The Miami Dolphins’ toxic locker room situation continues to dominate this week’s NFL storylines, and Giants safety Antrel Rolle is the latest to add his two cents on the matter, spurring the controversy even further.
Richie Incognito’s alleged incessant bullying of Jonathan Martin led to the second-year player taking an indefinite leave from the team. The abusive behavior that included threatening, racially charged text messages and voice mails was deemed detrimental to the team and Incognito has since been suspended indefinitely by Miami, with the Dolphins reportedly deciding that he’ll never play another game with the team.
The incident has unveiled an ugly aspect to the culture of the NFL that the public isn’t typically privy to, but Rolle doesn’t believe all of the blame should fall on Incognito. Speaking on his weekly WFAN appearance on Tuesday, the outspoken safety acknowledged that Incognito’s behavior was unacceptable, but he expanded on his opinion, stating that Martin is also at fault as he could’ve done more to put a stop to the bullying.
“Was Richie Incognito wrong? Absolutely,” Rolle told the radio station. “But I think the other guy is just as much to blame as Richie, because he allowed it to happen.
“At this level, you’re a man. You’re not a little boy. You’re not a freshman in college. You’re a man.”
Rolle said he would never allow himself to get in this type of situation in the first place, but he again reiterated his stance of holding both players accountable. While Rolle would like to see Martin make a return to the gridiron, he added that he’ll have to man up to make that a reality.
“So, Richie Incognito, is he wrong? Absolutely. But I think the other guy is just as much to blame. Hopefully he’s able to bounce back and recover from all that has happened and take awareness of, you know, man, you’re a grown-ass man. You need to stand up for yourself. Hazing is one thing. Bullying is another.”
