Even in this scandal-ridden world poisoned with lie, cheat, and deceit, I'm amazed when people
hear about the accusations Jonathan Martin is making against Richie Incognito and ask, "Well,
why would he lie about something like that?"
A lot of people wondered and asked the same thing about Lance Armstrong, Ryan Braun, Tiger
Woods, A-Rod, and Manti' Te'o when controversy swirled about their honesty and integrity
How'd that turn out?
I'm not calling Martin a liar, but I'm not believing everything about his story that he was a
"victim" of harassment and bullying over the last two years with the Miami Dolphins. I'm
not one of those people who believes everything he reads and hears and takes it as gospel
just because it was on ESPN.
We saw that Armstrong, Braun, A-Rod, Woods, and Te'o lied because they wanted to protect
an image, reputation, and in the case of Armstrong, his entire brand and everything he
supposedly stood for.
Armstrong and Braun went so far as to destroy the reputations of others because they knew about
their dirty little secrets.
Perhaps, Martin has a secret. Perhaps he doesn't. But this story with Martin, Incognito, and the
Miami Dolphins seems to have more layers than a Bloomin' onion from an Outback restaurant.
And we don't know all the facts yet.
On Sunday night, it was reported that Martin and Incognito exchanged text messages like a
pair of gossip girls from junior high school. They exchanged more than 1,000 messages
over the last year. Over a 1,000 messages between two testosterone fueled NFL lineman?
That's interesting to say the least. I'm wondering if any one of the were a request by Martin
for Incongnito to cut out the harassment.
I'm well-aware that Incognito has a track record of bad behavior. I understand that he's
not next in line for the papalacy. He just looks the part of being a big, bad, bully. Yep,
right out of central casting. But that doesn't necessarily make him the racist he is being
painted as.
There is something going on here that doesn't add up and is, quite frankly, really strange.
After the Manti Te'o saga are we going to be surprised if this story ends up a lot different
than how it started out?
Their workplace is the NFL, a company unlike any other with employees who are part of
a select few. Football players don't come out of posh prep schools on the east coast and 99.9
percent of them aren't educated in the Ivy League. It's the survival of the fittest, the toughest,
and those who have the thickest skin. The NFL is not for the weak or faint of heart. You will
get chewed up and spit up if you are.
A lot of people think this is Biff badgering McFly in the back to the future. They seem to
believe that Incognito put on a white hood and planted a burning cross on the yard of Martin.
He didn't.
Harassment in an NFL locker room is akin to a porn star complaining about indecent
exposure. Players talk, tease, and try to test their teammates. It happens. Is it right, no. But
it's been part of the culture of the league since it's inception.
I played baseball at a high-profile division I school. If the things the players did back then,
occurred today, a lot of people would've been arrested. It was harsh, it was cruel, and it
was vile. And this was a college baseball program! Now, you can imagine what goes on
in the NFL.
Incognito and Martin were "reportedly" friends at one time and they exchange more than
1,000 text messages, which to me, is one of the most interesting facts to come out of this
case. If anybody is texting that much, especially two grown men, there is a lot more than
meets the eye.
Incognito, in his first interview, said the Martin had texted him "threatening" messages, too.
However, Incognito didn't take them as threatening, instead, figured out that Martin was
just, as they say, "talking smack."
Incognito and Martin hung out often and texted like BFF's and, suddenly, Martin leaves
the organization and the NFL? As I said before, it just doesn't add up. There is something
more sinister going on here. Martin knows that he broke the code that exists in every locker
room, not just the NFL: You don't rat out teammates or run to management. He certainly
appeared to have all his ducks in a row, saving the voicemail and going to the hospital.
He even played the supposedly racist messages that Incognito left for him, to his teammates
in the locker room.
With his parents who are lawyers, Martin gives new meaning to "lawyer up". The 6'5" 350
mountain of man didn't have the spine to have a man-to-man conversation with Incognito
to tell him to ease up? I find that hard to believe.
Perhaps, Martin, like Armstrong, Braun, and A-Rod, had an agenda of his own. Perhaps, he
was just tired of the NFL life, and wanted out, but not before he got a big pay day. You're
going to tell me calculating, manipulation, fraud, and deceit doesn't go down in this world?
Hello?Get a clue.
Perhaps, Martin is afraid of something getting out and fired a preemptive strike against
Incognito.
This case is far from over and hardly a slam dunk for Martin. If the courts rested its case
after the prosecution went on the attack. They'd be undefeated. Perception often turns to
reality as soon as the defense gets a chance to tell their side of the story and punch holes
in the accusations of the accuser.
This story is far from over and I have a feeling it's going to have a spectacular ending.
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