If you’re a sports fan, you’ve surely seen all over the headlines that the Pittsburgh Steelers signed quarterback Michael Vick to a one year, one million dollar contract.

It’s no secret that when you hear the name Michael Vick, the first thing you think of isn’t exactly “great football player.”

In case you don’t know, Vick was charged with a felony in 2007 for involvement in an illegal dog-fighting operation and served nearly two years in federal prison.

It’s easy to figure out why Steelers fans are enraged by this addition to the team. In fact, over 20,000 have signed a petition against Michael Vick’s contract.

As a die-hard Steeler fan, I feel just as strongly – and here’s why:

I grew up a Steeler fan. Every Sunday at 1:00, real time stopped and the only time I abided by was the one on the game clock. My family and I always watched old documentaries about the Steelers of the '70s (the good old days, right Mom and Dad?). By age 8, I knew about the Steeler greats – guys like Franco, Mean Joe, and most importantly, the founder of the franchise, Art Rooney.

And I knew what he stood for. I knew that the Steelers were a team founded on hard work, class, and passion – no bullshit. After Art Rooney, his son Dan took over and continued the same high standards, setting an example for teams all around the NFL. The Rooney family has always run the Steelers organization so respectably and with the utmost pride and honor.

That’s why this is so disheartening. None of us can seem to understand what the organization was thinking when they signed someone who received so much negative attention. I consider this move an embarrassment. The connotation behind the name “Michael Vick” is never going to bring immediate positive reactions from anyone. The Steelers organization is much better than adding a troublemaker to the team.

Now allow me to respond to the number one reaction I am anticipating from this.

“What about Big Ben? He’s on the Steelers and he’s a rapist.”

Let me clarify that I am in no way condoning the behavior of Ben Roethlisberger, or making any comments on the allegations that were proposed against him.

What I am saying is that Ben Roethlisberger was added to the team as a talented football player with a clean record. That’s it. He was already a part of this team once the controversy arose – not added in after his scandal.

The difference in Vick’s case is that it seems as though all of a sudden the Steelers have conformed to the attitudes of the other 31 teams in the NFL – promoting that the behavior off the field doesn’t matter, as long as you can throw/catch/block/kick.

I want to know when the NFL is going to stop rewarding players for their misbehavior – when they’re going to say, "Okay, you don’t deserve to participate."

I will love and support the Pittsburgh Steelers until the day I die, but the signing of Michael Vick is something I don’t agree with. It isn’t an accurate representation of what the franchise stands for, and is a black mark against the organization. I am just as disappointed as the other thousands of Steelers fans and I trust that this is the only year he will ever be with this team.