Will We Ever See Vick Play Again?

Allow us to make a small prediction: After NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's decision to ban Michael Vick from training camp yesterday, effectively putting him in an odd purgatory of not being suspended but not being allowed to play either, we will never see Michael Vick play a game for the Atlanta Falcons again. And you might not seem him play again, at all.

We're not the only ones making this prediction — John Clayton says Vick's career is "vanishing before our eyes," and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Terence Moore says, "there's no way Vick plays again in Atlanta" — and yesterday's decision seemed the first step in the long, slow process of eventually escorting Vick out of the league. Vick's arraignment is Thursday, and one would have to think that unless every charge is dropped right then — bloody unlikely — this is going to drag on for months or years. Goodell's not going to get less evidence against Vick, and fans aren't going to suddenly hate their dogs more enough to stop all the booing and protests that will follow him everywhere he goes.

It's not much of a leap to see this training camp leak into a suspension, which leaks into a jail sentence, which leaks into another suspension, which leads to him being even more toxic than his brother. And next thing you know, we're talking about what we missed from Vick, all the talent, all the excitement, back before he decided he'd rather slam dogs to the ground — until they died — than be a revolutionary football player. Hey, it happens.

Vick Polishing Off Vanishing Act [ESPN] Goodell Bans Vick From Training Camp [Atlanta Journal Constitution]