On Sunday, the Miami Dolphins fined safety Don Jones and sent him to “educational training” for tweeting negative comments about Michael Sam, who became the first openly gay player to be drafted, immediately after the Rams took Sam with a seventh-round pick.
Jones tweeted “OMG” and “horrible” immediately after Sam was selected on Saturday and kissed his partner on national television. He then deleted those tweets.
Jones said in a statement that he wanted to “apologize to Michael Sam for the inappropriate comments that I made last night on social media”:
I take full responsibility for them and I regret that these tweets took away from his draft moment. I remember last year when I was drafted in the seventh round and all of the emotions and happiness I felt when I received the call that gave me an opportunity to play for an NFL team and I wish him all the best in his NFL career. I sincerely apologize to Mr. Ross, my teammates, coaches, staff and fans for these tweets. I am committed to represent the values of the Miami Dolphins organization and appreciate the opportunity I have been given to do so going forward.
Dolphins Coach Joe Philbin said Jones’ tweets “were inappropriate and unacceptable, and we regret the negative impact these comments had on such an important weekend for the NFL.”
“We were disappointed to read Don’s tweets during the NFL Draft,” he said. “We met with Don today about respect, discrimination and judgment. These comments are not consistent with the values and standards of our program. We will continue to emphasize and educate our players that these statements will not be tolerated.”
The Dolphins organization is trying to rebound this year after the negative press it received last year due to allegations that Richie Incognito harassed Jonathan Martin.