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Michael Vick, T.O. and the Buffalo Bills

Posted May 25, 2009 1:55PM By Ryan Wilson (RSS feed)

Filed Under: Bills, AFC East, NFL Fans, NFL Free Agency

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As far as the United States Justice system is concerned, Michael Vick has served his debt to society. He spent the last 19 months in the clink, and now he's kicking it in his mansion. The terms of his probation stipulate that he get a job (his construction gig starts next week) and remain under house arrest when he's not wearing a hard hat.

But there will come a time when he seeks to return to the NFL. The first order of business is getting commissioner Roger Goodell to reinstate him, and then finding a club interested in his services. The former will be tougher than the latter, although neither appear insurmountable.

In the meantime, let's assume Goodell green-light's Vick's comeback. The next question: where might he end up? MDS got it started last week -- according to ESPN's John Clayton, the Rams, Seahawks, 49ers and Patriots are the most obvious destinations for Vick -- but yesterday the Buffalo media made the case for and against Ron Mexico coming to Upstate New York.

The Buffalo News' Larry Felser writes that Vick could be a possibility because "... owner, Ralph Wilson, is 90 and he has seen it all. The strong possibility of a firestorm reaction from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals would not make him flinch. I doubt that he cares what PETA thinks. Besides, Wilson has always been a second-chance person, willing to give someone an opportunity to right a previous wrong."

Felser qualifies that this is contingent on Vick's skills having not diminished during his two-year forced sabbatical. But in his Monday Morning Quarterback column, Sports Illustrated's Peter King, after talking to former players and coaches, points out that today's NFL could be a better fit for Vick's talents than the game he left two years ago -- "assuming he's still the energetic, frenetic presence he was when he last played in 2006."
"Teams are playing the spread more, and playing things like the Wildcat more, running more gimmicky plays,'' said Trent Green, the longtime quarterback trying to get signed somewhere. "If anything, the game's gotten faster since Mike left. If he's still the same player, that could play into his hands.''

IF he's still the same player. Pretty big if.
Whatever your thoughts on Vick, puppy murderer -- and I can't imagine anybody would defend his actions on any level -- his trial was more theatre than legal proceeding. The Justice Department has better uses of their time, and if Vick wasn't a high-profile athlete, this case would've been handled at the state level.

That doesn't absolve Vick of being a horrible person, and I suspect there's a special section of Hell already cordoned off for him. But in the interim, the guy has a right to earn a living. Whether it's pushing a wheelbarrow on a construction site, or barely completing 50 percent of his passes for an NFL team.

With that in mind, the Democrat and Chronicle's Bob Matthews is all for the Bills signing Vick, and is even willing to rationalize it for us: "Most of us don't believe Vick is sorry about anything except getting caught, but we can't be sure. ... Vick isn't a credit to the NFL, but many other guys aren't either, and they'll be playing." Matthews commences dream sequence:
Imagine a 2009 Buffalo Bills offense with Owens and Vick added to the mix. It would mean nightmares for opposing defensive coaches, and sell tickets. I believe T.O. is the main reason the Bills didn't suffer a major drop in ticket sales for this season coming off a third straight 7-9 record and the rehiring of coach Dick Jauron.

I believe signing Vick would sell even more season tickets. Some people might try to cancel with a dog-killer on the team, but I think many more people would take their place.
I don't disagree about the increase in ticket sales; it's a perfectly reasonable assumption. But would Vick be an upgrade over Roscoe Parrish? I'm not joking and I know the Bills were allegedly willing to trade Parrish this offseason.

Both are potentially explosive players in an historically inert offense, but why would Vick be anymore effective than Parrish -- you know, other than the ticket sales? (And please don't say "Vick can throw the ball." That's technically true, but he can't throw with any accuracy, and that was before he spent two years busting rocks for 17 cents a day.)

I wouldn't begrudge the Bills for showing interest in Vick (they wouldn't be the first NFL team to roll the dice on a guy with character concerns), I just don't know how he makes them better. I get the "he'd put asses in the seats" argument, but it's only temporary if they bust out another 7-9 record.

A better, less sexy idea: focus on filling the gaping holes along the offensive line. Because without a workable o-line, everything else is moot. Not only that, but decent blocking would have a much bigger impact on the Bills' playoff chances than taking a flier on Vick.

Tags: Dick+Jauron, DickJauron, Michael+Vick, MichaelVick, Ralph+Wilson, RalphWilson, Roger+Goodell, RogerGoodell, Ron+Mexico, RonMexico, Roscoe+Parrish, RoscoeParrish

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