The first day of the rest of Michael Vick’s life

Freedom comes to Michael Vick today, when his 23-month sentence for bankrolling a dogfighting ring officially ends. Vick will remain on probation for three years, but he will be released from the electronic monitor he wore during home confinement the last few months and otherwise have his life back again.

What will he make of it this time?

Some will argue that it depends on the National Football League and commissioner Roger Goodell’s willingness to allow Vick to return to the game that made him rich, famous and arrogant beyond his years. Goodell has said Vick will have to show sufficient contrition in order for an indefinite suspension to be lifted so that he can sign a contract and play again.

And that’s why Vick will no doubt be in an NFL uniform sooner rather than later. Because unless he’s colossally misadvised, Vick will say all the right things about how wrong he was to torture and kill dogs and how much he wants to turn over a new leaf if given a second chance.

Of course, Goodell is no mind reader. He can only go by Vick’s words when the two eventually meet. But how could anyone trust that? Vick lied to Goodell once before, telling the commissioner that he was innocent before eventually pleading guilty to a federal dogfighting conspiracy charge. He lied to Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, too, which is one reason why Vick will never play for the Falcons again.

He lied to fans, media and everyone else who wanted to believe a man with a $130 million contract to play quarterback didn’t need to make money gambling on dogs, failing to realize that a man with a $130 million contract would only be torturing and killing animals for entertainment, not money. And now Vick is broke, having gone through bankruptcy proceedings, and he needs the money badly enough to tell Goodell everything the commissioner wants to hear.

Which is why it won’t be by his words that Vick will prove his contrition. It will be by his actions. We’ll know soon enough if this is the new Vick, or the one we’ve all suffered before.

There’s little doubt some team will take a chance on Vick, regardless of the protesters or the public relations hit that will come with signing him. When he returns to the spotlight, with all the money and adoration that goes with it, will Vick once again treat people with as much disdain as he treated those dogs? Will he give the finger to the fans when they don’t cheer his failures? Will he lie to anyone and everyone who dares to trust him? Will he sneer at reporters the way he did in the past — as if it’s always the media’s fault for his shortcomings?

Will he treat all people with human decency for once, or only the ones he needs something from?

You can’t rule out the possibility that Vick has found humility and humanity in prison, and that he really is a changed man now. But having experienced the old Vick more than I care to remember, I’ll believe it when I see it.