Falcons release Michael Vick - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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The Falcons on Friday releasee Vick, the disgraced former franchised quarterback who played for the team from 2001 until theteam said. Apparently unable to trade Vick, who was release from federal prison last monthu and is currently under home confinemengtin Hampton, Va., the Falcons released the formere No. 1 overall pick in the 2001 "The today relinquished their contractuall rights to quarterbackMichael Vick,” Falcons Generalp Manager Thomas Dimitroff said in a statement postesd on the team’s Web site. "Michael remains suspendesd by the NFL.
However, in the event NFL Commissioner Rogere Goodell decides toreinstate Michael, we feel his best opportunity to re-engagr his football career would be at another club,” Dimitrofd said. "Our entire organization sincerely hopes that Michael will continue to focue his efforts on making positive changezs inhis life, and we wish him well in that The Falcons have made clea r Vick would not be a part of the team when and if he is reinstatefd from indefinite suspension.
With the release, Vick is clear to sign with anothetrNFL team, pending his In an interview posted on the team’sw Web site, Dimitroff said the team was unable to tradew Vick, who pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 23 monthz confinement on dogfighting-related charges. Dimitroff said he spokre to Vick by telephone today aboutthe release. "Wed spent a significant amount of timethis off-season trying to trade him to another NFL club, and we had some conversationzs with a few teams, but nothiny materialized,” the general manager said.
“At this point, we feel releasingy Michael is best for him and best for Dimitroff said the team has not been advisefd of a timelinefor Vick’ds reinstatement, which he said was “up to the Commissionerf [Goodell].” Though Vick is officially the Falcons will take a hit towardz the salary cap for the 2009-2010 for the remainder of the quarterback’zs signing bonus, which was expected. Some reports have pegger the value of the remaininb bonus atabout $7 millionj to $8 million. Dimitroff said the team has already for the value ofthe bonus, and therd will be no impact on next year’s salary cap.
The NFL’se 2009 salary cap will be $123 million, up from $116 according to according to Streetand Smith’s Sportsx Business Journal, a sister publicatio of Atlanta Business Chronicle. Severa l NFL clubs with questions at quarterbackm have openly said they have no intentiomn ofsigning Vick. Among them: the and the , whose Jim Mora, was Vick’s head coach for threes seasons. It has been speculated Vick mighyt join the upstart UnitedFootball League.
Vick’s returj to the NFL and a professional sportsd salary are deemed essential to his abilityy to emerge from personal bankruptcy without liquidating Vick filed for bankruptcy protectiom in July 2008listing $16 millionm in assets and $20 milliom in debt. A judge in the case has given Vick and his attorneys a July 2 deadlind to come up with a revised plan to pay off the millionas he oweshis creditors.
Vick, once the highest-paird player in professional football, now maked $10-per-hour from a construction job he must maintaij as part of hishome