Former Dolphins OL Jonathan Martin Finally Admits He ‘Never’ Felt ‘Bullied’
Remember that whole “bullying scandal” that rocked the NFL back in 2013? Former Miami Dolphins offensive lineman Jonathan Martin accused his teammates, particularly fellow lineman Richie Incognito, of “bullying” Martin.
The situation was dubbed “Bullygate” and led to attorney Ted Wells, who was hired by the NFL, investigating Martin’s claims. Wells concluded that Dolphins players and coaches did bully Martin.
Well, after over a decade, Martin now admits that he “never” felt “bullied.”
“I never believed for a second I was being bullied,” Martin told ESPN. “It’s a story that I’ve been trying to fix for 10 years.”
That’s an interesting way to describe it. Martin now says that he’s been “trying to fix” the story for 10 years. Yet, 11.5 years later, he finally says it didn’t happen the way he said it happened. If that’s the case, and he’s really been trying to “fix” it for 10 years, why is he speaking now?
Of course, Richie Ingocnito – the main villain in Martin’s 2013 tale – has some questions that need to be answered.
“Well, well, well…” Incognito posted on X following Martin’s confession.
Incognito followed that post with another.
“He couldn’t cut it in the NFL so he quit and his mom blamed me. Legacy media pushed this narrative long and far. Too bad it was all a lie!” Incognito wrote.
The Dolphins ultimately suspended Incognito in early November and did not play another snap for the team. He sat out the entire 2014 season before signing with the Buffalo Bills in 2015.
Martin left the team due to the alleged bullying and sat out the rest of the 2013 season. He played for the San Francisco 49ers during the 2014 season and spent 2015 on the Carolina Panthers practice squad before retiring from the NFL.
Now, while Martin admits that he didn’t feel bullied, there are voicemails and texts from Incognito to Martin that include racial and gay slurs.
That being said, Incognito said at the time that his messages to Martin were simply part of the NFL teammate culture, and he was trying to “toughen up” Martin, who was deemed too soft to be an NFL player.
