What is it about nice people that attract total idiots?Nice people are martyrs. Idiots are evangelists.

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Tuesday, November 5, 2013

The sad case of Richie Incognito

The story itself is all over the place.  Richie Incognito is out of a job, because he told a teammate he would stalk his family and "s#!t in his mouth".  And this is sad, why?  Because on so many levels, it never should have come to this.

Start with the man himself.  He is nothing but a bully, and from what we've learned about his father's comments about the situation, the nut didn't roll far from the tree.  He was kicked off not one, but two major University football programs.  Neither Nebraska nor Oregon are known for booting players just because they are sociopaths.  Remember Lawrence Phillips?  LaGarrette Blount?  So getting kicked off of either team is quite the accomplishment.

He found a home in the NFL, of course.  Things like this can be overlooked, ask Bill Belechick.  In St. Louis, he quickly became "the dirtiest player in the league" , well known for twisting ankles and biting arms of players unfortunate enough to be in a pile with him.  But then one day on national TV, he threw a punch at a player, and shouted at his head coach when he was thrown out of the game as a result.

The Rams then got smart.  They dumped him.  But up stepped the Miami Dolphins.

And now, a teammate has to get mental help, others have complained about situations that outside of football would have been termed "robbery", "extortion", and "assault".  But Owner Stephen Ross, GM Jeff Ireland, and Coach Joe Philbin say they knew nothing about it.

I say, you didn't WANT to know.

Once upon a time, the Dolphins were built on a foundation of integrity that sprang from owner Joe Robbie and Coach Don Shula.  They were a team of talent, but also of respect.  The stadium they play in was first called Joe Robbie Stadium in honor of the man.  Then came Wayne Huizenga to buy the team; the stadium gets a new sponsor's name about every two years.  That used to piss me off but not now.  Joe Robbie, were he still alive, likely wouldn't want his name on the place now. I'm sure new owner Stephen Ross could give a rat's ass.  I am amazed that Don Shula, still Vice-Chairman, really wants his name on this letterhead.

General Manager Jeff Ireland is a total idiot.  Besides his removal from the team of everyone who can actually catch a ball in the last two seasons (Brandon Marshall, Davonne Bess, Anthony Fasano, Reggie Bush, even... ugh... Tedd Ginn), he is best known for choosing Daunte Culpepper over Drew Brees and asking potential draft choice Dez Bryant what was up with his mom being a hooker.

Coach Philbin says this is against everything he is trying to do.  That the victim, second year player Jonathan Martin, never came to him or the team's "leadership council" about what was going on.  Um, Joe, Incognito was ON the leadership council.  If that was the team's idea of leadership, why WOULD he come to you?

And the team?  Oh, they knew nothing about it, but were going to look into it-  until ESPN's Adam Schefter blew the lid off the story.  That's when Incognito went to twitter and challenged his accusers- and Schefter by name- to "Bring it!"

And then, Martin gave everyone a voice message with Incognito saying all those horrible things, and calling him a "half-nigger"  Apparently Incognito's African American sidekick, Mike Pouncey (You know, one of Aaron Hernandez' former accomplices bosom buddies) found it funny.  Apparently many players on the team are more upset that Martin told on Incognito than what the a-hole did.  Among those are probably not the younger players who have been "donating" so that Incognito, Pouncey, and others can go out on the town.

But Ross, Ireland, and Philbin didn't know this kind of thing was happening.  Is this a football team or the damn White House?  I call BS on each of you.  Except maybe Ireland; he might have been too busy lining up more draft picks that have moms who'll give him a $20 tumble.

IMHO, the NFL should fine heavily the Dolphins for ever spending money on this piece of subhuman trash.  The should suspend everyone from the top down just like they did with New Orleans.  Incognito should be banned period.  In an age where hazing and bullying has been on everyone's minds and tongues, this is a blow to the reputation of the league and the team that SHOULD NOT be ignored.

In case you didn't realize, this is hard for me to write.  I have followed the Dolphins as my #1 team for over 40 years.  I made it through bad coaches like Dave Wannstedt and Cam Cameron.  I made it through Nick Saban's realization that it's a lot less expensive to assemble a good team in the college realm, where you don't have to pay players above the table.  I even made it through starting QB Cleo Lemon, and drafting Ginn with a waste of a tenth overall pick.  But this....

My heart is definitely out of the equation.

I challenge you, Stephen Ross, and Joe Philbin, to tell me WHY I should give a damn about the team when you obviously didn't.

Oh, and Richie?  Schefter OWNED you.  It wasn't hard.  All one needed was a brain.

14 comments:

  1. CW-

    I struggle with this story (it was going to be a post on my sports blog but you beat me to it).

    On the one hand, I am not condoning Incognito's behavior-he's a punk.

    But an offensive lineman complaining to the league and walking out on the team?

    Why didn't he just hit Incognito with a chair?

    And where were the other lineman?

    Hazing goes on in foztotball. It did at my high school, and it does in the pros....I imagine it does in college. I would argue that most of it is harmless, and the players should simply stand up for themselves if they object to it.

    I do not condone bullying, but when I was being picked on by the neighborhood bully, my father sent me back out to stand up for myself.

    As an adult that lesson is important, as one encounters abrasive personalities all through life, and even when you are not settling things with fisticuffs, the willingness to stand one's ground is important.

    I fear the country's latest trend and trying to save everyone from bullying will leave a bunch of people who have zero conflict resolution skills.

    But again-please understand-Incognito is an ass, and I do not condone his behavior.

    Should other players have intervened when Incognito was getting out of hand? yes.

    Should the team keep an eye on things as well to see that the hazing remains in the spirit of fun and a rite of passage?

    Yes.

