Yet They Endorse Him by Sending Him Nike Products
Boycott the Eagles, and now boycott Nike. Don't be like Mike. (Photo: flickr.com)
I understand that professional sports are more about business than they are about the love of the game on an organizational level. A great deal of money is changing hands among fans, advertisers, merchandisers and teams, and that money must be handled properly. Nike and the Philadelphia Eagles are not different in that regard, so it’s understandable that products, endorsements and other kickbacks will fly back and forth. While an average people contemplate a personal loan application, a sports team or shoe executive contemplates when to bust out the Cristal.
However, when someone like Michael Vick gets involved – a convicted dog killer – right-thinking people need to take a stand for what is right.
Boycott the Eagles
First of all, Vick was reinstated into the NFL by Commissioner Roger Goodell. If I were an owner, Vick’s reinstatement would have earned my vote of “no confidence” in the leadership Mr. Goodell supposedly brings to the NFL. Second, as a fan of the NFL, I would take action against the Philadelphia Eagles. An Eagles boycott is entirely appropriate, as they are displaying no sense of social responsibility by putting Michael Vick on the field and paying him an NFL-sized salary. He got off too easy for his crime; hopefully tougher legislation will be passed that make serious crimes against animals punishable by tougher sentences – even for “super” stars.
Boycott Nike
Next came the rumor of a Michael Vick Nike contract. Before his dog fighting history came to light, Vick was a Nike spokesman, but they dropped him in 2007 in order to save face. Because we all know that Nike is a corporation that does not concern itself with others:
According to the USA Today, Nike has denied that Michael Vick is signing an endorsement contract with the company. That’s what spokesman KeJuan Wilkins is saying on behalf of his oh-so-socially conscious employer. However, Vick’s agent Mike Principe says otherwise.
Here’s Nike’s Official Word
“Nike does not have a contractual relationship with Michael Vick. We have agreed to supply product to Michael Vick as we do a number of athletes who are not under contract with Nike,” they said in a statement. But another Michael Vick agent – Joel Segal – told SportsBusiness Journal that the Vick is “excited to be part of the Nike team again.”
Damage Control! Must Separate From the Vick!
Multiple sources are indicating that an explicit endorsement where Michael Vick and Nike contract to promote one another is bogus. I say “explicit” because Nike is still implicitly endorsing Michael Vick by giving him free product. Vick is scratching Nike’s back by accepting, because he (and his team) can certainly afford to outfit him with gear. Thus, Nike continues to prove that they have the conscience of an ax murderer buried beneath all the token efforts they make to seem like a decent company that cares about their fellow man.
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Michael Vick doesn’t deserve anything but the chance to rehabilitate himself out of the spotlight in an authority-monitored community service program. The Philadelphia Eagles boycott should go forward, no matter how many mindless slobs in Philadelphia and elsewhere there are who think Vick “did his time.” Now, a Nike boycott should commence. I don’t own Nike products and will never purchase them again. If I had to buy shoes and only Nike was on sale, I’d fill out a personal loan application so that I could buy anything other than Nike product. That’s a decision I can sleep with at night.
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