Clearly Roger Goodell is trying to promote a positive image for the NFL. But has he gone too far? Michael Vick hasn't been convicted of any crime yet. He doesn't have an exceptionally long history of past offenses. (There are some things in his past, but not a ton.) Why is he not being allowed to prepare for the upcoming season? If the charges get thrown out, the commissioner can't give him back those valuable days of practice. What is there to be gained from suspending him now?
2007-07-23 18:21:29 · 16 answers · asked by Anonymous in Sports ➔ Football (American)
Because it is a FEDERAL idictment. The Feds don't indict unless they have you cold. They do not screw around and waste time on cases that aren't in the bag. Goodell did the right thing. It would have been the biggest distraction of all time to have Vick in camp. More media than the Super Bowl during two a days. A team cannot get ready for the season that way. Vick isn't going to be playing anytime soon anyway, why damage the league?
2007-07-23 18:31:19 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 1⤋
To keep Michael Vick out of the NFL limelight, which is a public relations nightmare!
I believe, as others do, that Vick should voluntarily take a year off and get this Federal court matter squared away. He doesn't need the money, and he'll be able to "Lawyer Up" the finest criminal defense attornies money can buy.
Roger Goodell's decision is a "No-Brainer." This may also be a "Blessing" for Vick insomuch that it will give him "No Profile" at the Falcons camp, without the media circus chasing him around, and no collatteral damage done to the other NFL players and teams.
Goodell also knows that the Feds will probably try Vick under the RICO act, because it was a known criminal enterprise.
I also predict that Vick will beat these charges, and Goodell will have to "Suck It Up" after the not guilty verdict is read.
2007-07-23 19:07:31 · answer #2 · answered by sanspeur15 1 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Roger Goodell did the right thing. However, it is sad that it took the huge public outcry in order for him to do so.
What is to be gained from suspending him now? Take the pressure and the bad publicity off of the NFL. Read the posts here, read the posts on other websites, read the sportswriters articles. 9 out of 10 are calling for Vick's blood, as rightly we should be.
No one wants to go to a football game and see a face that forces you to picture tortured, abused, electrocuted, hung, drowned, shot dead dogs.
No one wants a monster such as this to have any MORE money in his pocket so he can continue to participate and finance such as this sadistic, horrible 'hobby' of his. The NFL has many fans, and not many of these fans are not willing to accept that the money they spend going to games and buying paraphernalia associated with the teams would ever end up in Michael Vick's bank account.
Sorry if you disagree, but you are certainly in the minority if you do.
2007-07-24 01:18:29 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't think he went to far. What Vick did hits home way more than some of the other transgressions of professional athletes. How many of us on Yahoo! Answers own a dog?
Michael Vick is sick, how can you stand by and watch others kill dogs in cold blood because they weren't fighting up to your standards. The dog fighting is bad enough, but the dog are defenseless as they are being killed.
You are correct that he doesn't have a laundry list of offenses, but his current laundry list has occurred over the last year and frankly, the Vick boys don't have the best judgment.
Roger Goodell and the NFL stood to lose major money if they let him report to camp. There were all sort of protesters outside the NFL and Atlanta Falcons offices today. He really had no choice.
2007-07-23 18:42:46 · answer #4 · answered by Labradorables Rock! 4 · 5⤊ 1⤋
Goodell told him outright that he is not trying to find him guilty or innocent of the crime, but that he must determine if he did anything against the Personal Conduct Policy. So this has nothing to do with the Constitution or "innocent until proven guilty."
Plus, Vick is keeping his pay while the investigation is ongoing so he isn't suffering any loss of income.
If he misses training camp, then it's his own fault for being linked to this terrible enterprise. He cannot deny that it took place on property he owned and he should have control over. You are often judged by the company you keep.
2007-07-23 20:06:34 · answer #5 · answered by Rob B 7 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Where is the evidence? It is all allegations. What ever happened to the US Constitution. Innocent until proven guilty. I am not for the indictment he is under but he has not been convicted of any crime. I feel the Commissioner would have felt to much pressure if he let Vick practice. Imagine all the other players he suspended that have not been convicted of anything yet, just mere allegations, the reaction would have been terrible. The Commissioner dug himself into a hole without anyone ever being convicted. He is running an organization on pure hearsay without justice being fulfilled. Damn the President kept his job and a football player can't keep his. If the Commissioner is right, once Vick is convicted if convicted, then you can go ahead and ban him from the NFL for the rest of his career. Image is everything when Justice is second hand.
2007-07-23 19:21:17 · answer #6 · answered by William Z 4 · 1⤊ 3⤋
He doesn't have to be convicted of any crime to be punished by the NFL. The NFL and the justice system are two completely seperate things. Players have to sign a persoanl code of conduct in their contracts that states if they violate it they can be punished by fine, suspension, loss of pay or all three. There is currently an independent NFL investigation into whether Vick violated these NFL policies and he shouldn't be on the filed with his team while he's under investigation.
2007-07-24 07:06:08 · answer #7 · answered by DoReidos 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Mr. Vick is a disgrace to the game of football. He is giving the league a bad name and Mr. Goodell should be forced to fire him. There is no question of his being guilty or not, he is clearly guilty of horrible crimes. He should be forced to repay ALL of the money he recieved from football also from any endorsment deals he had.
The entire world should boycott the companys that have him as a spokesman untill they remove him from their payrolls.
Anyone who thinks that his crimes are no big deal are complete idiot's. There is no defence for him. The world will be better off without ever seeing his lousy face again. I myself am not going to buy products from any of these company's that deal with Vick becouse if they keep him on as a spokesman they are no better than him.
2007-07-26 07:47:01 · answer #8 · answered by Randy T 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think he is trying to make a statement that shady practices are no longer acceptable in the NFL. It is possible that Vick did nothing wrong, but the odds are against him. I think it is worse for the team to think they have a QB and lose him then for Vick to lose some practice time. Goodell is looking out for the league and not the player; it is better for the league if Vick doesn't practice.
2007-07-23 18:32:27 · answer #9 · answered by hattiefrederick 3 · 4⤊ 1⤋
It makes the NFL look much better if he is convicted and besides he has a lot of evididence against him. I don't live at home with the folks, but I check on things; yet he own a large estate he doesn't live at and blames family for having dog fights there? How come then nobody in his family is being charged? In the end Goodell is saving his butt, and so is NIKE.
2007-07-23 20:08:21 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