Free Speech Under Assault, Again!!

05/12/2014

Another Dolphin in Twitter trouble

DAVIE, Fla. -- It has not been a banner week for Miami Dolphins players on social media.

Just 48 hours after Pro Bowl center Mike Pouncey found himself in hot water over recent Twitter comments, Dolphins second-year player Don Jones tweeted a controversial reaction to the St. Louis Rams drafting Michael Sam, who became the first openly gay player drafted in the NFL.

Soon after Sam was drafted, Jones tweeted "OMG" and "horrible." Those tweets since have been deleted.

Television cameras showed Sam kissing his boyfriend after the former Missouri star received a phone call from the Rams.

Following last year's issues with Miami's locker-room culture, Jones' tweet was enough to catch the attention of Dolphins general manager Dennis Hickey.

"I was made aware of it and I was disappointed in those comments," Hickey said Saturday night. "That's not what we stand for as an organization. The draft weekend is a culmination for so many players, their lifetime achievement of their dream to achieve a goal for Michael Sam and all the other players.

"It's a celebration. ... I think it's a great thing for the league."

Hickey also said the team plans to "sit down with Don Jones and address [the comments] and handle it appropriately."

Jones became the second Dolphins player in the past several days to make controversial statements on social media. When Miami drafted first-round pick Ja'Wuan James on Thursday, Pouncey tweeted "I can't wait for our gifts he's getting us." The comment was in poor taste following the Ted Wells report last February, where Pouncey and former teammates Richie Incognito and John Jerry were cited for bullying and harassing former Dolphin Jonathan Martin.

Pouncey shut down his Twitter account after meeting with the Dolphins' brass this weekend.

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