Miami's Martin leaves team after 'emotional breakdown'

[Mr. Laz]

Jonathan Martin leaves Dolphins after 'breakdown'

By Dan Hanzus
Around the League Writer
Published: Oct. 30, 2013 at 06:39 p.m. Updated: Oct. 30, 2013 at 07:00 p.m.
An unusual situation is unfolding in Miami, where Dolphins right tackle Jonathan Martin has left the team after suffering an "emotional breakdown" this week.

NFL Media's Jeff Darlington reported Wednesday that Martin is currently seeking help with his family after an incident at the team's cafeteria, according to team sources.

Martin is listed on the team's injury report with an illness, and is doubtful to play Thursday against the Cincinnati Bengals. Fox NFL insider Jay Glazer reported that Martin was the victim of a prank at the cafeteria, becoming enraged enough to "smash his food tray on the ground."

The second-year pro has not been with the team since that time. Darlington reports that Martin immediately sought treatment at a local hospital. He has since left the hospital and is now spending time with his family, according to team sources.

Martin opened the season as the Dolphins' replacement for Jake Long at left tackle. He was moved to right tackle when the team acquired Bryant McKinnie via trade last week. Tyson Clabo is expected to start in Martin's place on Thursday.

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[vailpass]

Toughen up buttercup...

[chiefzilla1501]

Originally Posted by GloryDayz

I can connect those dots. It's obvious the kid is soft so I can see where this would be one possible way for him to react.

I think given all we know, seems like a pretty loose assumption. I'm sure it was a contributing factor. But it sure sounds like the storm was brewing well before that.

[GloryDayz]

Originally Posted by vailpass

Toughen up buttercup...

This... My God he wouldn't last a day on this board!

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by GloryDayz

This... My God he wouldn't last a day on this board!

That's no shit. Every day here is a code red waiting to happen. He'd crack under the aids tree antifreeze kill yourself here's a tampon I put it in your mom's butt barrage.

[GloryDayz]

Originally Posted by chiefzilla1501

I think given all we know, seems like a pretty loose assumption. I'm sure it was a contributing factor. But it sure sounds like the storm was brewing well before that.

So he was tough until he wasn't tough! I'm thinking if there's a way to show that he had lost his starting job buttercup is doing this as retaliation. But I get your point, I'm just thinking this is fun to watch. NTS, it's amazing on many levels.

[keg in kc]

Originally Posted by vailpass

Toughen up buttercup...

You need to be tough to play in the NFL. No doubt about that. I'm talking more about the fact that the guy arbitrarily left the team and entered himself in a hospital. You just don't do that if you're not having some kind of a problem, and I just don't buy the whole publicity stunt angle. I think the guy has issues and he apparently didn't trust anybody on his coaching staff or in their front office enough to go to them.

Reading up on this I find that they actually do mental health evaluations as part of their draft prep (http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/m...nderlic-110613) so it boggles me a bit that they don't have some kind of system in place for this kind of stuff.

If the Dolphins handle this whole thing right, this story never sees the light of day. Have him talk to a sports therapist, work out whatever is going on between his ears. His teammates never have to know, the public never has to know, and we can all maintain this comfortable illusion that all men are manly men who never need help from anyone.

That's more my point. Toughen up is the right message sometimes. Just don't think it was here. Mishandled situation by the Dolphins, bad move by Martin, all could have been avoided.

[seamonster]

Originally Posted by vailpass

Toughen up buttercup...

Martin couldn't do much. When a big dummy keeps saying "I'll slap your ****er mother in the face because I'm an hornorary black man" , and the GM thinks it's funny you've got few options. Sharp is an awful person and makes me sick to my stomach, and I see a lot of BS race cards getting pulled, but he was right about this situation. Sit Incognito and his slightly reeruned team mates down with some elderly deep south blacks that came out of a culture of mass lynching picnic's and see if they're still cool with enabling that big dummy to be a racist bonehead.

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

You need to be tough to play in the NFL. No doubt about that. I'm talking more about the fact that the guy arbitrarily left the team and entered himself in a hospital. You just don't do that if you're not having some kind of a problem, and I just don't buy the whole publicity stunt angle. I think the guy has issues and he apparently didn't trust anybody on his coaching staff or in their front office enough to go to them.

Reading up on this I find that they actually do mental health evaluations as part of their draft prep (http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/m...nderlic-110613) so it boggles me a bit that they don't have some kind of system in place for this kind of stuff.

If the Dolphins handle this whole thing right, this story never sees the light of day. Have him talk to a sports therapist, work out whatever is going on between his ears. His teammates never have to know, the public never has to know, and we can all maintain this comfortable illusion that all men are manly men who never need help from anyone.

That's more my point. Toughen up is the right message sometimes. Just don't think it was here. Mishandled situation by the Dolphins, bad move by Martin, all could have been avoided.

Valid points all. Solid post.

[chiefzilla1501]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

You need to be tough to play in the NFL. No doubt about that. I'm talking more about the fact that the guy arbitrarily left the team and entered himself in a hospital. You just don't do that if you're not having some kind of a problem, and I just don't buy the whole publicity stunt angle. I think the guy has issues and he apparently didn't trust anybody on his coaching staff or in their front office enough to go to them.

