NFL commissioner Roger Goodell made the correct decision when it comes to Atlanta star quarterback Michael Vick.

Vick pleaded guilty Monday to a federal dogfighting charge and made apologetic comments before the judge. He had been embattled the past few weeks in the case, even once trying to paint himself as not the ringleader.

The commissioner on Friday decided to suspend him indefinitely and without pay. He freed the Falcons of any commitments to Vick, allowing the franchise to recover bonuses and other payments.

That&8217;s stiff. Good for Goodell.

And it is something other sports leagues might be afraid to do. Too often star athletes are coddled, given repeated chances and never forced the straighten up and fly right.

What happens is audiences end up turning the channel. Maybe the NFL figured out that to keep ratings up, it is important to keep sports clean on and off the field. Football is a game. If you want to play, you have to be good off the field, too.

Dogfighting is wrong on every level. It is bloodsport. Dogs bite each other and rip flesh. Dogs who lose too much are killed. Pit bulls are bred to be fighters. Other breeds are sometimes presented as bait dogs, used to teach pit bulls to fight. Unused dogs end up in the kennels, pounds and on the streets.

Vick admitted to helping kill pit bulls and bankrolling money for gambling, though denied gambling himself.

Detestable.

Goodell wrote:

&8220;Your plea agreement and the plea agreements of your co-defendants also demonstrate your significant involvement in illegal gambling. Even if you personally did not place bets, as you contend, your actions in funding the betting and your association with illegal gambling both violate the terms of your NFL Player Contract and expose you to corrupting influences in derogation of one of the most fundamental responsibilities of an NFL player.&8221;

Goodell said he would make a final decision once all the legal proceedings are over. He said he would take into account Vick&8217;s words and actions in the meantime.

We hope the decision is a signal

for a change in how leagues deal with troublemaking athletes.