Vick-key Mouse move

EAGLES QUARTERBACK Michael Vick was in Dallas Saturday night to receive the Associated Press Comeback Player of the Year award. Before that, at an afternoon event, he was given the key to the city by Dallas councilman and mayor pro tem Dwaine Caraway.

Afterward, there was a run on hardware stores as residents of the Big D scurried to change their locks.

OK, so that didn't happen (the changing the locks part). But citizens did let it be known they were not happy about honoring a guy who had served time in prison for running a dogfighting ring.

So much so that the "real" mayor, Tom Leppert, issued a statement yesterday distancing himself from the incident.

"The action taken was not sanctioned by my office and was not an official ceremonial honor on behalf of the City of Dallas," the statement read.

Leppert's statement also said the key was presented "without my knowledge or approval."

On Saturday, Caraway - who did not reveal the sponsor of the event but did say children were in attendance - said he thought "a great majority" of Dallas residents would want Vick to have the key to the city.

He was as wrong as those who took the Steelers and the under.

But that didn't stop him from sticking by his decision yesterday.

"The message and the kids are far greater than all this response about, 'Why give him the key to the city?' " Caraway told ESPNDallas.com. "He is telling kids and exchanging with them the rights and wrongs of the things that he did and encouraging kids to further their education and to not deal with the drugs. To obey their parents and pick the people they hang around."

An aside to the story is that Dallas radio reporter Richard Hunter attended, and filmed, the event. In the film, which can be found on the Internet, Hunter tells Vick that he adopted one of the quarterback's pit bulls. Hunter then tries to speak with Vick and show him a picture of the dog.

Vick looks at the picture but does not speak with Hunter.

- Tom Mahon

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