Opinion: Stephen Ross will not be forced to sell the Miami Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins have a new head coach but their owner will be investigated by the NFL. Don’t expect a worst-case scenario.

It doesn’t matter if you like, love, hate, or loathe Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross. The crosshairs are definitely focused on him and there are reports that he could be forced to sell the team if there is any proof that he tried to force Brian Flores to tank the 2019 season.

According to Ian Rapoport, the NFL will investigate Ross and the punishment could be severe enough that a vote of owners could force him out of Club 32.

I’m here to tell you that is not going to happen. I’m here to tell you that it shouldn’t happen. Would new ownership change the future of the Dolphins in a positive way? Maybe. But we should also be careful for what many are wishing for.

It doesn’t matter how much money Ross is willing to spend. Allegations of cheating is a serious issue. But forcing him to sell? Voting him out? I don’t have to look as far as Bob Kraft.

Kraft has seen his cheating scandals get swept under rugs. Even big fines for him and Bill Belichick didn’t lead to selling the team. It didn’t lead to Belichick being blackballed out of the NFL. So why is offering money to tank a problem? Flores didn’t cheat. He didn’t take the money, so he says. That is not going to be easy to prove. Even if someone else was sitting in the room when it happened if there is no voice of Ross on a recording. They can’t prove it.

Another reason it won’t happen is that NFL owners are not going to set a precedent that could force the other owners to someday vote them out. Dan Snyder in Washington is being investigated for harassment. It could be serious. Could he be voted out? Yes. Will he? Probably not.

The NFL is a club. I call it Club 32. 31 owners are not going to put their necks out to vote out one of their own. Some will but not the majority.

Ross should be personally fined and it should be a massive amount. The Dolphins will probably lose a draft pick if not more and that too is on Ross. I still go back to the first, second, and third time that the Patriots faced cheating charges. Hell, Kraft gave Belichick a raise after he was fined by the league. Talk about a middle finger salute.

Dolphins fans are not happy to go through another off-season of drama but the sky isn’t and shouldn’t be falling. It shouldn’t be too much of a distraction either. Mike McDaniel said in his press conference that there was “Zero” hesitation to joining the Dolphins and praised Ross as an owner. Like him or not, the guy just wants to win.

What happens next is anyone’s guess and Miami could become a scapegoat. A report today says that Brian Flores is amending his lawsuit to specifically include the Texans who he is now claiming didn’t give him their head coaching job because of his lawsuit against the league. This is according to ProFootballTalk.com.

Flores’ lawsuit is beginning to look more like a staged event rather than anything based on reality and there is no specific lawsuit against the Dolphins or Ross. Just summary allegations and he will need to prove to the league that something actually took place. It isn’t going to be easy and is why I don’t see the worst case scenario for Stephen Ross. Nor do I think it is warranted.