Animal-rights activists said they hoped the high-profile case would increase public awareness and help bring down other dogfighting rings.

“The only good that can come from this case is that the American people dedicate themselves to the task of rooting out dogfighting in every infected area where it thrives,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States.

The plea deal was announced just as a new grand jury began meeting. Prosecutors had said that a superseding indictment was in the works, but Vick’s plea most likely means he will not face new charges on top of the original: conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce in aid of unlawful activities and conspiracy to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture.

Three of Vick’s original co-defendants already had pleaded guilty and agreed to testify against him if the case went to trial. Quanis Phillips of Atlanta and Purnell Peace of Virginia Beach signed statements saying Vick participated in executing at least eight underperforming dogs by various means, including drowning and hanging.

Phillips, Peace and Tony Taylor, who pleaded guilty last month, also said Vick provided virtually all of the gambling and operating funds for his “Bad Newz Kennels” operation in rural Virginia, not far from Vick’s hometown of Newport News.

The gambling allegations alone could trigger a lifetime ban under the NFL’s personal conduct policy.

Vick’s Atlanta attorney, Daniel Meachum, told the AP that Vick is taking a chance with his guilty plea as far as his career is concerned because there have been no discussions with the league in recent days.

“There’s no promise or even a request of the league to make a promise,” Meachum said.

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He said the plea deal involves only the federal case and that he didn’t know if there had been any discussions about resolving state charges that may still be filed.

The case began April 25 when investigators conducting a drug search at a massive home Vick built in Surry County found 66 dogs, some of them injured, and items typically used in dogfighting. They included a “rape stand” that holds aggressive dogs in place for mating and a “breakstick” used to pry open a dog’s mouth.

Vick contended he knew nothing about a dogfighting operation at the home, where one of his cousins lived, and said he rarely visited. The former Virginia Tech star also blamed friends and family members for taking advantage of his generosity and pledged to be more scrupulous.

The July 17 indictment said dogs that lost fights or fared poorly in test fights were sometimes executed by hanging, electrocution or other brutal means. The grisly details fueled public protests against Vick and cost him some of his lucrative endorsement deals.

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