As feared once Eagles named quarterback Mike Vick their Ed Block Courage Award winner, animal-rights advocates have gathered at the hall where the banquet will be conducted tonight, according to Jill Rosen of the Baltimore Sun.
Per the report, roughly 100 protesters have assembled, with signs displaying slogans like “No awards for dog killers” and “Cowards abuse animals.”
“People have the right to voice their opinion,” Ed Block Courage Award Foundation spokesman Paul Mittermeier told Rosen.
The banquet recognizes each of the 32 winners, as determined by a player vote.
Vick supposedly was the unanimous choice of his teammates. Our guess is that he scored a majority (or a plurality), and then a second vote was conducted aimed at creating the illusion of unity. In our view, running back Brian Westbrook is far more deserving. Also, it would have been appropriate to consider giving the award posthumously to former Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Johnson.
We also don’t rule out a not-so-subtle effort by coach Andy Reid or others to politick for Vick, in the hopes of polishing Vick up in advance of a trade. (Yes, we are cynical bastards, so don’t bother sending an e-mail pointing that out.)
The incident should prompt the folks who run the Ed Block Courage Award Foundation to changes the rules for selecting recipients, possibly by working with the teams to come up with a list of acceptable finalists before the election is conduct.
Of course, that could rob Ben Roethlisberger of a perfect opportunity to pick up some chicks next March. Allegedly.