It ended up being much like we expected. Last Sunday, Michael Vick, now quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles returned to the Georgia Dome, a stadium he used to electrify nearly every week with his quarterback play as a member of the Atlanta Falcons.
Vick's introduction into the game brought a mixture of reaction: boos with a smattering of cheers here and there. Vick's return to Atlanta was almost as divisive as his reign there as a player and most of that has to do with what Vick represented to the fans of the Atlanta Falcons.
To understand the Vick issue more in depth, you'd have to know a bit about Atlanta the city and their franchise the Falcons. Historically not the winningest franchise in the NFL, the Falcons began to turn the corner in the mid to late 90s thanks, in part, to their star player Deion Sanders. That brief flirtation with success carried on and off through the years and made Falcons games something else to do in the growing southern city.
The drafting of Michael Vick in 2001 as the Number 1 pick overall was supposed to represent a new era for the franchise and the city. Conspicuously absent in prior years, African Americans started to flock to Falcon games more regularly to root on their beloved #7 whose pure athletic skills took the league by storm. He was one of their own, a southern-bred boy and to their delight playing quarterback and winning.
We all know what happened next and it was in the aftermath of Vick's trial, sentencing and release that the two sides of Atlanta really started to emerge. As one of the fastest growing cities in the South, Atlanta has become home to many African Americans and has given it the name "the Black Mecca". While many of the Falcons fan base were incensed at Vick's crimes (as they should), many of his Black fans remained loyal.
It was these fans who wore their #7 jerseys to the game last Sunday while the mostly white attendance at the Georgia Dome expressed their rejection of Vick throughout the game. Even though the team remains successful under new quarterback Matt Ryan, the Vick issue continues to divide the city in ways that most outsiders fail to understand.
Who says race and sports don't mix?
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