Blog from ESPN Radio 1100 and 98.9 FM Personalities
Congrats to Michael Vick! Radio hosts should be lining up to say 'I was wrong'
by Cofield,posted Nov 16 2010 11:04AM
Are you hearing history revised on your local sports radio station today? Talking heads around the country must be shaking their heads after watching Michael Vick explode for 333 yards in the air and 80 more on the ground. The most dynamic QB in NFL history was responsible for six touchdowns. So where are all the guys stepping up to say, "I was wrong about Vick?"
From the time he was put away on dog fighting charges in Aug. of 2007 to his return to the NFL in Aug. of 2009, Vick was a punching bag for most sports talk radio hosts.
The prevailing opinion was that he sucked, was never a real quarterback and had almost no shot of ever returning to the league and achieving success. Some dopes even said that Vick would be a running back upon his return. Others said he was too risky to bring on board. Some national hosts even said he lacked the intelligence to run a team.
It's all that great racial coding - we've come to expect from many of the 45-to-65 year old dinosaurs inhabiting the world of sports talk - that makes this comeback story so enjoyable.
How many people in the media used a common-sense approach when it came to Vick? Removing emotion from the situation and speaking with a little objectivity? Hard to name anyone, right?
I know hosts in Atlanta and Las Vegas who did so.
Old FoxSportsRadio1460 Las Vegas promo on Vick smear job getting out of control (8/20/07):
2 Live Stews from Atlanta told us the real reason why there was so much anger over Vick (8/22/07):
ESPN's NFL crew discussing Vick's chances of pulling off a comeback. Bill Parcells and Emmitt Smith said he's not a quarterback (8/23/2007):
