Former NFL quarterback Michael Vick has left the Kansas City Chiefs as a coaching intern to become an analyst for FOX.
Just three weeks ago, Michael Vick was on a path to make his coaching dreams come true. As a recipient of the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship, the former NFL quarterback had joined the Kansas City Chiefs and his former head coach Andy Reid (with the Philadelphia Eagles) as a coaching intern. Now he will be changing his career path to focus on a future in broadcasting with word that FOX Sports has come calling.
According to a USA Today report, the move will be formalized on Sunday by FOX. Vick will be featured as an analyst on FOX NFL Kickoff and will also appear on FOX Sports 1 in various roles.
"“I’m very excited,” Vick said. “Over the last seven or eight months, I’ve done a lot of interviews, and I think I’ve gotten better as I’ve been put in those situations more often. Things really came together (with Fox) over the last couple months. They have shows that I have always watched and admired. My friends and family are thankful and proud of me.”"
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Earlier this offseason, Vick had mentioned that he was interested in remaining in the world of football in some capacity after he officially retired in February. Specifically he mentioned a desire to try his hand at coaching, and he’d hoped for an opportunity to arise either with his old coach in Andy Reid or in Atlanta, where he played for the Falcons for several years. Then the Walsh Fellowship surfaced and allowed the Chiefs to bring in Vick for the preseason as an intern.
The reviews on having Vick around the players had all been positive so far from the Chiefs. Andy Reid had praised Vick for his input for players in the film room and on the field, and Chiefs quarterbacks like Alex Smith and Patrick Mahomes had both spoken highly of having a former player like Vick around to share his expertise and experience from playing in Reid’s offensive system.
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Now Vick gets to bring that perspective to more than just a quarterback room by providing analysis for FOX heading into each week in the NFL. It will be interesting to see if there’s any real backlash to the hire given Vick’s troubled background and arrest record for his involvement in a dogfighting ring. The Chiefs had some fan criticism, but it never reached any real fever pitch. Perhaps that helped FOX decide to take a chance on something that could have been so divisive.