Miami Dolphins offensive tackle Jonathan Martin is being treated for post-traumatic stress disorder and depression amidst allegations that he was threatened, harassed and menaced by teammates, chiefly Richie Incognito, RadarOnline.com has exclusively learned.
Martin, 24, is not expected to report back to the team anytime soon, as he works with specialists in Los Angeles and awaits clearance to return.
We’re now learning exactly what he’s being treated for.
“It’s depression and PTSD… which is directly related to the bullying he endured by Richie and other teammates,” a source close to the situation told Radar.
“Jonathan wants to play football again, but he absolutely can’t play for the Miami Dolphins. That said, football isn’t the focus right now. It’s receiving treatment and moving forward.”
The insider said Martin “hates all of the publicity this has gotten,” but added that when the time is right, “Jonathan will speak out about what really happened” inside the Dolphins locker room.
As we previously reported, the Dolphins have suspended Incognito while an investigation takes place — a club suspension for conduct detrimental to the team has a maximum of four weeks, per the league’s collective bargaining agreement. Incognito could appeal as well.
Last weekend, 30-year-old Incognito sat down with Jay Glazer of FOX in an effort to explain vicious voicemails and text messages he’d left for Martin.
“This is not an issue about bullying. This is an issue about my and John’s relationship. I had Jonathan Martin’s back the absolute most,” he said, in the interview.
He also claimed that Martin once texted HIM that he was going to kill “my entire family.”
It was just the way they communicated, Incognito said.
Meanwhile, the NFL formally asked Dolphins owner, Steve Ross, and the team’s CEO, Tom Garfinkel, to postpone their meeting with Martin.
“Ted Wells and the National Football League have asked that we delay our meeting with Jonathan Martin until they have the opportunity to meet with him,” Garfinkel said in a statement earlier this week.
“Out of deference to the process, we will cooperate with their request. We look forward to meeting with Jonathan as soon as possible.”
Martin is expected to meet with the Ted Wells, the special investigator appointed by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in the next few days, a source said.
“Jonathan’s lawyer, David Cornwell has been in constant contact with Ted. The NFL has been very supportive of Jonathan and respects that he is dealing with a very serious mental health conditions,” the source added.
Martin’s lawyer, David Cornwell, didn’t immediately respond to multiple requests for comment. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Steron:
Martin's lawyers have spoken yet we still know very little about what went down in that locker room. Perhaps I didn't phrase that clearly. Martin has remained virtually silent about the actual incident(s) that caused his mental breakdown.
I choose to believe that we don't know the entire story and that Martin is not perpetrating some "money grab" scheme.
I completely agree that we don't know the entire story. I doubt we ever do. Both aides will have their version, so i doubt we ever know the complete truth. I'm not saying it is a "money grab". But i'm also not dismissing that possibility. [Reply]
If he's suffered PTSD I'm pretty sure he wouldn't want to ever go back...
And if he is selling a story, he would say that he can't go back to that awful place. He may or may not have PTSD. I have no idea. But to completely dismiss the possibility that after he left, his workplace lawyer mother didn't take over and his words haven't been carefully chosen is, in my opinion, naive. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Detoxing:
But he's not a productive LT. And it may have become clear to him after this dismal season and subsequent benching, that he never will be.
Maybe so.
But, he'd still earn a million dollar a year salary for being a capable backup AND he has a degree from Stanford. He's not exactly facing a homeless situation.
I'm just not buying the "Get Rich Quick" scheme.
It's always ironic to me that people without "money" always claim money as a motivating factor in cases like these. [Reply]
But, he'd still earn a million dollar a year salary for being a capable backup AND he has a degree from Stanford. He's not exactly facing a homeless situation.
I'm just not buying the "Get Rich Quick" scheme.
It's always ironic to me that people without "money" always claim money as a motivating factor in cases like these.
He's overplaying it with this PTSD, he's had his lawyers on this from the start, he has yet to talk about it and it's not like we haven't seen more ridiculous lawsuits before.
So it can't be ruled out.
For all we know, maybe he doesn't want to play football anymore. It's not that hard to believe. We'll find out soon enough. [Reply]
My father suffers from PTSD. He was a police officer and wound up shooting and killing a guy on the job one night. The guy was driving at him in a vehicle trying to run him over so he fired at the driver and hit him in the head. He was basically looking him right in the eyes when it happened and that apparently ****ed him all up.
The PTSD diagnosis didn't come until years of therapy, though, when they finally got out of him that he had been molested by his uncle when he was kid. It was never known to anybody in the family as he never told anybody. Just kept it bottled up inside and basically forgot about it. The shooting brought all the emotion back out and sent him into deep PTSD.
What we learned through the process is that it generally takes more than 1 event for PTSD to occur. In many cases the series of events is similar, where 1 event will happen in a person's life that they're able to tuck away, but then another...and maybe even another...eventually makes them crack.
This seemingly simple thing could have been the final straw for Martin. None of us will ever know what events could have led up to this whole thing happening.
All of that said, I've always been a little stubborn about the whole thing. I've always felt like my dad (or anybody) should simply take a look in the mirror, man up, and move on with your life. That's easy for me to say, though, having been born and raised a spoiled brat who's never had a relatively bad thing happen to me in my life. [Reply]
Apparently the bullying story was all made up. Wow
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! They lied to protect his money. He quit… the team had every right to claw back that money. His mom started the bullying narrative with @espn… https://t.co/ifFFJPG1H7
