Vick's Redemption and Rehab

Seated next to Humane Society head Wayne Pacelle (far right), Eagles quarterback Michael Vick (second from right) watches one of the Society's dog videos before speaking to freshman at the Nueva Esperanza Academy.

Accompanied by team security personel, it was his first appearance in Philadelphia as a spokesman for animal rights. Making a Freudian slip, Vick told the kids he was "an animal cruelty advocate." (hear it at the 3 minute mark on Sarah J. Glover's video here).



He made references to having a "dark side,"  but the Inquirer's Ashley Fox says in her column he sounded "too rehearsed. There wasn't enough contrition. He seemed sorry only that he got caught, not sorry for what he did."

Fellow Inquirer columnist Phil Sheridan writes, "Vick didn't really tell his 'story.' He acknowledged listening to his friends and getting into trouble, but he didn't explain what he did, or why. He didn't tell them he was the owner and operator of a large criminal enterprise."