May 18th, 2009
This is why you should get a Twitter account.
According to NFL Network, kicker Jay Feely was the first to report on Mark Sanchez’s first day of practice with the New York Jets. According to Feely, “Sanchez was a common target from the moment he introduced himself. Bart Scott did not let up all day and the D dominated. Sanchez got some revenge when Scott was chirping the loudest he hit a 15yd out over Scott. Tomorrow should be fun.”
A couple weeks ago, Jay Feely also wrote an interesting article on the Michael Vick situation. Here are a few excerpts from Feely’s “The Precarious Case of Mike Vick”:
Mike Vick and I were rookies together with the Atlanta Falcons. However we could not have been in more different circumstances. He was the #1 overall pick and I was an afterthought, camp competition who happened to beat out his competition and win the job. I got to watch him grow as a player and struggle as a man from my locker next to his. He was always quiet, kept to himself, and usually spent time outside the facility with his bevy of friends from childhood (which ultimately lead to his demise). This is a very common phenomenon in the NFL. Players who grow up in poor neighborhoods surrounded by gangs and drugs are often protected from their surroundings by those very same gang members and drug dealers who make the environment so dangerous. When they get into the NFL the players are pressured to keep those friendships intact (even though it is not in their own interests to do so). Many are not strong enough to break those bonds that are often very strong but usually very dangerous.
Mike Vick made many poor choices throughout his career off the field. I often wished he would embrace the opportunity he had to dramatically influence inner city America. He was vastly popular, the most popular NFL player for numerous years (by jersey sales). Charles Barkley likes to say that athletes are not role models; no they’re not, but they can be if they chose to. It’s the greatest advantage of being a professional athlete. With very little effort you can have a dramatic impact on kids lives because they will listen to you when sometimes they wont listen to their own parents. I always thought Mike Vick could utilize his position to have a great impact. Unfortunately he did not embrace that opportunity. Maybe this time he will.
For the rest of the article: http://www.squidoo.com/Mike-Vick
Follow TKS on Twitter @kickingsystem
The Kicking System 