Former Atlanta Falcons star quarterback Michael Vick is far from being a free man, but today took his first step towards freedom leaving a federal prison. Vick will spend the remaining two months of his 23 month sentence in home confinement.

The once highly profiled NFL quarterback pleaded guilty in August 2007 to a federal charge of bank rolling a dog fighting operation at a home owned in Virginia. There, man’s best friend was given two options, kill or be killed. Meanwhile, he’s spent the past 21 months in a Federal prison hoping that one day the public will be able to forgive him for his inhumane acts. Here’s what some Southwest Georgians said.

“I think he deserves a second chance because we all do.”

“I don’t think he’s going to go back to doing the same thing over, but I wish they would put that much emphasis on kids as we do dogs.”

“I have a pit bull myself, and I don’t people to do the whole fighting thing, but to each its own.”

“I don’t forgive him. I think it was wrong.”

“He’s still human. He’s just like us. We all make mistakes every day and we deserve a second chance.”

Then Southwest Georgians weighed in on Vick’s future NFL plans.

“He’s a good player. He supported that team a lot.  He was the backbone.”

“I just hope he gets back out there on the field, I really do.”

“If you got the skill and what it takes to be in the NFL, you can’t just take throw that away from somebody just because one mistake they made.”

“Somebody is going to give him a second shot, and he’s going to go out there and show everybody that he’s still the same Michael Vick.”