Reading up on this I find that they actually do mental health evaluations as part of their draft prep (http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/m...nderlic-110613) so it boggles me a bit that they don't have some kind of system in place for this kind of stuff.

If the Dolphins handle this whole thing right, this story never sees the light of day. Have him talk to a sports therapist, work out whatever is going on between his ears. His teammates never have to know, the public never has to know, and we can all maintain this comfortable illusion that all men are manly men who never need help from anyone.

That's more my point. Toughen up is the right message sometimes. Just don't think it was here. Mishandled situation by the Dolphins, bad move by Martin, all could have been avoided.

Great post

[O.city]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

You need to be tough to play in the NFL. No doubt about that. I'm talking more about the fact that the guy arbitrarily left the team and entered himself in a hospital. You just don't do that if you're not having some kind of a problem, and I just don't buy the whole publicity stunt angle. I think the guy has issues and he apparently didn't trust anybody on his coaching staff or in their front office enough to go to them.

Reading up on this I find that they actually do mental health evaluations as part of their draft prep (http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/m...nderlic-110613) so it boggles me a bit that they don't have some kind of system in place for this kind of stuff.

If the Dolphins handle this whole thing right, this story never sees the light of day. Have him talk to a sports therapist, work out whatever is going on between his ears. His teammates never have to know, the public never has to know, and we can all maintain this comfortable illusion that all men are manly men who never need help from anyone.

That's more my point. Toughen up is the right message sometimes. Just don't think it was here. Mishandled situation by the Dolphins, bad move by Martin, all could have been avoided.

Great post.

Biggest problem, is when is it the right thing to say toughen up, when isn't it?

[GloryDayz]

Originally Posted by seamonster

Martin couldn't do much. When a big dummy keeps saying "I'll slap your ****er mother in the face because I'm an hornorary black man" , and the GM thinks it's funny you've got few options. Sharp is an awful person and makes me sick to my stomach, and I see a lot of BS race cards getting pulled, but he was right about this situation. Sit Incognito and his slightly reeruned team mates down with some elderly deep south blacks that came out of a culture of mass lynching picnic's and see if they're still cool with enabling that big dummy to be a racist bonehead.

Welcome to the working world! I'm sure he's meeting with the ACLU on a regular basis.

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by seamonster

Martin couldn't do much. When a big dummy keeps saying "I'll slap your ****er mother in the face because I'm an hornorary black man" , and the GM thinks it's funny you've got few options. Sharp is an awful person and makes me sick to my stomach, and I see a lot of BS race cards getting pulled, but he was right about this situation. Sit Incognito and his slightly reeruned team mates down with some elderly deep south blacks that came out of a culture of mass lynching picnic's and see if they're still cool with enabling that big dummy to be a racist bonehead.

This is not a racial situation and I refuse to dignify that bull shit by commenting on it any further.
Heat. Kitchen. Can't stand it? You know what to do.
Keg lists some cogent alternative thoughts above.

[siberian khatru]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

You need to be tough to play in the NFL. No doubt about that. I'm talking more about the fact that the guy arbitrarily left the team and entered himself in a hospital. You just don't do that if you're not having some kind of a problem, and I just don't buy the whole publicity stunt angle. I think the guy has issues and he apparently didn't trust anybody on his coaching staff or in their front office enough to go to them.

Reading up on this I find that they actually do mental health evaluations as part of their draft prep (http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/m...nderlic-110613) so it boggles me a bit that they don't have some kind of system in place for this kind of stuff.

If the Dolphins handle this whole thing right, this story never sees the light of day. Have him talk to a sports therapist, work out whatever is going on between his ears. His teammates never have to know, the public never has to know, and we can all maintain this comfortable illusion that all men are manly men who never need help from anyone.

That's more my point. Toughen up is the right message sometimes. Just don't think it was here. Mishandled situation by the Dolphins, bad move by Martin, all could have been avoided.

Best post of the thread

[chiefzilla1501]

Originally Posted by O.city

Great post.

Biggest problem, is when is it the right thing to say toughen up, when isn't it?

That's why a coach's "psychological" skills are so grossly underrated. They should be able to read when it's time, when it's not. It sounds to me like Miami had only one way of doing things. Seems to be the Parcells way.

[keg in kc]

Originally Posted by O.city

Great post.

Biggest problem, is when is it the right thing to say toughen up, when isn't it?

It's a complicated question that somebody a lot smarter than me would have to answer. Although I would say it's not just about when to say it, but how best to say it, too.

Locker rooms are rough places. We all know that. Hell, this board is basically a locker room, the way we bust each others' balls all the time. That's a part of comraderie and I hope it never changes.

But, at the same time, on this issue, it seems like we all have a tendency to jump all over Jonathan Martin and rush to the defense of Richie Incognito. A guy with a record of disiplinary problems and suspensions going back over a decade. And I say "we" because I was the same way when the story broke. Bullying? In the NFL?! Are you ****ing kidding me?

I've had some time to think about it now, and like I said, I think we're seeing two disparate problems here: one is a Dolphins organization which clearly mishandled an athlete to the point that it's become a public embarrassment, and the other is Martin, a guy that I believe is clearly struggling with mental illness right now. Which is I think notable when we're at a time where hotbutton topics include the ongoing study of concussions and the long term implications of football on mental health in the shadow of Junior Seau and Jovan Belcher and Paul Oliver.