Michael Vick, who filed for bankruptcy while in prison on federal dogfighting charges in July 2008, has nearly paid off the $18 million he owed to creditors.
Vick may have earned an estimated $49 million in salary since his release from serving 548 days in prison, but he has spent the last several years on a tight budget in an effort to pay back his enormous debt.
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ESPN's Darren Rovell reported Wednesday that the Jets quarterback has paid approximately 84 percent, or $15 million, of his $17.8 million debt.
Rovell noted, "He started a bankruptcy reorganization plan from prison when he was making 12 cents an hour in 2008. In 2009, they set up a structure by which he had to live under a $300,000 budget. Everything else would go to taxes, attorney fees, and his creditors." Among those expenses, Vick also had to reimburse his $6.5 million in salary to the Falcons in March 2009.
Vick chose to file for Chapter 11 over Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Had he chosen to do the opposite, he would have had to pay back just a percentage of his debt rather than the full amount. To Vick, it was important to do the right thing and secure the possibility of returning to the NFL, which he did in 2009 when he signed with the Eagles.
"I didn't want to stiff people who never stiffed me," Vick told ESPN. "I feel blessed because I came out and found myself in a position where I had a lot of people that really believed in me, people who gave me an opportunity. At the time, it wasn't about trying to fulfill all the bankruptcy needs, I was trying to fulfill all the needs that I had in my life because I had nothing.
"I had never been on a budget before, so I had to pay attention to everything that I was doing. Now I realize that I don't need certain things I bought back in the day, like a new boat."
So what's next for the 34-year-old quarterback?
Vick's contract with New York expires at the end of the season. While it's unclear where he will end up, the Virginia native told reporters he wouldn't mind playing for the Redskins.
“I’m open to playing for anybody that wants to win,” Vick said according to Newsday. “But obviously, going back home, I mean, that’ll be a dream come true. But I would hate to get my hopes up for something that wouldn’t happen. So I can’t even think about it right now.”