Q: Warrick, what are your thoughts on Michael’s situation and on what went down yesterday?
Warrick Dunn
A: “I think overall, as a friend to Mike, it is disturbing. Some of the charges he is up against are definitely inappropriate. Neither myself nor any of the other players condone any of that stuff. It is tough, but as at teammate you have to support him. Like I always say, when you have a brother or family member that does something wrong you chastise them, but you still have to support them at the same time.”
Q: Now that it is official does it change your thought process?
Warrick Dunn
A: “It is tough. It is a fragile situation. To have someone of that caliber associated with that is the troubling part but, at the same time, people are trying to make a statement. I think they have made their point. Mike has to deal with it and we have to support him from afar. At the same time, as a team we have to move on and move forward. Coach Petrino and other guys in this organization are definitely pushing us in that direction and keeping us focused.”
Q: How do you stay focused or is it tugging on the team?
Keith Brooking
A: “I would be lying to you if I said we didn’t watch television. You can’t turn it to a channel without hearing about it. I think we have done an unbelievable job, and the Buffalo game is a great example of it. We have done an unbelievable job and it starts with Coach Petrino staying focused. I think we played more consistent in Buffalo than our first preseason game. You have to give credit to Coach Petrino for one because he has unbelievable tunnel vision and it has filtered down through the rest of our team.
"I think we have the leaders on this team that, no matter what comes our way, we can keep the blinders on. We owe it to Mr. Blank. We owe it to Coach Petrino. I owe it to this man sitting beside me. We owe it to our fans to move forward and face everything. We have to come here every day and prepare to beat Minnesota.
"No matter what comes our way, I think we have the leaders on this team to do that and we have done that so far.”
Q: How hard is it to reconcile all that is going on?
Keith Brooking
A: “This is unprecedented. It has never happened before. I’m trying to figure this out from Mike’s perspective and that can get very confusing. It is not our position to do that. Mike is a young man who has taken a step in being accountable for this. I think he has to look at himself in the mirror and move forward. He needs to realize his life is not over. He made a mistake. It is not for us to sit here and reconcile and try and figure it out because it does not do our football team any good.”
Q: Have either of you guys tried to reach out to him?
Warrick Dunn
A: “I am sure I will reach out to him if he doesn’t reach out to me. Right now he needs to be worried about his life. He would definitely want the guys on this football team to move on. He expects us to go out and play well and play hard. Do we wish he was here? Of course.”
Q: What is the identity of this team now?
Warrick Dunn
A: “Since I have been here the media has always said ‘Michael Vick and the Atlanta Falcons.’ He would tell you he could not have won a game without every one of his teammates. I think right now it becomes more important. We are going to rely on Lawyer Milloy and Wayne Gandy, the guys that have been around, to keep guys together. We will play off of each other and rely on other strengths to get through this. We will go out on Sunday’s and perform and play well.”
