Michael Vick wishes he had more guidance before dogfighting derailed NFL career

Former NFL quarterback Michael Vick expressed regret, wishing he would have listened to the one person who advised him against the dogfighting enterprise that derailed his career.

“I wish I had a father figure or somebody in my life — and I did, too, for the most part — but not to the point where somebody was like, ‘Yo, man, you can really screw all this up,’” Vick said on an episode of Tyreek Hill’s podcast “It needed to be Said.”

“Ain’t nobody came and said, ‘Bro, you can screw all this up.’ One person [did], I won’t say his name.”

While the word “dogfighting” was never brought up on the podcast, Vick shared his career and life perspective during the podcast episode with Hill, a receiver with the Miami Dolphins.

Vick, 43, pleaded guilty to a federal charge in connection with a dogfighting operation in August 2007. He was suspended by the NFL and ultimately sentenced to 23 months in federal prison. He served the first 18 months there and then was transferred to home confinement.

Vick was selected by the Atlanta Falcons with the No. 1 pick in the 2001 NFL draft and became the first quarterback in league history to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season. He finished second in MVP voting and led the Falcons to an NFC championship appearance in 2004.