Reshad Jones Dion Jordan Suspensions Reflect On Team

The Miami Dolphins had a horrible season last year internally to the point that we don’t even need to go into specifics, just that the offensive line in the locker room made the team look like fools. By the end of that fiasco fingers were being pointed at everyone from Jeff Ireland to Joe Philbin and anyone else who wasn’t picking on Jonathan Martin.

Where was the team leadership? Who should have stepped up to stop it? Was it even as bad as they claimed?

The season ended and many speculated that it was the fault of Joe Philbin for not have more control over his locker room. He vowed to not have that continue.

This off-season the Dolphins the Dolphins have a new sense of pride but that didn’t stop Dion Jordan from getting suspended or Reshad Jones. The loss of Jordan for four weeks is like getting your shin kicked by a two year old, it stings but it doesn’t leave a mark. The Jones four game suspension is like getting kicked in the groin by a teenager. The sting is going to last awhile.

Many want to point the fingers at both Jordan and Jones who both say that the failed tests were the results of supplements that they have taken. If that is indeed true then who exactly should be blamed for this mess and how many other players have the same supplement in their system but haven’t been caught?

Consider that the NFL has a list of banned substances. Each player has that list. Their agents have that list. The team has that list. The teams dietician has that list. The teams trainer has that list. The team physician has that list. Joe Philbin has that list. The list, goes on and on.

There is no excuse for a player to fail a drug test for supplements. “Hey Mr. Trainer, I want to take these supplements, is there anything in here I can’t take?”. It’s that simple if a player doesn’t want to read the list themselves. So where is the blame? It’s actually on everyone. Players need to be accountable to themselves and use the resources available to them and at the same time the teams trainers and coaches need to have an idea of what players are putting into their bodies.

In the case of Jones and Jordan it’s not as simple as one player making a mistake but two and that reflects on the teams ability to police supplements. Perhaps the NFL should simply ban any supplement regarding of the type unless given to them by the team specifically. Have you gone into a Vitamin Shoppe or a Max Muscle or a GNC lately? Talk about confusing.

There really is no blame to be thrown here, no darts to toss or fingers to point just the reality that the system is flawed and better checks and balances need to be implemented. The loss of Jordan hurts but doesn’t effect the win/loss totals of the team in the first four weeks directly. The loss of Jones very well could and in both cases could have been prevented. By anyone who wanted to take the time and monitor it.