I’ll admit I drank the Michael Vick Kool-Aid when he first entered the  league, especially after he led the Falcons to an upset victory over  Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers in the 2003 playoffs, ending the  Pack’s undefeated playoff record at Lambeau.

I thought he would revolutionize the quarterback position — a freakish  athlete who could beat teams just as easily with his legs as he could  with his powerful left arm.

Then the dogfight gambling ring came to light and his career faded to  black.

I’ll also admit I was one of the first to forgive Vick, arguing there  are professional athletes who have faced rape, assault and murder  charges who didn’t face as much criticism as Vick.

But I think the NFL made a mistake by choosing not to punish the Eagles  quarterback after a shooting took place last month at a birthday party  for Vick.

Vick was not involved in the shooting but allegedly was involved in a  confrontation before it took place.

Even though he didn’t face any charges and seemingly wasn’t involved,  the fact he was even present at a party that turned so violent should  at least raise some eyebrows.

To his credit, since his reinstatement, Vick has taken great strides to  clean up his act and change his image, but he has to realize he is  still on a short leash with the NFL and the nation is watching his  every move.

After he was reinstated to the NFL, commissioner Roger Goodell told him  “your margin for error is extremely limited.”

Now just one year and a ho-hum season later, he put himself in another  terrible situation by choosing to hang out with the wrong crowd. To  compound his problems, Vick is facing charges that he gave unauthorized  gifts to friends and family in the months before bankruptcy — a  violation of bankruptcy laws.

Vick had the talent, swagger, intangibles and physical gifts to be a  great NFL quarterback and blew it. He was given another gift in a  chance at redemption, and he is dangerously close to running out of  handouts from the league.

Aaron Mueller is a reporter for the Niles Daily Star. He can be reached at aaron.mueller@leaderpub.com