John Bazemore / AP

Falcons quarterback Joey Harrington, Michael Vick's backup, works on his passing during the team's first day of training camp.

But Vick had his backers, too. Plenty who turned out to watch the first day of camp made a point to wear their No. 7 jerseys. They responded to the animal-right activists with signs of their own, including “PETA go home” — a reference to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which has been leading the protests against Vick.

“I’m sick and tired of people rushing to judgment in this country,” said Doug Weiss, who wore the quarterback’s jersey and carried a sign that implored, “Let Vick Play.”

“I love warm puppies as much as anyone else,” he added. “But this becomes a perfect play for PETA. Who’s going to argue with them? No one is going to say, ’We support the killing of dogs.”’

Weiss also spoke for many Falcons fans who fretted about what kind of season the team might have without Vick at quarterback.

“He’s an incredible player,” Weiss said. “It’s been proven. Just about every time he doesn’t play, we lose.”

The players, of course, have a different outlook. They hope the furor will die down a bit in the days and weeks to come, so they can get back to talking about football instead of their quarterback’s legal problems.

“Let us play football, and we’ll try our best to win games,” Brooking pleaded. “Those are some serious allegations. It’s very disappointing for us. I’m not going to say we’re not going to think about it. At the same time, our main objective is to win football games.”

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