Morals Have Become the Exception, Not the Rule. Sad.

The NFL Pro Bowl, an event that routinely bores fans as much as watching the 1978 Best Picture Winner, The Deer Hunter. Not only does the Pro Bowl lack any sort of meaning but what it generally lacks in entertainment value it makes up for in aberration. This year’s Pro Bowl may actually come with some entertainment value, albeit off the gridiron, as the NFL has once again thrown morality to the wind.

Unbeknownst to The Cornercube the NFL, apparently, selects “honorary captains” at the Pro Bowl for each team (NFC Team and AFC Team). This year the NFL selected as one of its four “honorary captains” former Atlanta Falcons quarterback, Michael Vick. Although Michael Vick revolutionized the NFL by being the first quarterback to rush for over 1,000 yards in a single season (a feat that wouldn’t be broken until, ironically, this year by the Raven’s quarterback, Lamar Jackson), Michael Vick is also remembered as being a felon for his role in running a dogfighting ring in which he abused, tortured and even killed dogs who did not perform well in fights. Once Vick finished serving his 18-month federal prison sentence he would return to the NFL in 2009, playing for the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Jets, and Pittsburgh Steelers and eventually retiring in 2017. Vick is now a football analyst for FOX.

Despite NFL Commissioner Rodger Goodell’s claims that Vick, since being released from prison, has been an advocate for animal rights issues, many Animal Rights Activists are petitioning the NFL to remove Vick as an honorary captain at the Pro Bowl. In fact, one such activist group has gained over 560,000 signatures seeking Vick’s removal. As cbsnews.com reported, the petition stated, “[t]o honor a man who had zero regard for animals is unacceptable and I would like your help to make sure he is NOT honored at the 2020 NFL Pro Bowl.” On the other hand, Rodger Goodell believes that Vick has “paid a heavy price” and that because Vick has worked with animals’ rights groups, such as the Humane Society, he has been accountable for and learned from his mistakes and therefore should be named an honorary captain.

The issue with this whole disagreement is the very fact that it seems confusing how a former NFL player becomes an “honorary captain.” The NFL gives very little indication regarding the requirements to become an honorary captain and just provides a brief synopsis of the honorary captains’ role. The role of an honorary captain is to be a “mentor” to the Pro Bowl players. First, the idea that professional athletes need mentors on the sideline for a game that means absolutely nothing, is ridiculous. If the “honorary captain” was solely named due to his ability on the field, then the animal rights activists’ argument is moot, since they are missing the purpose of the captain. However, the fact that the NFL specifically stated that the “honorary captains” will be acting as “mentors” provides some sort of moral stature that players (again, professional athletes, not some high school team) should look up to.

The NFL has a yearly award called, The Walter Payton Man of the Year Award. This award is presented to a player for his volunteer and charity work, as well as excellence on the field. This award is not new and has been presented since 1970, when Johnny Unitas became the inaugural winner (prior to 1999 the award was simply called, NFL Man of the Year Award). In turn, the NFL has a plethora of players to choose from who are both upstanding citizens and excellent players. Therefore, these players could both be deserving of the title of “honorary captain” and act as legitimate “mentors” to the Pro Bowl Players.

The NFL, as it always does, has placed itself in this moral gymnastics’ dilemma, in which instead of just giving in, they hold their ground and defend their moral ambiguity. Goodell seems to be reasoning that because Vick has turned his life around and done good, that he deserves to represent the NFL and be a mentor. That’s fine, but some past bad actions, no matter the time or recourse done to mitigate the damages, simply preclude the actor from reaching certain milestones.

However, society has either become all too forgivable or simply desensitized by egregious actions. The latter seems to be holding truer than the former. For instance, Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, in his high school and college years, was accused of sexually assaulting women and one such victim even testified during his Senate nomination hearing to such egregious behavior. The Senate, even with hearing quite convincing testimony, ruled that these past actions will have no bearing on Kavanaugh’s ability to be an impartial and fair judge, a judge who will rule on women’s rights matters, such as abortion.  Then, of course, the Commander in Chief, Donald Trump, can payoff porn stars for sex, brag about “grabbing women by the pussy”,  make fun of a journalist with a disability, call White Supremacists “good people”, disavow all Hispanic migrants as “rapists”, bribe a foreign power for personal political gain and consistently refuse to follow and uphold the rule of law (i.e. the Constitution), still has half of America saying (ironically after coming out of church), “that’s our guy!” Then of course there is the Republican Senate, which should be held liable for their willful negligence in failing to uphold the Constitution and check the President’s abuses.

So, if you are appalled by the fact that Michael Vick is named an “honorary captain”, open your eyes. America, and the world, have fallen into this frightening sense in which character, morals, sacrifice and a good heart are sidelined, while the preference for amorality, fear, anger, selfishness, and a lack of sincerity prevail.

The Cornercube believes that Michael Vick has learned from his terrible actions. However, The Cornercube does not believe that Michael Vick should represent the NFL after embarrassing it so terribly. Goodell shouldn’t be celebrating Vick’s ability to act rationally or morally, Goodell, like the rest of us, should have simply required it. Holding someone to a simple level of morality, especially someone who will hold a great deal of power, shouldn’t be hard for society to do, it should come naturally.