Miami Dolphins fans should realize, it could have been a lot worse

Miami Dolphins fans are all over the spectrum of justice after today’s NFL decision on Stephen Ross but they should have known it was coming.

There was no way the Dolphins or Stephen Ross was going to escape the wrath of the NFL. Brian Flores did the damage he set out to do, he blackened the eye of the organization that fired him and made Ross look like a fool. Flores wanted revenge and he got it. Just not as much as he had hoped.

When the allegations broke last January, fans wanted Ross to be forced to sell. That was never going to happen. It would be a precedent that would have incredible consequences around the league. No, Ross was never going to lose the team but today’s news shouldn’t be a surprise.

Were the penalties handed out, fair? Depends on how you look at it. The Patriots lost first and fourth-round draft picks when they were found guilty of deflating footballs. Tom Brady got four games.

It would seem that contacting a player would be less of a punishment but Ross and Bruce Beal were very involved in the attempts, in fact, they were at the forefront of it all. While Ross and Beal both are being hit by the NFL with fines and suspensions, we knew something would come done on the team.

Losing a first-round pick sucks but the NFL could have taken two first-round selections. They could have fined the team, they could have penalized the Dolphins’ ability to sign free agents in 2023. There are a lot of ways this could have gone and Miami should be happy that it is going to end where it is.