Redemption was an overriding theme of the NFL this season. With Michael Vick leading the Eagles to the playoffs to cap off the best season of his career and Ben Roethlisberger appearing in his third Super Bowl after not even playing for the first four games of the season, there has been much made in the media about the “redemption” of these two stars over the past year. But these are not the grand tales of redemption the media would have us believe. Vick and Roethlisberger have not, and cannot, prove on the football field that they have redeemed themselves off it. Roethlisberger was asked countless times at the Super Bowl media day about “off the field distractions.” About his suspension at the start of this season. About “overcoming adversity.” Let’s just be clear about this from the get go. Alleged rape is not a distraction or adversity. Roger Goodell did not suspended Roethlisberger for something beyond Big Ben’s control. He is accused of doing some heinous things, on more than one occasion. He has no one but himself to blame for this so-called “adversity” he must overcome. Likewise for Vick. He didn’t just bet on dog fighting. He ran the show. Vick was found guilty in a court of law of some atrocious things. But now that both have returned to their former on-the-field glory, we as a nation are being asked to forgive, or at least forget.
It is important to recognize the difference between the two cases. Personally, I have a little bit, a VERY little bit, of an easier time accepting Vick’s renewed stardom. Sure, I’m an Eagles fan and I can appreciate what he has done for the team this season, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to turn to him as a model of how to bounce back from failure. I’m not going to praise him as a hero for coming back to the game a better player than he left it. But Vick stood trial and served nearly two years in jail. He lost most of his life savings and declared bankruptcy. He has, since being signed by the Eagles in 2009, lived a fairly clean and quiet life. He has done charity work with the Humane Society and connects with fans by responding to dozens of tweets every day. Vick recently reaffirmed his commitment to living a quiet life off the field by refusing to attend a big time Super Bowl party at the Deux Lounge in Dallas which was, confusingly, billed as “The Michael Vick Experience” (Which is too bad, because it had a really cool video invitation/ trailer).
However, all of this says nothing about whether Vick has truly redeemed himself. He may be the same cruel, heartless man who founded, housed, and funded Bad Newz Kennels. He may be being bribed by his publicist or the Eagles to show up at the Humane Society. Maybe it’s some assistant who charms his fans everyday on Twitter. Or maybe his time in jail has helped him begin understand how reprehensible his actions were. Maybe he is trying to make up for what he has done by volunteering. And maybe he is as grateful for this second chance at life and football as he says he is. We, as fans, will never know. But what we can know is that the number of touchdowns or interceptions he threw this season is no indication of this.
Roethlisberger’s case is different. Yes, Roethlisberger was never found guilty of any wrongdoing. But, in some ways, this makes it worse. There seems to be little doubt that Roethlisberger is a pig who behaved inexcusably that night in Georgia last year, as well as in Lake Tahoe in 2008, regardless of what the courts have been able to prove. But Roethlisberger has done nothing publicly to indicate that he is remorseful for what happened and that he would never behave that way again. His tactic has primarily been to ignore that anything happened at all. And really, what has he lost in this whole ordeal? A few early season games and a beef jerky sponsorship. He didn’t serve jail time. He didn’t go bankrupt. He didn’t miss entire seasons in the prime of his career. And what exactly has Roethlisberger done to try repair his reputation, if only in the public eye? He has never apologized. He doesn’t volunteer at a battered women’s shelter (which would probably be a bad idea, in any case). Roethlisberger has paid a very little price for his wrongdoings and has done very little to appear remorseful. And yet, we again have no idea if Big Ben is sorry. Maybe he did some real soul searching during those four weeks at the beginning of the season. We don’t know.But I can tell you one way that both Roethlisberger and Vick will not prove to me that they are changed men -- by winning football games. Making up for past sins, redeeming oneself, becoming a changed man are all things that have no place on the gridiron. Playing ability and morality have almost nothing in common. Guys play in the NFL because they are good at playing football, not because they have high moral standards or should be our children’s role models. Admire their physical ability and their mental toughness; leave your parents and preachers to be your role models. Just don’t expect me to forget the horrible, horrible things Roethlisberger and Vick, and many other NFL players, have done just because they’ve won a few games.
