(Philadelphia Inquirer) — The Michael Vick comeback story has come full circle. Nearly four years after he was dumped by Nike, the Eagles quarterback was re-signed for promotional services by the worldwide leader in sports sneakers and apparel, according to the company.  ”We have re-signed Michael Vick as a Nike athlete,” spokesman Derek Kent said Friday. “Michael acknowledges his past mistakes. We do not condone those actions, but we support the positive changes he has made to better himself off the field.”  The deal, the exact details of which are unknown, is believed to be the first for a major athlete who was dropped by an endorser only to be re-signed later.  Vick did not respond to a text message seeking comment, but he released a statement.

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(The Loop 21) — Who would have thought that Kim Kardashian would take off on Kobe Bryant for anything other than their shared sports and celebrity status? Kardashian in addition has carved out a growth industry in flesh baring, body ogling and sex titillation. But there’s Kardashian lambasting Bryant for his two year deal pitching the glories of riding the skies on Turk Hava Yollari AO, Turkish Airlines, the country’s state-run airlines.  Kardashian and a legion of Armenian organizations and leaders are ticked at Bryant for the deal which they say is tantamount to Bryant endorsing Turkey’s slaughter of 1 to 2 million Armenians in 1915. They want Bryant to do two things, scrub the deal and speak out against Turkey for its dogged refusal to admit its murderous crime against the Armenians.

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(BVonMoney) — It starts with Kobe Bryant being accused of rape in 2003. Bryant’s face was all over the news, and the nation wanted to see him gone from nearly every product that he might possibly endorse. The case never went to trial and the civil suit was settled quietly. McDonald’s dropped Bryant, but Nike did not.

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