As a Football Fan I Refuse to Watch the NFL Pro Bowl on Sunday

I'm a huge NFL fan. I have been watching football my entire life. Some of my favorite memories as a kid are gathering around the television with my brothers and dad to watch some hard-hitting football action. But when the news broke about the NFL honoring former quarterback Michael Vick as a "legends captain" at the 2020 Pro Bowl this year that is something I just cannot support. And frankly, I have no idea why they would make a decision like this.

There is no question that Michael Vick was a tremendous athlete and a good leader for his team on the field, most notably the Atlanta Falcons. But the horrendous things he did off the field including organizing dogfighting is inexcusable in my eyes. This guy was a superstar making millions of dollars and thought he was above the law and set up dogfighting on his own property for his own pleasure.

There is no question of whether this happened seeing as how he pled guilty to state dogfighting charges and was sentenced to three years in prison (even though he was released early).

Most football fans like myself already think that the Pro Bowl game is a joke anyway, the outcome means nothing. It's just a fun way to get the best athletes together playing on the field at the same time. But with NFL television viewership already declining it is shocking to me that they would choose someone so wrapped up in controversy to be a "captain" during the football game being played this weekend in Miami.

Because of the decision made by the NFL I will go out of my way to make sure that I do not watch the Pro Bowl this weekend. I can admit I have made huge mistakes in my life, and still make mistakes daily (although I try to learn from them). But I have never made a defenseless human or animal fight to the death for my own pleasure and as a man that is something that I believe to be unforgivable.