It’s been 18 years since Michael Vick pleaded guilty to federal charges related to dogfighting. Nowadays, Vick’s six-year pattern of cruelty to animals rarely gets mentioned.
The situation resurfaced this week, after Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray posted a photo of himself in a Michael Vick Virginia Tech jersey, along with a dog that looked like a pit bull.
During his Wednesday press conference, Murray apologized.
“In no way, shape or form do I condone animal cruelty or dogfighting,” Murray said, via Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com.
Murray, who was nine when the dogfighting operation on Vick’s Virginia property was first discovered, made it clear that the connection wasn’t intended.
“They both get treated like kings,” Murray said of his two American bulldogs. “So, it’s not like in no way, shape, or form am I condoning that. But, yes, I saw how it affected people and decided to take it down. . . . So, I apologize to anybody and whoever I affected with that.”
Murray’s reaction shows that he wasn’t trying to pay homage to Vick’s past lifestyle or to otherwise excuse Vick’s behavior. He was a kid when it happened. The combination of the Vick jersey and the dog seems to be nothing but an unfortunate coincidence.