By signing a six-year deal with $35.5 million guaranteed in lieu of taking a one-year guaranteed franchise tender in the amount of $16.2 million and hoping for a second guaranteed franchise tender of $19.44 million (for a two-year guaranteed haul of $35.6 million), Eagles quarterback Mike Vick opted for the bird in the hand.
For his creditors, the move puts a chicken in their pots.
“It’s a beautiful thing,” Vick bankruptcy trustee Joseph Luzinski told Bloomberg.com, adding that the money should “substantially clean up all of the claims.”
Vick originally owed his creditors $20 million, but Luzinski said that, to date, Vick has paid off only a “couple million.” The Falcons are the largest creditor, with a debt of $7.5 million arising from bonus money that Vick was forced to repay after defaulting on his contract with the team, via his dogfighting conviction.
For the Falcons, it could be about more than getting money back. The Falcons also could get salary cap credits, as the money comes in from Vick. NFL spokesman Greg Aiello tells PFT via e-mail that such matters are reviewed on a case-by-case basis, and that the question of whether the Falcons will receive cap credits is currently under review.
David Teel of the Newport News Daily Press reports that, based on Vick receiving $20 million in 2011, $6.76 million will go to creditors, $8 million will go to taxes, and Vick will receive net pay of $5.24 million.
Taking Luzinski’s “couple million” estimate literally, that means the creditors will still be owed another $11.24 million after 2011. In 2012, Vick is due to make $12.5 million. In 2013, it’ll be either $16.5 million or $15.5 million.
That probably should be enough to get the full amount cleared up under Vick’s bankruptcy plan. And perhaps the knowledge that so much of his money will go to others will prompt Vick to be more careful about his spending habits going forward.
