Well that’s a doozy. The NFL imposed serious discipline on the Miami Dolphins this Tuesday after an investigation into violations of the league’s integrity of the game policy; spurred by allegations from former Dolphins head coach Brian Flores’ lawsuit, the league found evidence of Ross tampering with then-New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton and then-Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady prior to their retirements earlier this offseason.
To that end, Ross has been suspended from involvement with Miami through Oct. 17 and must pay a $1.5 million fine. The Dolphins are forced to forfeit their 2023 first round pick (though they still own the San Francisco 49ers’ first rounder) as well as their third round selection in 2024. It’s a big hit to their organization.
But to be clear, the Saints (and Payton) didn’t do anything wrong here. When the Dolphins did formally reach out to request an interview with New Orleans, they blocked the request given Payton’s decision to step away from coaching. Before Miami contacted the Saints, though, the NFL found that they conducted “impermissible communications” with Payton’s agent Don Yee without seeking New Orleans’ consent in Jan. 2022. This was also the case with Brady’s camp. Here’s the excerpt on Payton from the NFL report:
“In January 2022, the Dolphins had impermissible communications with Don Yee, the agent for New Orleans Saints’ head coach Sean Payton, about having Mr. Payton serve as Miami’s head coach. Miami did not seek consent from New Orleans to have these discussions, which occurred before Coach Payton announced his decision to retire as head coach of the Saints. Following that announcement, Miami requested permission to speak to Coach Payton for the first time, which New Orleans declined to grant.”
It’s been widely reported that Ross had designs of pairing Payton with Brady in Miami, with the latter possibly becoming a minority owner of the team while also suiting up as the Dolphins quarterback on Sundays. But Flores’ lawsuit scuttled those plans and shifted focus elsewhere, also leading to this NFL investigation. Now the book has been thrown at them, making it increasingly unlikely that they’ll try a second run at Payton in the future.
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