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What else can be said about the Miami Dolphins these days? Even when they weren’t great, they always seemed to at least be in the playoff discussion. This year, there were still relatively high hopes for this team, but this 1-6 start wasn’t on anyone’s radar. It’s not just an awful season (okay, it’s not a start to an awful season anymore), but it’s also filled with infighting and dysfunction. Someone who would know about infighting and dysfunction at the NFL level is former offensive lineman Richie Incognito. He absolutely lit into the Dolphins organization today on The Arena: Gridiron. “I hate the whole situation they have brewing down there,” Incognito said. “This is a dumpster fire and you have McDaniel and Tua throwing bags of gasoline into the dumpster fire. We look at this guy on TV – I do not see a leader of men. When I’m going out there on Sunday and I want to rip someone’s head off, I’m not getting fired up by this guy’s (McDaniel’s) pregame speech.” Richie Incognito’s observations echo Hall of Famer Bill Cowher’s Incognito’s comments sound awfully similar to what former Pittsburgh Steelers‘ head coach Bill Cowher said on CBS following Sunday’s loss to the Browns. “The second half of that game, they looked almost disinterested,” Cowher said. “They looked deflated. They looked almost … there was nothing left in the tank. They almost disengaged. I’m just talking the way I saw it. Tua turned the ball over (three) times. The defense gave up some big plays. “It will be interesting to see what happens down there. There’s been a lot of talk about the lack of structure that they have inside the building…We don’t know what’s going on inside the building, because we’re not there. But we see the product that’s on the field. And right now, there’s some issues in Miami.” This line of thinking runs straight through the Miami media and fanbase. If they know it, then owner Stephen Ross surely does too. It really makes you wonder why he’s waiting to clean house; he’s already on his way to a top-five draft pick next year. Richie Incognito jumped all over Tua Tagovailoa too Perhaps an even easier target for Dolphins’ observers than head coach Mike McDaniel is quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. He was putrid again on Sunday as he threw for just 100 yards to go with three interceptions and a benching. “Tua, last week, was talking about guys being late and he’s talking about leadership,” Incognito continued. “Well, the leadership starts and ends with Tua because you’re the franchise quarterback. Everyone was taking a side on ‘Was he pointing fingers at the locker room?’ I think when he said, ‘leadership,’ he was pointing the finger at Mike McDaniel. When you have people constantly late in a professional sports organization, that shows fractures. That shows favoritism. … That, to me, is the biggest flaw in this entire operation.” Incognito played four years with the Dolphins – 13 years total in the NFL – and earned one Pro Bowl appearance.