    But should a grown man be able to stand up and draw a line and tell a bully he better not cross it?

    Yes.

    A little further clarification-had action been taken on the "dirtiest player' behavior (isn't it a joke that you can even be voted to that title and no action taken?), which I find far more deplorable, maybe this whole incident would have been avoided.

    Larry

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    1. I can see the point about Martin, but y'know, sometimes among all the Ben Rothlesburgers you get a Tim Couch. My point, even my anger, is not so much with the man that did it as the team that allowed it for ever picking him up.

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    2. I see what you're saying, , but I still feel like Martin needs to learn to stand up, if only to be ready the next time he encounters a bully (although maybe at his size that is unlikely)..

      Maybe he needs to watch the original Karate Kid movie...."make good fight, earn respect."

      That does not excuse the team, but quite frankly I blame the rest of the locker room more than team management. The rest of the offensive line needed to chime in.

      Oh well-one more reason I spend far less time watching football than I used to.

      LC

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    3. Unfortunately, a good share of the locker room thinks Martin is a rat for tattling. Frankly, I'd have told RI and his ilk to KMA right from the start.

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  2. CW, this was so well written and I am ashamed at some of the sports incidents that occur. I do have to agree with DC in that if you allow someone to get away with something once, then they'll continue again and again. Someone needed to kick Incognito's ass a long time ago and he wouldn't be bullying anybody. But it's never too late to start either! I would have went after the guy if he said that stuff to me in a message etc.and settled it man to man. That's just my h.o. lol

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    1. I'm thinking maybe he just didn't have that in him. Maybe he was a "gentle giant". It would certainly make an attractive target for a monster like Incognito.

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  3. >>... In case you didn't realize, this is hard for me to write. I have followed the Dolphins as my #1 team for over 40 years.

    I didn't know that about you, CW. The Dolphins are / were my favorite team too. In fact, it was the 1972 season that first made me take an interest in football. I'm not much of a sports fan anymore, but I still keep a general eye on which teams are good, bad, and so-so.

    Just as you beat DiscConnected to the punch on this blog bit idea, DiscConnected beat me to the punch in the comment section, but I will say a little sumpin' anyway...

    Assholes like Incognito are, more times than not, bluffing. And even when they're not bluffing, a good fight put up against them by someone else is usually enough to make them back off. Gangbangers? A bunch of pussies who rarely have the guts to go one-on-one with someone who isn't backing down from them. That's why they run in packs like animals - they know they need the support (same thing with cops).

    Do you remember the story I told in one of your fairly recent blog bit comment sections? The one about the young Mexican punk on the street who called me a "punk-ass bitch" [from a safe distance] because I wouldn't give him any money, but he decided not to come after me when I flipped him The Bad Finger? That was just a future Incognito. He could talk tough, but he wasn't willing to take a chance on the old White man who was confident enough to flip him off and turn his back to him, like there was nuttin' to worry about from a punk like HIM.

    Well, that's what SHOULD have happened a long time ago to Incognito. And it's hard to even believe that in a tough sport like football, another gigantic lineman would even take any of that shit from another player. One good fight - win, lose, or draw - would have convinced Incognito to find another sucker. Unbelievable!

    Do you know that song by Todd Snider about retaliation against bullies? I can't remember the title now (DiscConnected would know it), but Snider tells a story about a kid who gets tired of being bullied and decides to START A FIGHT EVERY SINGLE DAY against the guy who's been bullying him.

    Although the bully wins the fights, he does take a lump here and there, and eventually he cringes to see the victim coming because the bully just doesn't want to fight anymore! The bully wants to intimidate, and even fight once in awhile (if he thinks he'll win), but he doesn't want SOMEONE ELSE starting it with him every damn day!

    There's a lot of truth in that song.

    Anyway, there's one thing I know for sure. Someday, Incognito is going to pick the wrong guy to pick on, and it will be a huge revelation to him. You can only get away with that shit just so long before you meet someone badder than you. And very often, the person who seems like the biggest pushover is the one who cleans your clock for ya! (I remember a great story my Pa told me about from when he was in the Navy.)

    ~ D-FensDogg
    'Loyal American Underground'

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    1. First of all, a big thanks to Blogger for eating yet another long comment. Second, I agree that it should have happened to RI a long time ago... and to his a-hole father as well. But he has had a sports world full of enablers, and it's hard to "get his" when so many gave him a free ride. Now he's far too old and stupid to learn anything from it.

      Third, I realize that a lot of people are looking at this from the angle of Martin should have reacted differently. And they are right. None of those rookies should have taken any of that crap. But my main concern was the shit stain the Dolphins spread over their name beginning with ever signing RI and continuing every minute they claim to not have known what was going on.

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  4. Incognito had the mentality that nothing could bring him down. He was the big, bad, football star. He was living the dream and no one could touch him. He learned long ago he didn't have to held accountable for his actions as long as he played a good game. Finally, someone took him on. Thank goodness!

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    1. I know you know the disasters that can come from enablers giving you a free ride. I hope that every idiot that gave him a "second" chance will enjoy the inevitable end he's going to come to thanks to them.

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  5. It isn't just the Dolphins; it's the entire NFL. The defense of 'I didn't know this was going on' doesn't wash. If management actually did not know, then they've failed miserably because it's their business to know.

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    1. Total agreement. I only focused on my team, but the league, and his other teams- as well as the NCAA- are just as culpable.

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  6. Chris:
    "Roid-Rage" know NO limits...and respects NO boundaries.
    And with a name like HIS...well, one would think...

    Good call.

    Stay safe up there.

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    1. I've thought about "roid-rage" but I think that's giving him an excuse he doesn't deserve. I'll wager that if you look into the crystal ball of his past, that this started long before he knew what a steroid was.

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