Brando19
11-02-2008, 06:57 PM
From PFT:
Though there’s no indication at this point that the powers-that-be in Oakland would actually want to add quarterback Mike Vick to the team if/when Vick is reinstated to play in the NFL, some of the current Raiders who played with Vick in Atlanta wouldn’t mind reuniting with their old teammate.
“Would we like to see it? Yes,” fullback Justin Griffith told Steve Corkran of the Contra Costa Times.
“You have to sign him, if you’re the Raiders,” receiver Ashley Lelie said. “Trust me, I’ve played against him before. You don’t want him on the other team. I’ve seen what he can do.”
Cornerback DeAngelo Hall is even willing to put his seven-year, $70 million up as collateral against Vick getting in trouble again.
“Oh, yeah, definitely,” Hall said. “I wouldn’t have any second thought about doing it. I’ll put in my contract the same stipulations or whatever, man. I know anytime something like that happens, you wake up and you smell the roses.
“After talking to Mike, he definitely knows what’s happening. He has a family, kids, fiancée. He definitely wised up and got those riff-raffs away from him. He knows who his true friends are. He’ll move on and go from there.”
Vick is scheduled to be released from prison, and could end up in a halfway house as early as January. Theoretically, he’d be allowed to be employed thereafter by an NFL team.
But first, there’s the issue of being reinstated to the NFL.
“Michael Vick was indefinitely suspended after he pleaded guilty,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told Corkran. “If he applies for reinstatement following his release from jail, the commissioner would review all the facts and make a decision.”
Aiello’s statement implies that Vick won’t be permitted to join any team during his time in a halfway house. If that’s the case, he’ll have to apply for reinstatement in July, and wait for the process to play itself out.
The other impediment to Vick’s presence in Oakland is the fact that the team’s quarterback of the present and future is JaMarcus Russell, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 draft. But our guess is that the team that still holds Vick’s rights (the Falcons) would be inclined to slide Vick to the Raiders for a low-round draft pick if it means keeping Vick out of the NFC South.
Because if/when Vick ever becomes an unrestricted free agent, our guess is that Bucs coach Jon Gruden will be all over him. Gruden faced Vick enough times during Tampa’s twice-per-year battles against the Falcons to know what Vick can do. And Gruden has no qualms about giving social miscreants a second chance, as proven by the ongoing presence of Jerramy Stevens on the team.
Though there’s no indication at this point that the powers-that-be in Oakland would actually want to add quarterback Mike Vick to the team if/when Vick is reinstated to play in the NFL, some of the current Raiders who played with Vick in Atlanta wouldn’t mind reuniting with their old teammate.
“Would we like to see it? Yes,” fullback Justin Griffith told Steve Corkran of the Contra Costa Times.
“You have to sign him, if you’re the Raiders,” receiver Ashley Lelie said. “Trust me, I’ve played against him before. You don’t want him on the other team. I’ve seen what he can do.”
Cornerback DeAngelo Hall is even willing to put his seven-year, $70 million up as collateral against Vick getting in trouble again.
“Oh, yeah, definitely,” Hall said. “I wouldn’t have any second thought about doing it. I’ll put in my contract the same stipulations or whatever, man. I know anytime something like that happens, you wake up and you smell the roses.
“After talking to Mike, he definitely knows what’s happening. He has a family, kids, fiancée. He definitely wised up and got those riff-raffs away from him. He knows who his true friends are. He’ll move on and go from there.”
Vick is scheduled to be released from prison, and could end up in a halfway house as early as January. Theoretically, he’d be allowed to be employed thereafter by an NFL team.
But first, there’s the issue of being reinstated to the NFL.
“Michael Vick was indefinitely suspended after he pleaded guilty,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told Corkran. “If he applies for reinstatement following his release from jail, the commissioner would review all the facts and make a decision.”
Aiello’s statement implies that Vick won’t be permitted to join any team during his time in a halfway house. If that’s the case, he’ll have to apply for reinstatement in July, and wait for the process to play itself out.
The other impediment to Vick’s presence in Oakland is the fact that the team’s quarterback of the present and future is JaMarcus Russell, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 draft. But our guess is that the team that still holds Vick’s rights (the Falcons) would be inclined to slide Vick to the Raiders for a low-round draft pick if it means keeping Vick out of the NFC South.
Because if/when Vick ever becomes an unrestricted free agent, our guess is that Bucs coach Jon Gruden will be all over him. Gruden faced Vick enough times during Tampa’s twice-per-year battles against the Falcons to know what Vick can do. And Gruden has no qualms about giving social miscreants a second chance, as proven by the ongoing presence of Jerramy Stevens on the team.