Jonathan Martin and the Miami Dolphins

It's probably been covered in the running thread(s), but it's a pretty interesting topic on its own. What's been reported by all parties: He was taken some crap from teammates earlier this week, he got fed up and walked away. <a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/jonathan-martin-miami-dolphins-leaves-team-bullying-taunting-teammates-103113">What's been reported by Fox Sports</a>: He was being "bull[ied]" in the locker room, and no one (coaching staff, teammates) did anything to stop it.

I'm wondering, when and how did it go beyond simple rookie harassment and turn into bullying? There are so many people in the locker room on a regular basis that you'd think it's difficult for something like this to go on, without some indication of an issue cropping up.

 

For one thing, he's not a rookie. This is his second year.

Like you said, every team hazes rookies. But it usually stops after that, and the player is accepted as "part of the team."

But this stuff seems personal, for whatever reason.

 

Based on some of the people reporting this, I guarantee you they're getting this from the team.

 

Stuff like this tends to happen on teams that stink. It isn't like the Dolphins have the league so figured out they need to find something to amuse themselves with to kill time.

 

My guess, based on no inside info whatsoever, is that Martin is gay. His teammates, knowingly or not, said something that struck a way more personal nerve because of that. I'm basing this on what appears to be a wildly disproportionate response, apparently driven by raw emotion rather than just a "Fuck these meatheads, I'm out of here" reaction.

 

The gay thing is being implied in some of the stories.

 

I know he's not a rookie, but it's been said this never stopped after his rookie season.

I haven't seen anything about his supposed sexuality, not that I care.

 

He comes from a highly educated family and went to Stanford. There is a good chance that he looks at guys like Pouncey and Incognito as mornic neanderthals in which he had nothing common so he comes off as aloof and weird.

Based on the histories of Pouncey and Incognito, Martin is probably more mainstream and normal than those two idiots.

 

Stuff like that has been going on forever. Hell, we even had that in high school. Most just accepted it as part of the locker room culture, not that it's good, but you just sort of accepted it.

 

And look how you turned out!

 

Nothing at all to do with me. I didn't play nearly long enough for that stuff to affect me much at all. It was just an observation that has nothing at all to do with me.

 

The guess about his sexuality is the easiest answer. But regardless of what it is, this sounds like it could be a powder keg for the NFL. Normally when a guy leaves like that, he is seen to have quit on the team. For them to rally to his defense after he walked out, it had to be pretty bad and it has to be potentially a very awkward story.