In stark contrast to Howard Bryant’s excellent debut for ESPN.com yesterday, others at the WWL are struggling to find their voice on the Michael Vick case. Earlier today, Roy Jones Jr. — promoting his upcoming bout with Felix Trinidad — appeared on ESPN Radio with John Seibel and Mike Golic, and argued that Vick was the victim of “bandwagon jumpers”.
Jones opined that Vick, shouldn’t lose his career over “a mistake”. The boxing great, who might’ve not have actually read the indictment, suggested the QB was merely guilty of trying to set up some old pals “in the only business they know how to do”.
Golic, not-so-helpfully proposed the firestorm of media criticism leveled at Vick was analogous to any contemporary celebrity coverage (“look at all the movie stars…in the magazines”), while referring to Seibel as “Greenie” at least once in the process.
Awkward thought it may have been, would it have killed either Golic or Seibel to remind their listeners that Jones has previously boasted of his involvement in cockfighting, and was described in a 2003 Ron Borges article as the owner of some 40 pit bulls ? (“Every one is chained to the ground as well, with a small plastic house behind them so they can get out of the sun. Each is chained for the same reason – because they live a life filled with bad intentions.”)
For sheer entertainment purposes, we only keep our fingers crossed that Golic is allowed to quiz Stephon Marbury on the same subject tomorrow morning.