Blank, by most accounts, is a decent man. He cofounded Home Depot, made millions, and established himself as a philanthropic NFL owner with a passion for football. He bought into Vick's charm, graceful deftness, and seemingly bottomless reservoir of potential. Blank gave him a $130 million contract and dutifully backed him through scandals involving secret compartments at airport security, his "Ron Mexico" sexual escapades, and obscene gestures leveled at the home crowd. Blank and his prized quarterback were pals, and you know how that is. Friends always have each other's backs, right?
Sure. Blank's reward for his blind loyalty was to suffer excruciating embarrassment on a national level. How many times in the past week have you seen the clip of Blank gingerly pushing Vick around the field in his wheelchair during his recovery from a broken leg? It's beyond humiliating.
The shrewd entrepreneur with a portfolio in excess of $1.3 billion has been made out to be a fool, like a jilted gigolo who never saw the betrayal coming.
Michael Vick lied to Arthur Blank, the man he professes to love and respect. Not once. Not twice. Repeatedly.
He wasn't truthful about his involvement in the dogfighting ring that was operating out of his property. He wasn't truthful about the "family matters" that required him to leave town and miss team commitments.
Blank is a proud man who is living every owner's worst nightmare. You pay millions and millions of your own money and lay your trust -- your team's future -- with one player, and he makes a mockery of the relationship. Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who has spoken to and traded e-mails with the Falcons owner during this crisis, sympathizes.
"I feel sorry for Arthur," Kraft said yesterday afternoon, "because I know it could happen to any one of us."
He is right. Teams can research players all they want. They can trace their family tree, delve into their upbringing, their schooling, their cultural bent, their likes and dislikes, and their relationships with past teammates, coaches, teachers, girlfriends, wives, mailmen, garbage collectors, baby sitters, therapists, and hair stylists.
