Yahoo Sports Dolphins to punish S Bobby McCain for spitting on Bills fan after heckling from 13-year-old boy
Somehow, a game in which the winless Miami Dolphins allowed a touchdown on an onside kick attempt and saw their first-round pick ejected for throwing a punch on the second play of the game wasn’t the end of the day’s disgrace for the NFL’s worst team.
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Dolphins coach Brian Flores told reporters Monday that starting safety Bobby McCain would be disciplined internally for a pair incidents occurring before and after the team’s 31-21 loss to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. The incidents were reportedly sparked by McCain taking exception to heckles from a 13-year-old Bills fan, and resulted in McCain threatening to spit in the boy’s face, then actually spitting in another fan’s face after the game.
“I talked to Bobby about this this morning and he and I had a pretty open dialogue,” Flores said. “Heard his side of the story. It’s unfortunate, I feel he needed to handle that situation better. We’re going to discipline Bobby for that. We’ll handle that discipline internally.”
A fifth-round pick in the 2015 NFL draft, McCain signed a four-year, $27 million contract with the team before the 2018 offseason. He has previously gotten into hot water, punching future teammate Danny Amendola during a game in 2017.
Dolphins sink even lower with spitting incident
According to the Buffalo News, the incident occurred when the boy shouted “You’re irrelevant!” to Miami players as they walked through the New Era Field tunnel for warmups. The 26-year-old McCain reportedly responded by turning around and threatening to spit in the boy’s face, according to a fan named Dylan Wentland.
Wentland reportedly confronted McCain over the behavior, which resulted in him getting a surprise after the game.
From the Buffalo News:
"He's the nicest kid in the world. He's sat behind us for years with his dad. He was just having a good time," said Wentland, a 15-year season ticket holder. "I go, 'Dude, what’s wrong with you? What kind of role model are you for the kid?'"
Wentland said he didn't interact with McCain anymore during the game, but when the game ended and players left the field, McCain sought him out.
"I haven’t even said a word to him. He runs right up to me and spits in my face and then runs down the tunnel," Wentland said. "I mean literally wound up, hocked and just spit right in my face while I’m standing there."
Sheriff’s deputies reportedly responded to the first incident by trying to escort Wentland away, but other fans backed him up. The boy’s father, Scott Hammond, backed Wentland’s account of the incident to the News:
"McCain walked over and, like, faked spitting on him five or six times," Hammond said, referring to McCain's actions toward his son before the game. "He made the noise but nothing came out.”
Hammond said McCain threatened to spit on the boy again while headed back through the tunnel after warmups, but another player kept McCain moving.
Multiple fans reportedly gave statements about the incident to deputies, resulting in undersheriff Mark Wipperman telling the News the allegation is “serious” and “gross.”
Obviously, that’s a new, particularly odd low for the Dolphins this year. The team is unapologetically tanking this season for a shot at the No. 1 overall pick in the quarterback-rich 2020 NFL draft, but that end result doesn’t mean much for the players left on the roster who aren’t valuable enough to leave via trade.
The team is last in the NFL in points for and points allowed. It’s in the league’s bottom three in passing offense, rushing offense and rushing defense. It ranks 22nd in passing defense, and last in turnover margin. But hey, at least the team is No. 1 in spit attempts this season.
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