I thought the same thing initially. How could an adult, especially a freakin' huge NFL lineman, actually be bullied by anybody? I chuckled and rolled my eyes at the idea. Then as I read more about Martin, such as being labeled a "freak" and "weird" by his teammates because he did not like the same things an NFL lineman normally likes, they started ostracizing this guy and constantly pulling pranks on him. He was a quiet guy that just did not like conflict, so a bully would take advantage of that. We all probably have known big guys in which their personality just does not match their size. Some prick like Incognito probably gets some warped feeling of superiority knowing he can control another big guy like Martin. We like to think adults grow out of such things as bullying, but some people can never get their maturity level out of high school.
I wonder what Martin could have done? If he punches that asshole Incognito in the face, does he get disciplined by the Dolphins or call it even? If he goes to the Dolphins management, do they just laugh at him because the thought of a big guy like him being bullied sounds stupid and unbelievable or do they listen and investigate? He is a rookie when this starts, so are the Dolphins going to believe him or Incognito?
My question to the lawyers on the board, given that the NFL is a job, would this not be a good case for at least a hostile work environment? If you was to take this same situation, but remove it from the NFL and place it in a normal office work environment, the case would be hard to turn down, right?
Like I said, there is zero doubt that Incognito is an epic douche. Not at all defending him as a person.
And, I guess if we were using the word "harassment" instead of "bullying" I would be able to take it seriously. Really, they mean the same thing. And you're right, it sounds like a hostile work environment, and that something needed to be done.
As for what Martin could have done, like I said, tell him to go fuck himself. Seems simple enough to me. Sounds like he extorted money out of him too. I guess the key here is semantics. Extortion is an adult problem. "Bullying", especially in the adult world, is some PC bullshit. Again, though, I don't see how an adult doesn't just say "Fuck you, dude, I'm not paying for your vacation."
When he was a rookie, he probably got "bullied" a lot. Again, light, harmless hazing is just the culture of professional sports. Get over it and pass it along to the next round of rookies. Sounds like this continued beyond just his rookie season though.
Like I said, it's complex, and I in no way think Incognito is anything other than an asshole. I can even get on board with him getting punishment for this, given the severity of the harassment he was inflicting. But at some point, you've gotta man up and not expect to be coddled like a child.
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