Originally published Friday, August 14, 2009 at 9:22 PM
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Philadelphia quarterback Michael Vick, who served prison time for his role in a dogfighting ring, appears at a news conference
Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said he wanted to see self-hatred in Michael Vick, wanted to know the player his coach and quarterback...
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PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said he wanted to see self-hatred in Michael Vick, wanted to know the player his coach and quarterback both wanted for the Eagles could grasp the "cruelty, the torture, the complete disregard for any definition of human decency" that disgusted Lurie.
This week, in a one-on-one meeting, Lurie, who calls himself an "extreme dog lover" who thinks every day about two family pets who have died in the last two years, said he came away convinced Vick could do more than provide a dynamic element to his offense. Vick, Lurie said, had so completely transformed his life that the former Atlanta Falcons quarterback could complete what has become his new mission: to help save more animals than he had harmed.
On Friday, in a delicately handled reintroduction to the league and the public, Vick began trying to convince everyone else, too. With a small clutch of protesters outside the gates to the Eagles' training complex, a subdued Vick, flanked by coach Andy Reid and ex-Indianapolis coach Tony Dungy, who has become an informal mentor since he visited Vick in prison, rejoined the NFL as a member of the Eagles, answering questions for about 30 minutes in his first news conference since his conviction for his role in a dogfighting ring two years ago.
Quarterback Donovan McNabb, a friend, had lobbied for the Eagles to sign the 29-year-old Vick.
"Our country is a country of second chances," a contrite Vick said. "I paid my debt to society."
Reid said he was moved, in part, by the second chances offered to his sons, who were arrested on drug charges in 2007.
Vick can practice; he can play in the last two exhibition games. He needs NFL approval before playing in the regular season.
Vick said he had known being involved in the dogfighting ring was wrong.
"Just when I was trying to turn the corner, it was too late," Vick said. "For the life of me, I can't understand why I was involved in such pointless activity."
Copyright © The Seattle Times Company
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