When the Philadelphia Eagles signed Michael Vick, none of the verbal shrapnel the team was hit with focused on the generous incentive the Birds stood to gain from the signing.
Because Vick served time — 18 months in prison for his involvement in an interstate dog-fighting venture — the Eagles were technically entitled to a $10,000 tax credit available from the Philadelphia Mayor’s Office for the Re-entry of Ex-Offenders (MORE).
The credit, which is at least partly funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, rewards employers who hire people who have been released from prison.
So did the 2-1 Eagles decide to cash in on the credit? (After all, what’s a little more bad PR to an organization that’s been skewered by groups like the SPCA since Vick’s arrival?)
According to Eagles’ spokeswoman Pamela Browner Crawley, the Birds took a pass. “It was never considered,” Crawley said.