Making the decision to retire from the NFL can sprout from many different circumstances, and oftentimes it takes a series of events to unfold before a veteran is ready to make that call. In the case of Michael Vick, who announced his retirement Friday ahead of Super Bowl LI, one pivotal moment solidified his resolve.
That moment occurred when the Minnesota Vikings didn’t reach out to Vick following the traumatic knee injury suffered by Teddy Bridgewater during the preseason.
“Me and the guys (his associates) were sitting on the couch, and I thought I was going to get a call, man,” Vick told the Pioneer Press Friday at the site of Super Bowl LI. “But they didn’t call. That was probably the reason I chose to go into retirement, because I could have helped that football team.”
Vick thinks the Vikings “dropped the ball” trading for Sam Bradford instead of signing him to a free agent deal, especially given the potential dynamic combination he and Adrian Peterson could have become.
“I think they dropped the ball on that one,’’ Vick said of never being signed by the Vikings. “Me and Adrian Peterson would have been dynamic. I think a lot of these general managers, they don’t make the right decisions. Ultimately, I think it jeopardizes their careers, too.
On the flip side of this argument, one has to wonder if Vick could have survived many games playing behind Minnesota’s awful offensive line this past season. Not to mention, Peterson himself missed most of the season with a knee injury, and it wouldn’t be a surprise whatsoever if he never plays another down for the Vikings.
That said, professional athletes rarely think they’re not going to succeed, so it’s not surprising that Vick thinks he could have had a huge impact for Minnesota. In the end, though, the fact that the Vikings, a team in desperate need of a quarterback, didn’t call was enough to let Vick know his time was up in the NFL.