There is no reason Michael Vick shouldn't play in the NFL this season.

There are several reasons he shouldn't play for the Patriots.

One – and not necessarily number one – is that he isn't worth the aggravation.

If the Pats were to sign Vick – and coach Bill Belichick, unlike Bill Parcells in Miami, has not ruled out that possibility – he would become the focal point for all kinds of the kind of attention Belichick not merely disdains, but absolutely abhors.

Vick's signing – and it seems likely he will sign with somebody before the end of the summer – will be a national media event. And then, unfortunately, it's also likely that every time he steps on the field, some protestor(s) will object to his presence.

Hey, the guy did the crime, and then he did the time – 19 months in the federal pen at Leavenworth – and now it's time he be allowed to get on with his life and his career.

Speaking of his career . . .

Michael Vick is a high-rent Michael Bishop.

Because he threw a few long passes in preseason games, and because he could scramble entertainingly and excitingly, an inordinate number of Patriots fans became enamored with Bishop, who had been drafted in the seventh round in 1999. Some of them, clearly clueless, clamored to have Bishop replace Drew Bledsoe as the starter.

The fact is, if you knew the game, you knew Bishop wasn't very good. He wound up bouncing from NFL Europe, to the Canadian Football League, to the Arena League.

Vick, on the other hand, was the first player drafted in 2001, by the Atlanta Falcons, out of Virginia Tech, where his strong throwing arm, his speed and elusiveness as a runner, and his overall athleticism were dazzling.

But not to everybody.

The Chargers had the first pick in that year's draft. A.J. Smith, who grew up in Cranston and played for Bishop Hendricken, convinced San Diego GM John Butler to trade that choice. It was a bold (at the time) and brilliant (in retrospect) move.

Chargers fans, having suffered through a 1-15 season with Ryan Leaf at quarterback, were clamoring for Vick. Instead, Butler and Smith traded down. The Falcons got Vick. The Chargers wound up with running back LaDainian Tomlinson with the fifth pick overall and, with the first pick in the second round, added quarterback Drew Brees.

How'd that work out?

The question then about Vick was not his character, but his accuracy. Because of his tremendous running ability, there was a feeling that, instead of taking the time to make his reads – like, say, a Tom Brady does– Vick instead would take off.

Having a powerful throwing arm is not the same as knowing where, and when, to throw the ball.

Vick played four full seasons for the Falcons. He took them to the playoffs in 2002 and 2004 – he was injured much of 2003, when he suffered a broken leg in a preseason game – but had a record of only 15-16 in 2005-06. He hasn't played since. He turned 29 in June. It is only reasonable to think that his skills have deteriorated in the time he's spent in prison. And how focused can he be mentally, given all he's been through? And, rightly or wrongly, what he will have to go through, in terms of off-field issues, once he returns to the NFL?

Once a multi-millionaire, with endorsement opportunities galore, Vick now is toxic as a corporate spokesman and has declared bankruptcy.

Then there is the moral issue.

There was a time when the Family Kraft was adamant about keeping the Patriots in the center lane of the Moral High Road.

Remember when Bobby Grier drafted defensive lineman Christian Peter out of Nebraska in the fifth round in 1996?

An all-Big 8 selection, Peter had problems with alcohol, which led to more serious problems involving the sexual abuse of women. Myra Kraft was outraged that the team owned by her husband, Robert, would draft someone with a record of assault convictions. Within a week, the Patriots declared they wouldn't sign Peter, saying his behavior was "incompatible with our organization's standards of acceptable conduct."

Have the Patriots' standards slipped?

Or is a criminal conviction for dogfighting and a stint in a federal penitentiary now "compatible with (the) organization's standards of acceptable conduct?"

I can see the headline now: "Patriots Have Gone To The Dogs: Sign Michael Vick."

Actually, I can't see that.

Not that I completely rule out the possibility – after all, Belichick has yet to rule it out, despite having had ample opportunity to do so – but it doesn't seem likely.

Many are intrigued by the possibilities Vick offers in the "Wildcat" formation – the one the Dolphins used so effectively to baffle Belichick last September, when the Dolphins, losers of 20 of their previous 21 games, trounced the Patriots, who had won 20 of their previous 21, in Foxboro, 38-13.

Now that the surprise factor is gone, the "Wildcat" isn't likely to be anywhere near as effective this season in the NFL as it was last year. And, if you have Brady, why would you want anyone else throwing the football? I'll take even a gimpy-kneed Brady, standing in the pocket, any time – and every time -- over a Michael Vick running around, improvising.

If the Patriots are thinking, however remotely, of signing the troubled Vick – and bringing those troubles to the gates of Gillette Stadium – they're barking up the wrong tree and will have a dogfight on their hands convincing people it's the right move.

jdonalds @projo.com