Bullying scandal In November 2013,
ESPN reported on Incognito's alleged role in harassment of teammate
Jonathan Martin. According to Incognito, he had reached out to Martin after he had left the team, and the two had an amicable text exchange, in which Incognito said that Martin had not blamed him or his teammates personally. Incognito subsequently expressed outrage over the report, going on Twitter to demand that ESPN's
Adam Schefter "Stop slandering my name." Schefter and
Chris Mortensen reported on ESPN on November 3 that Martin feared "retribution, primarily from Incognito." The article went on to state that "the matter is absolutely under review and preliminarily identifies Incognito as an alleged offender in multiple incidents of possible harassment and bullying over the past two seasons, with Martin not the only victim." Schefter and Mortensen also cited unnamed sources that one of the significant allegations was an incident during the summer of 2013 when Incognito got Martin to contribute $15,000 to help finance a trip to
Las Vegas by a group of Dolphins, even though Martin preferred not to, "fearing the consequences if he did not hand over the money." On November 3, Mike Garafolo reported on
Fox Sports 1 that Incognito was alleged to have sent Martin threatening and racially charged messages. He also reported that the team and league—rather than the players' association—had been asked to investigate. That same day,
Jason La Canfora of
CBS Sports reported that Incognito "has had to be reprimanded in the past for his actions toward team employees," citing an unnamed source. La Canfora and Schefter subsequently reported statements from an unnamed source that the team and the league had gotten possession of highly disturbing texts and voicemails in which Incognito used a racial slur against Martin, and disturbing text and voice exchanges including "a reference to tracking down members of Martin's family and harming them", and even threatening to kill Martin. According to La Canfora, Incognito's alleged harassment of Martin had reached the point that Martin feared for his safety, and felt leaving the team was his only option. Just hours after the Dolphins' game against the
Cincinnati Bengals, the Dolphins suspended Incognito indefinitely for conduct detrimental to the team. The Dolphins also asked the NFL to join their own internal investigation of the matter. According to Schefter, the final straw for the Dolphins was a highly graphic voicemail Incognito left in April 2013, in which Incognito called Martin a "half-nigger piece of shit," threatened to slap Martin's mother across the face, and uttered a death threat against Martin. Until then, the Dolphins had publicly maintained the charges against Incognito were pure speculation. Schefter said that as late as the afternoon of November 3, the Dolphins were unaware the voicemail existed. Within hours of hearing the tape, Schefter said, the Dolphins had suspended Incognito. The next day, a Dolphins source told
The Miami Herald that Incognito would never play another down for the Dolphins again, and that the team intended to cut ties with him at the earliest opportunity. On November 5, the (Fort Lauderdale)
Sun-Sentinel quoted "multiple sources" as saying that Incognito may have taken orders from Dolphins coaches to "toughen up" Martin too far. The
Sun-Sentinel reported that the controversial voice mail message that ultimately led to Incognito's suspension was made after Martin missed two days of the team's voluntary workout program. The coaches asked Incognito—by this time, reckoned as the leader of the offensive line—to make a call that would "get him (Martin) into the fold." On November 7, reports emerged that Miami GM
Jeff Ireland reacted to the allegations by suggesting that Martin punch Incognito – however, rather than take things that far, Martin chose to leave the team. Under the NFL's collective bargaining agreement, Incognito was initially slated to sit out for a maximum of four weeks. At the end of that time, the Dolphins would have had to either release him or find some way to keep him off the field, given earlier statements that he would never appear in a Dolphins uniform again. However, the league and the Dolphins agreed to extend the suspension for another two weeks with pay. On December 16, the league and the Dolphins announced that Incognito would remain suspended for the remainder of the season. On February 3, 2014, the text messages exchanged between Martin and Incognito were leaked. It is thought that "the leak came from Incognito or someone close to him, because the text messages tend to support the notion that Incognito and Martin were friends. Moreover, nothing in the Incognito text messages suggests harassment or bullying of Martin." On February 4, 2014, Incognito's 3-month long suspension ended.
