Maybe you know people who've made those vows. Maybe you've taken the pledge yourself.
I'm not buying it. You're bluffing, and you're bad at it.
I don't doubt you feel angry and betrayed and ashamed. And I don't blame you, either. What Vick did was horrifying and inexcusable. There are those who don't believe he deserves a second chance because they find his crime too heinous. And there are those who are OK with the idea of his playing again - just as long as Vick doesn't play for the Eagles.
All of that makes sense. You aren't comfortable rooting for Vick. That's totally understandable. But there's a big difference between not wanting any part of Vick and not wanting any part of the Eagles.
Let's be honest: Eagles fans are passionate and excitable. There's always something that angries up the blood. I'm not trying to trivialize the reaction to the Vick signing. Of all the flash points that have made people swear off the Eagles in the past, what Vick did was by far the most barbarous and wicked. But this isn't the first time people have renounced their allegiance to the Eagles, and it certainly won't be the last.
In the early '90s, I remember how furious all of my friends and I were when Reggie White led a mass exodus of players. We blamed "that guy in France," as Buddy Ryan used to call Norman Braman, for failing to pay them the going rate, and we took an oath not to watch the Birds until the Eagles were freed from his frugal grip.
In the late '90s, we made a similar pact after the Eagles drafted some good-for-nothing quarterback from Syracuse instead of Heisman Trophy winner Ricky Williams. The new coach was quite obviously a buffoon, and until they replaced him or found a decent running back, we were calling it quits.
