Niners: No interest in Michael Vick

The 49ers emphatically closed the door on any possibility imprisoned quarterback Michael Vick will suit up for the club in 2009 or beyond.

Coach Mike Singletary did not express interest in acquiring Vick during a question-and-answer session with reporters following a state-of-the-franchise event Monday in San Mateo. But Singletary created plenty of intrigue when he also did not rule out Vick as an option.

 

But, now, the 49ers are ruling it out.

 

“The 49ers are not interested in Michael Vick,” said a team spokesman Tuesday evening.

 

Team insiders have said for several weeks that 49ers general manager Scot McCloughan does not consider Vick a viable option for the team’s future. McCloughan has not spoken publicly about Vick, and he does not plan to speak about any player under contract with another team. Vick remains under contract with the Atlanta Falcons.

 

McCloughan is likely being extra-cautious after the 49ers forfeited a fifth-round draft pick last year after the NFL ruled the club was guilty of tampering with Bears linebacker Lance Briggs.

 

Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said last week he is actively seeking to trade Vick, who is expected to be released on July 20 after serving a prison term on federal dog-fighting charges. It is not known when NFL commissioner Roger Goodell will lift an indefinite suspension and clear Vick to return to the playing field.

 

Niners president Jed York also addressed the Vick issue on Monday, saying any such football decision would rest with McCloughan and Singletary. York added he did not believe the club would acquire Vick.

 

“It’s up to them to show that somebody who’s had issues in the past can be a part of this team. But that’s not something we’ve discussed, and I doubt that would happen,” York said Monday.

 

On Dec. 10, 2007, Vick was sentenced to 23 months in prison. He is currently serving his term in Leavenworth, Kansas.

 

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The 49ers become at least the fourth NFL team to publicly express no interest in acquiring Vick:

 

—Tampa Bay general manager Mark Dominik said of Vick, “No, I don’t see that in our future.”

 

—Detroit coach Jim Schwartz said, “We want to keep an open mind toward just about anybody, but when you talk about Pacman (Jones) or maybe Michael Vick, I don’t think we’re in a position as a team that we can go in those directions.”

 

–A Jets spokesman said, “The Jets have no interest in Michael Vick.”

 

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