The former New England Patriots cornerback is not a fan of Chris Grier and Mike McDaniel.
When a former New England Patriots player takes a shot at the Miami Dolphins, it is not typically noteworthy. Rivals in the AFC East, unless a player has played for both teams, animosity can exist between the Patriots and Dolphins. But, when that former Patriots player is also the father of a potential free agent addition the Dolphins could be targeting, suddenly there is more to the commentary.
Former Patriots Pro Bowl cornerback Asante Samuel, Sr., made some direct and targeted comments towards the Dolphins on his podcast, “Say What Needs To Be Said”, this week. Shared by FinsXtra on X, Samuel took Miami to task for trading Pro Bowl cornerback Jalen Ramsey to the Pittsburgh Steelers, with head coach Mike McDaniel and general manager Chris Grier taking the brunt of the criticism.
“The Dolphins had no reason to trade Jalen Ramsey, other than they’re sensitive,” Samuel said. “There’s no leadership in the Dolphins organization. Mike McDaniel is a pushover. Chris Grier, the general manager, he has no backbone. These guys over here, the Miami Dolphins, they are running this team like a little league team.”
He continued, “No one can stand up to the players. They are terrified of their own players. They have no control over their players.”
McDaniel, during his first two years with the Dolphins, was commended for his relationship with the players and the locker room culture he helped establish. Last year, entering his third season, McDaniel attempted to put more of the handling of the locker room and the policing of the players on the players themselves, and it did not go as planned. After the season, reports indicated players were constantly late to practices and meetings, fines did nothing to change the behavior, and the players were not fully bought in.
A little freedom provided by McDaniel led to the players taking advantage of the situation and the team losing control of the locker room.
Earlier this offseason, linebacker Bradley Chubb spoke about the locker room and how the players did not buy in like they should have. “I’m going to say last year, we were lying honestly. Point blank, period. We felt it. We put our toe in the water, but we didn’t dive all the way in. We didn’t get all the way there with each other. We weren’t making the effort to go the extra mile and I would say this year, we’re doing that. I’m not sure how it’s going to turn out for us, but we are putting forth that foot to change it because last year, like I said, we said we wanted to change, yeah, we’re doing this, we’re doing that; but it’s not going exactly how we want to.”
There is something to what Samuel was saying about the Dolphins moving too far toward letting the players have control. Was trading Ramsey simply an example of McDaniel and Grier not standing up to a player and choosing to get rid of him because they are pushovers and do not have backbones?
Of course, when former head coach Brian Flores, known for his disciplinarian leadership style, traded away players, it was ridiculed as well, as Flores removed players who challenged him.
Most of this would blow over without much commentary, especially coming from a player who has not been in the Dolphins locker room. Perhaps he has spoken to Ramsey, who requested a trade, and has some insight into the team. Maybe he is just reacting to the situation as he sees it from the outside. Whatever the case, this probably would not be much of anything if the Dolphins were not in need of signing a free agent cornerback (or two) ahead of training camp.
Who is one of the top available free agents still on the market? Asante Samuel, Jr.
The younger Samiel, a second-round pick by the Los Angeles Chargers in 2021, missed most of last season with a shoulder injury and had offseason neck surgery. In his four seasons, Samuel, Jr., has recorded 176 tackles, 37 passes defensed, six interceptions, and one fumble recovery.
Miami could also consider free agents Rasul Douglas or Stephon Gilmore to bolster a cornerback group that includes Kader Kohou, Storm Duck, Cam Smith, Artie Burns, Kendall Sheffield, Ethan Bonner, Jason Marshall, Jr., Isaiah Johnson, Ryan Cooper, Jr., Ethan Robinson, and BJ Adams.
Are the comments of Samuel, Sr., accurate? Could this be a case of a frustrated father with the Dolphins no signing Samuel, Jr., fast enough? Is this just offseason talk during a time when there is not a lot of other content?
