DALLAS—Two years ago, Michael Vick was sitting in a prison cell in Leavenworth, Kansas serving a 19-month sentence for dogfighting. Some believed his NFL career was over.
Last year, Vick threw a grand total of 13 passes in a very limited role for the Philadelphia Eagles. Many wondered if he would ever regain the form that earned him three trips to the Pro Bowl during his six seasons with the Atlanta Falcons.
ICONMichael Vick is your Comeback Player of the Year.
Saturday, the 30-year-old quarterback was named the Associated Press’ Comeback Player of the Year, per Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
The award comes less than one month after Vick guided the Eagles to an NFC East title and playoff berth on the strength of a season in which he amassed 3,694 total yards and 30 touchdowns in just 12 regular season games.
Vick beat out some worthy competition for this year’s award that includes Minnesota linebacker E.J. Henderson, Chicago linebacker Brian Urlacher and Seattle wide receiver Mike Williams. Henderson and Urlacher both battled back from 2009 injuries while Williams didn’t catch a single NFL pass from 2008-2009 because he let himself fall out of shape and couldn’t make a roster.
Whether or not you agree that Vick deserved to win this award, the fact remains that he went from inmate to irrelevant backup to Pro Bowler in roughly two years time.
He may have come back from a problem he got himself into, but while others may have chosen to give up on football, Vick came back.
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