The fallout from the Richie Incognito-Jonathan Martin bullying saga continued on Wednesday with the Dolphins firing a coach and trainer with roles in the fiasco.
Five days after the Ted Wells report into the Incognito-Martin incident was released, Miami let go offensive line coach Jim Turner and longtime head trainer Kevin O’Neill following an “internal review of the facts” in Wells’ report, owner Stephen Ross said in a statement.
The 144-page report by the NFL investigator concluded Incognito, suspended by the team in November, and fellow offensive linemen John Jerry and Mike Pouncey harassed Martin, offensive lineman Andrew McDonald and an unnamed assistant trainer.
The report alleged Turner was involved in the harassment of McDonald, lied to investigators on a few occasions and tried to get Martin to exonerate Incognito by telling him in a text message to “DO THE RIGHT THING.” As for O’Neill, who was with the Dolphins for 18 years, the report said one of his assistants, who was from Japan, was the subject of racial slurs made by Incognito, Pouncey and Jerry, and O’Neill failed not only to intercede but allegedly laughed at the insults. O’Neill also was hostile toward the investigation and cut short an interview.
“The language and behavior as described in the Ted Wells report are against the core values of our organization,” Ross said. “Jim Turner and Kevin O’Neill are good people who care a great deal about their profession and the players whom they serve, but both exhibited poor judgment at times which led me to this conclusion.”