Investigator's report On February 14, 2014, lawyer Ted Wells released a report (NFL summary) following an investigation into the matter ordered by the NFL. The investigation concluded that Incognito, and to a lesser extent fellow offensive linemen
John Jerry and
Mike Pouncey,
bullied Martin, yet another (unnamed) Dolphins offensive lineman, and also a Dolphins staff member, an unnamed assistant trainer. The report also concluded that Incognito, Jerry, and Pouncey made severe
racial slurs towards the assistant trainer, and Incognito and Jerry taunted him by saying that they had sex with his girlfriend. On December 7, 2012, the anniversary of the
Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Incognito, Jerry and Pouncey donned
traditional Japanese headbands featuring a
rising sun emblem (which the assistant trainer had given them) and jokingly threatened to harm the assistant trainer physically in retaliation for the Pearl Harbor attack. The assistant trainer, who is from
Japan, confided in Martin that he was upset about the Pearl Harbor comments, finding them derogatory toward his heritage. Further, the report concluded regarding Martin's "mental health problems, alcohol and drug use and... concerns about poor performance on the field" that "his text messages and other evidence demonstrate that these are real factors, not issues Incognito has manufactured out of whole cloth." The report noted a published newspaper report regarding Martin's difficulties with the position change the Dolphins made with him days before he left the team and alleged harassment. The
Miami Herald noted that the Dolphins were concerned about Martin's reaction to the move, and noted that "It was clear Martin isn't thrilled about the move." "You can approach this two different ways," Martin said. "You can go in the tank and be one of those guys who bitches and moans and is a cancer in the locker room, or you can be a guy who goes out there and can be a professional and plays as hard as I can."
Response After the bullying scandal and his release from the
Dolphins organization, Incognito sought help through therapy when he voluntarily checked himself into an Arizona treatment facility. After months of treatment, Incognito described his experience and growth as "very difficult" because "there's no doubt things were said and things were texted and things were done where I clearly crossed the line...that's part of the learning process I went through, and just growing up and maturing and being aware of your surroundings and who your audience is." After sitting out the 2014 season,
Rex Ryan and the
Buffalo Bills signed Incognito for the 2015 season with the intent to "build a bully". According to teammate
Eric Wood, Incognito was seen as an "ultimate professional" and "quickly became a locker room favorite".
Martin reframes narrative In February 2025, Martin did a lengthy ESPN interview, where he stated that "he never felt bullied" by Incognito and others in the Dolphins' organization during the controversy of over a decade prior, saying that it was actually his mother that first used the term "Bullying." However, Martin made clear in the interview that the actions by Incognito, Pouncey, and Jerry were still extreme and inappropriate and that he did not excuse their conduct. Incognito responded with fierce criticism of the media for the allegations made against him at the time.
Nolan Carroll, a teammate of both Incognito and Martin, also responded publicly, furiously condemning Martin for the damage done to the 2013 Dolphins, and specifically to numerous named players, coaches and executives. Several tabloid opinion pieces also expressed outrage at the original narrative, pointing to pulled quotes from the ESPN article and claiming that Martin lied, despite the Wells Report, voicemail, and other evidence highlighted by Mike Florio at
ProFootballTalk that excessive abuse beyond NFL norms did occur in the Dolphins locker room.
Allegations of dirty play Incognito garnered attention over the years for perceived dirty play amongst NFL players, coaches, and fans. He is alleged to have gouged players' eyes, punched players, and to have regularly made illegal tackles. In 2009, NFL players voted Incognito the dirtiest player in the league, according to a
Sporting News poll.
Involuntary commitment On May 23, 2018, Incognito was placed on an "involuntary psychiatric hold" for his part in an altercation at a
Life Time Fitness health club in
Boca Raton, Florida. Incognito allegedly threw a tennis ball and a dumbbell at another gym patron. He was reported to be in an "altered, paranoid state," suspecting that he was being spied on. On June 6, 2018, he was back in training, hoping to get back to the NFL.
Funeral home incident and arrest On August 20, 2018, Incognito was arrested after an incident at a funeral home where he threatened to shoot employees while making funeral arrangements for his father. Police seized two Glocks, three rifles, and a suppressor for a handgun in Incognito's truck. Employees told Scottsdale police that Incognito wanted his father's head to be donated for research purposes, and that he had walked through the funeral home punching caskets and throwing objects. Incognito was charged with disorderly conduct and making threats. ==Personal life==