Vick vows to change

The former Atlanta Falcons quarterback, who is serving a 23-month federal prison sentence for financing a dogfighting ring, is in court this week to outline his plans to emerge from his financial woes, a plan that includes an eventual return to the NFL.

"I can't live like the old Mike Vick," he told a courtroom filled with his family and friends. "I was very immature. I did a lot of things I wasn't supposed to do being a role model."

Vick was once one of the highest-paid players in the NFL. But his finances were already under strain from his lavish lifestyle when his link to dogfighting saw his popularity plummet, and Vick filed for bankruptcy in July.

A committee representing most of Vick's unsecured creditors has endorsed his plan to get his finances back in order. The option would be a liquidation of his assets, which would not provide them any portion of his future earnings.

His plan to pay his creditors relies on the goal of returning to pro football, although the Falcons, for one have said they don't want him and he remains suspended from the NFL.

When Judge Frank Santoro asked Vick how many more years he thinks he could play in the bruising league, Vick said another 10 years.

"If I keep my body in shape, and do the right things, I think I have maybe 10 or 12 more years in my career," he said.

He also voiced confidence that he would eventually be reinstated by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, "if I do the right things, if I keep showing I'm remorseful, show true remorse."

Vick is scheduled to be released from custody in July. He could be sent to home confinement as early as May.

His lawyer told the court that the onetime star has a job as a construction worker awaiting him when he leaves prison.