One of David Letterman’s funnier running gags lately is his “coverage” of the Michael Vick story, in which he shows video of Vick throwing a practice pass for the Eagles, then cuts to footage of a ball hitting various animals (Wednesday night’s was a penguin). No, reminders of Vick’s sordid past are not going away anytime soon, and as we noted on Tuesday, the Eagles and the NFL aren’t helping matters any.

When we pointed out that shoppers on the NFL and Eagles’ official sites could, apparently, buy No. 7 Vick jerseys for their dogs, some readers raised up with the indignation of a town hall health care agitator. You accused me of making it up. But the NFL has now confirmed it — custom Eagles jerseys with Vick’s name and number *ARE* available for Fido. And what’s more, the league has no problem with it.

And until recently, customers could even get the jersey with BAD NEWZ on top in place of Vick’s name, noting the name of the dog fighting operation which earned Vick a vacation at the Graybar Hotel.

The NFL: Irony-challenged since 1951:

For $39.99 plus tax and shipping at NFLshop.com, fans can order the new Philadelphia Eagles quarterback’s No. 7 jersey with the name “VICK” on the back, the DAILY NEWS said.

“Like any other player, (customers) can obtain that name and that jersey if they wish,” league spokesman Greg Aiello told the DAILY NEWS. “As far as putting it on the dog product, he’s working with humane societies, working to educate others on this issue, so we don’t see a problem.”

No, it’s not an exact replica Vick jersey — none of the pet jerseys are. But come on Eagles fans, you don’t have to be a member of PETA to see the irony dripping from this.

These are also available through the Eagles web site. And as we noted Tuesday, how about the fact that the real Vick jerseys are advertised on the same page as the ones for dogs?

If you click this link to an ESPN story on Lawrence Phillips facing 25 years in prison, you’ll note that in the photo he’s wearing a 49er uniform. As a longtime Niners fan, it didn’t make me feel very good when they signed him — in fact, I may have muttered “stay classy, Bill Walsh.” I don’t mean to compare the relative crimes of the two players; I’m just making the point that being a fan doesn’t mean that you check your independent thought at the gate.