Eagles coach Andy Reid has two sons who have been to prison. That experience, he says, helps him coach a player who’s been to prison.
“I think it altered my outlook when it came to Michael Vick,” Reid told Anthony L. Gargano of FanHouse.
Reid’s son Britt, who was arrested in 2007 on drug and weapons charges, is now at Temple and is working as a student assistant with the football team. His son Garrett, who a year ago was sent to a maximum-security prison after an altercation at a halfway house, recently got out of a halfway house and has a job at a body shop.
Reid said that seeing how prison affected his sons has helped him relate to Vick.
“I think the actual exposure that I faced and went through for this problem helped me to be more sensitive to their situations,” Reid said. “It surely helped me with Michael. Just knowing the phases that he went through, knowing what to look for, and then in return making sure that he stays on top of his game.
“He seemed like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders when he got here. It’s hard. You’re saying all the right things. But it’s an insecure ride the whole way when you get out of jail. He’s a different guy today when you talk to him than he was back then. And as long as he keeps his nose clean, he will continue to progress and be better for it down the road.”