up his option for next year (Wagner didn’t want that to happen), at a cool $8 million. Chances are Wagner won’t get that on the open market, and if he did, it likely wouldn’t be with a team as good as Boston. Once again, money trumps the chance to win…Kudos to Vandy hoops coach Kevin Stallings, who forfeited a $100,000 pay raise in order to fund a team trip to Australia. The excursion was planned because Commodore center A.J. Ogilvy is an Aussie and went on as scheduled because of Stallings’ largesse in the wake of institutional budget cuts. Well done, coach…Thank goodness the NFL, NCAA and other sports confederations fought so hard to stop gambling on games in Delaware. Now there won’t be any more betting on sports outside of Las Vegas. Right…More Bolt: His handlers are discussing a book deal with some publishers. The guess here is that it will be a fast read…The WNBA season is rocketing toward a scintillating close with playoff berths hanging in the balance andzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

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YOU GOT A PROBLEM WITH THAT? With fewer than 40 games remaining in the season, it is absolutely time for the Phillies to begin investigating other options at closer. Brad “Lights On” Lidge has blown an MLB-high nine saves this season and has shown no consistency or reliability in the spot. That may be okay in a division with no real competition and a league that seems to have few worthy regular-season challengers for the best overall record, but it won’t cut it in the playoffs, where shaky late-inning relief is a huge reason teams blow championship shots. Lidge shouldn’t be thrown onto the Adam Eaton Memorial Ash Heap, but the Phils need to groom someone to share the job with him, so that when Lidge has worked a couple days in a row, he doesn’t have to go out to the mound when he doesn’t “have anything on the ball,” as was the case in Tuesday’s hideous meltdown against the Pirates. Or, when he can’t stop opposing batters from slapping him around, the Phillies will have another option. The sad part of it is that going into the Phillies’ half of the ninth against the Pirates, Lidge and Chan Ho Park were both warming up. Had manager Charlie Manuel made the right choice, Park would have tried to close things out. That would have taken advantage of his great work of late and given Lidge a night off after three straight days of work. Manuel has been vocal in his support for Lidge, but he can’t blow the team’s chance at a repeat by sticking with an unreliable performer. Let Park start closing and see how he does. Or, if Brett Myers is healthy and ready to be effective at the big-league level, let him take a shot. It will most likely be better than what Lidge has given us.

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AND ANOTHER THING: It would be absolutely wonderful if the Minnesota Vikings were torn apart by in-fighting, factionalism and other divisive circumstances and finished below the Lions in the NFC North. Wednesday’s report of a “schism” (What, did the Vikes sign Martin Luther?) in the Minnesota locker room over Cowboy QB’s recent decision to unretire was welcomed by anyone who celebrates the team, rather than the individual. If indeed there are large groups of players on the squad with significant issues over C-QB’s egomaniacal behavior, kudos to them. And no amount of practical jokes, swashbuckling play or aw-shucks, made-for-TV smiles by Number Four will change that. Coach Brad Childress took a huge risk waiting this long to import an outsider on a team that had already developed an identity and had bonded around two other quarterbacks. In the end, this might become the textbook example of why football is unlike most other sports, due to its need for team harmony, no matter how jaded we may think the millionaire players may be. Of course, it wouldn’t hurt if the new passer was absolutely awful and was given no choice but to return to a quiet life of mowing lawns and shaving every third day back in Mississippi.

-EH-