Richie Incognito’s voicemail to Jonathan Martin, his teammate, as both are offensive linemen for the Miami Dolphins, has blown this matter of alleged harassment to new, high levels of intensity.
To recap, Richie Incognito is an NFL veteran offensive lineman who was accused of harassing his teammate and said-to-be friend former Stanford lineman Jonathan Martin. The claims were heresay until Jonathan Martin left the team under claims of distress, and reports surfaced that his linemen were being emotionally abusive to him, all of which led to a preliminary NFL investigation that revealed a voicemail. This is the transcription:
“Hey, wassup, you half n—– piece of s—,” Incognito told Martin. “I saw you on Twitter, you been training 10 weeks. [I want to] s— in your f—ing mouth. [I’m going to] slap your f—ing mouth. [I’m going to] slap your real mother across the face. F— you, you’re still a rookie. I’ll kill you.”
On his own Twitter account, Richie Incognito is working to clear his name, and has come out swinging, er, Tweeting:
Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth. Buddha
— Richie incognito (@68INCOGNITO) November 3, 2013
Miami Dolphins Statement On Jonathan Martin http://t.co/gd77BJsU3C via @miamidolphins
— Richie incognito (@68INCOGNITO) November 3, 2013
There are questions. Among them, if Richie Incognito was really a bully to Jonathan Martin, why were they in photos as if they were friends? Was this some kind of weird relationship that Martin felt he needed to be in to be a part of the team? That’s the weird aspect of this story. Dolphins QB Ryan Tannehill said that the pair were “best friends.” And Tannehill’s comments were part of a full-court PR press against Martin and for Incognito.
But the person who’s really to blame in all of this is Miami Dolphins Head Coach Joe Philbin. I saw this because my model for excellent player management is none other than the late Bum Phillips, head coach of the Houston Oilers and the New Orleans Saints.
Coach Phillips promoted positive race relations among his team players, forcing them to mix, all the way down to seating assignments in the lunchroom. He didn’t want use of the n-word, or racial segregation.
By all accounts, Miami Dolphins Head Coach Joe Philbin doesn’t do this, in fact, I’d bet its never occurred to him to do it. The Richie Incognito / Jonathan Martin matter sheds a bright light on how NFL coaches manage their players in the 21st Century.
Stay tuned.