Taking a look behind the figures of Vick’s rejected bankruptcy plan

Suspended Falcons quarterback Michael Vick testified in court last week that he is a changed man ready to take charge of his finances, but that wasn’t enough for the federal judge who rejected his plan to emerge from bankruptcy.

Judge Frank J. Santoro commended Vick for seeking to improve himself after spending nearly two years in prison in Leavenworth, Kan., on a federal dogfighting conviction.

But the no-nonsense judge told Vick the numbers simply don’t add up in his plan to climb out of debt, which totaled $20.4 million as of December.

Vick, for example, would have needed $1 million in cash to pull off his plan but could count on only about $210,000 for sure, Santoro told him. Also, Vick would have about $200,000 in annual living expenses under his plan, the judge said. But the only firm source of income Vick has lined up for himself once he gets out of prison next month is a $10-an-hour construction job.

Vick’s living expenses were based on him retaining three vehicles, including a 2007 Land Rover, a Lincoln Navigator and a 2007 Infiniti truck. He also planned to keep a home in Hampton, Va., for his mother, Brenda Boddie, and a home under construction in Suffolk, Va., for him, his fiancee and two young daughters.

Santoro suggested that Vick consider selling off more of his assets, including one of the two houses. The judge also told Vick he could face a $6 million to $9 million “hole” even after he pays his creditors.

“Your plan actually puts you below zero,” Santoro told Vick at the end of the two-day hearing last week in Newport News, Va. “This plan will not work.”

Santoro called Vick’s other proposals to bring in income “speculative.” For example, the judge appeared skeptical about the one-page offer Vick received last week to star in a documentary for $600,000. Santoro pointed out that no one in the courtroom seemed to know much about the company that made the offer, Red Bird Entertainment.

Santoro also touched on another key part of Vick’s plan to pay his creditors: rejoining the NFL. Vick’s agent, Joel Segal, testified in bankruptcy court Thursday that he expects the NFL to reinstate Vick, and hopefully for the 2009 season. But, as Segal noted, that is not for certain.

The NFL suspended Vick indefinitely in 2007 after the details of his plea deal with prosecutors became public in his federal dogfighting case. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said he will review Vick’s status after he gets out of prison but wants to see true contrition from him.

Segal said the minimum salary for a player with Vick’s experience would be $620,000, but he predicted Vick could get a multimillion-dollar contract with incentives and “escalators” if he is reinstated in the NFL. Santoro said those escalators and incentives had not been specified.

At one point, Santoro asked Vick how long he thought he had left in his professional football career. Vick said he had another 10 to 12 years left, assuming he stays fit and avoids injuries. But Vick is already 28, the average age for an NFL quarterback, according to The Associated Press, and he has exceeded the league’s 3.2-year career average.

Santoro told Vick he was a phenomenal football player but that he needs help staying on top of his money.

“You need to focus on your strengths … and let other people help you in areas where you are weak,” Santoro told him.

Sitting beside a team of his attorneys at a long table, Vick turned and waved at his mother and fiancee several times. He smiled occasionally but appeared tired, even fragile. He said he regretted the actions that landed him in prison. He also admitted that he did not do a good job managing his money and that he trusted the wrong people. But he vowed to do better, testifying that he had hired an accountant and would rely more on the advice of his attorneys.

Vick said that after observing fellow inmates in Leavenworth, he has “modified” his life and is well-rounded. The former NFL star, who said he earned between $10 million and $12 million annually before he was sent to prison, is now being paid 12 cents an hour as a janitor in prison.

“I am going to live a different lifestyle,” Vick said. “I am not the same person.”