NFL denies report of Vick season-long suspension
ESPN.com news services
Updated: August 13, 2007, 8:52 AM ET
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The NFL dismissed a report Sunday that said commissioner Roger Goodell was close to announcing a season-long suspension of embattled Falcons quarterback Michael Vick for his alleged involvement in sponsoring a dogfighting operation.
Citing two sources within the league with knowledge of the situation, Yahoo.com reported late Sunday night that Goodell will announce "this week or next" that Vick will be suspended for the 2007 season.
"That's the direction it's going and has been from the time this started," one of the sources said this week, according to Yahoo. "The plan was to make sure it was announced before the season. Given what everybody has seen from what [league] security found and what the feds are telling us, there's really no choice."
"No decision has been made," NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told USA Today. Aiello also said the league's independent review into the Vick case is not yet complete and that no action, if any, will be taken until the review has reached a conclusion.
In a Richmond, Va., court in late July, Vick pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce in aid of unlawful activities, and conspiring to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture. He said in a written statement that he looked forward to "clearing my good name." He also pleaded with the public to resist a rush to judgment.
One of Vick's co-defendants, 34-year-old Tony Taylor, pleaded guilty to the same charges and pledged to fully cooperate with the government in its prosecution of Vick and two others. The plea deal requires Taylor to testify against Vick and his two remaining co-defendants if called upon to do so.
The gruesome details outlined in the July 17 indictment have fueled public protests against Vick and prompted the suspension of some of his lucrative endorsement deals. The summary of facts signed by Taylor supports the indictment's claims that the dogfighting ring on Vick's property in Surry County, Va., executed underperforming dogs by drowning, hanging and other brutal means. Taylor admitted shooting one dog and electrocuting another when they did not perform well in test fights in the summer of 2002.
Vick has been barred from Falcons training camp by Goodell while the league conducts its investigation.
"While it is for the criminal justice system to determine your guilt or innocence, it is my responsibility as commissioner of the National Football League to determine whether your conduct, even if not criminal, nonetheless violated league policies, including the Personal Conduct Policy," Goodell said in a letter to the quarterback on July 24.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
