Finally Free (32 page)

My job, my career, is simply what I do, not who I am. With this perspective—knowing my identity is in God and not in those things—I can move forward with confidence. In that confidence, I have set some goals for myself.

My goal in the NFL is simple: I want to win a Super Bowl.

What a moment it would be if one day I'm able to stand with my teammates and hold the Vince Lombardi Trophy that the NFL awards each year to its championship team. Every quarterback wants to lift up that trophy and say, “I led my team to a Super Bowl and won it.” If I can accomplish that, it would be a storybook ending for me.

At the conclusion of my career, I want to take some time off and then eventually get into high school coaching to help as many kids as I can to get into college and teach them to dream big. I
guess you could say I want to follow in Coach Tommy Reamon's footsteps, to pass along to others the many things he taught me.

I only want to coach high school. I won't coach college or the pros because those levels are just too time-consuming with recruiting and all the preparation that's necessary. I still want to have time with my family when I coach, and since I am already sacrificing family time, I don't want to do it again later in life.

Another thing I want to do, because I have the land, is to start a wildlife conservation center. I'd also like to have one or two animal shelters and open up two or three veterinary hospitals around the world. I think this would be a unique way for me to continue giving back. It can't fix what I've done, but it would provide a better future for animals.

Friends, fans, and fellow players have helped me to stay positive.

It meant a lot during the 2010 season to receive texts saying “Congratulations!” Teammates stood by me, and so did many players from other teams—guys like Peyton Manning. I am also thankful that support came from key people in my rehabilitation process—people who easily could have been very skeptical because of all that I did in the past. Words of support from the judge who sentenced me, the NFL commissioner who suspended me, and the Atlanta Falcons organization that I let down so severely were an incredible encouragement.

My comeback is far from over. I don't know if it will ever be fully complete, but I feel good that progress is being made. One of the
ways I'm able to gauge how I'm doing is the feedback I get from the people who know me the best and have known me the longest—guys like Coach Reamon, Pastor Domeka Kelley, and James “Poo” Johnson from the Newport News Boys & Girls Club. Each of them has meant so much to me, both before and after my prison sentence. They encourage me almost daily, and I want to share with you some of their perspectives.

Coach Reamon says: “A tremendous maturity has happened in Michael. The football part doesn't surprise me at all, but his communication is also so solid for important things in his life and proving something, not just to himself but to others.”

Pastor Kelley says he sees a noticeable difference in my countenance: “Michael has a smile that captivates the world. But now it's like he has a glow to go along with that smile. He has grown tremendously in his relationship with the Lord; he has found his purpose. He is a wonderful football player, but he knows he has a higher calling than that.”

And here are a few words from Mr. Johnson: “One of the things I was so proud of was that Michael never got cold toward people. He has handled what has been said about him well. He manned up to it and didn't try to blame anyone else. He just stepped up and put the blame where it is supposed to be.”

I greatly appreciate those words coming from men I admire so much. I know that it is God who has given me the grace to extend to others.

It's good to know that people from back home like Coach
Reamon, Pastor Kelley, and Mr. Johnson have my back. They follow and support virtually everything I do.

Mr. Johnson says he plays football vicariously through me and that he still views me as one of his kids in the Boys & Girls Club. “It's like every time you run the ball, I run the ball,” he told me. “When you take a hit, I take a hit.”

There are many areas I still need to improve in, both on and off the field. Mr. Johnson agrees with Coach Reid that, for my own safety, I need to become better at sliding at the end of a run rather than acting like a running back and subjecting myself to some rather crushing hits from defenders. Mr. Johnson even has an expert who he says can teach me: his longtime friend and baseball Hall of Famer Willie Mays, who was an exceptional slider as well as a feared home-run hitter. Maybe one of the reasons I'm not a good slider is because, whether it's running with the football or giving a speech for the Humane Society or to a graduating class, I try to approach everything head-on.

Though there are times to approach life head-on, there are other times we need to let God do His thing.

Philadelphia took a chance on me. Many people, like Andy Reid, Tony Dungy, and Roger Goodell, took a chance on me. Through it all—my rise, fall, and ongoing redemption—I had support. I had support from my family, friends, and fans. They didn't have to support me, but they did. People didn't have to write me letters, but they did.

My story is not finished. I have more to do. I have something that I want to give back to everyone that supported me. Here it is: I am committed, focused, and determined to win a Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles. This is my promise. It is my drive. I will work like a champion to get there. I want to do it for my family, friends, mentors, coaches, teammates, and fans. I want to do it for Philly.

Not long before this book went to press, I went out to plant sunflower seeds with my son Mitez. I thought about what I would like to do with the sunflowers if they rose out of the ground: I told Mitez we'd take them and place them on my grandmother Caletha's grave. She's the one who taught me how to walk with confidence.

I wish she was still here to help me, because I know the eyes of the world are constantly on me, watching to see how—and if—I will grow. Watching to see if I will rise or fall. To the watching world, I'll say the same thing that I'd say to my grandmother if she were still with us: I've only just begun.

Postscript

 

Second chances are not any easier than the first; this is why we must learn from our failures and avoid repeating our mistakes. Based on my trials and successes, I have learned so much that is helping me now. I only wish I could have learned these things earlier.

I would like to share some principles that have helped me make the most of my second chance. I call them “seven keys to a better life.” These principles are featured throughout this book, and it is my hope that they will be of some help to you too.

1. Develop a relationship with God and put Him first in your life.

2. Honor and respect your family by making them a priority above other things and other relationships.

3. Build a positive and strong support network of peers by choosing your friends wisely.

4. Tell the truth in all situations. Lying will always backfire.

5. Be mentored. We can learn so much from people wiser than ourselves. Then become a mentor, paying it forward to others.

6. Give hope and be an encouragement to others.

7. Pursue excellence in all you do through full commitment, sacrifice, and service.

Career Playing Record

(through the 2010 breakout season)

Player Profile

Full Name:
Michael Dwayne Vick

Height:
6'0”

Weight:
215 pounds

Birthplace:
Newport News, Va.

Birthdate:
June 26, 1980

Parents:
Brenda Vick and Michael Boddie

Siblings:
Sisters - Christina & Courtney / Brother - Marcus

Wife:
Kijafa Frink

Children:
Son - Mitez / Daughters - Jada, London

High School:
Ferguson and Warwick, Newport News, Va.

College:
Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

First Team:
Boys & Girls Club Spartans, Newport News, Va.

Greatest Influence:
Grandmother - Caletha Vick

Favorite Childhood Athletes:
Steve Young, Jerry Rice

Hobbies:
Fishing, golf

Career Highlights