Look, the NFL is a weird place. It’s a workplace, sure, but it’s one where you’re literally paid to be violent. But what happened between Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin back in 2013 wasn't just "football being football." It was a mess that tore apart the Miami Dolphins and forced the entire league to look in the mirror.
Funny enough, the conversation hasn't actually stopped. Even now, over a decade later, people still argue about whether Martin was "soft" or if Incognito was a flat-out villain. The truth is a lot messier than a simple headline. It's a story of a locker room culture that went off the rails and two men who, for a time, were actually close friends before it all imploded.
The Day the Locker Room Broke
October 28, 2013. That's the day everything changed. Jonathan Martin, a massive 6-foot-5 offensive tackle out of Stanford, basically just walked out. He left the Dolphins' facility after a lunchroom prank where teammates stood up as soon as he sat down. To an outsider, it sounds like middle school stuff. To Martin, it was the final straw in a long, grueling year of harassment.
He checked himself into a hospital for emotional distress. He was done.
Suddenly, the name Richie Incognito was everywhere. A voicemail leaked. In it, Incognito used a racial slur and threatened to kill Martin. It sounded indefensible. The Dolphins suspended Incognito indefinitely, and the NFL brought in high-powered attorney Ted Wells to figure out what the hell was going on in Miami.
📖 Related: Louisiana vs Wake Forest: What Most People Get Wrong About This Matchup
What the Wells Report Actually Found
The Wells Report was 144 pages of "yikes." It didn't just target Incognito; it named teammates John Jerry and Mike Pouncey as part of a "pattern of harassment." They didn't just pick on Martin, either. They targeted an assistant trainer with racial slurs and another young player with homophobic taunts.
- The Sister Comments: This was the part that supposedly hurt Martin the most. His teammates made graphic, sexually explicit remarks about his sister and mother.
- The Fine Book: Incognito kept a notebook to track "fines" for the offensive line. After Martin left, Incognito literally wrote that he was "breaking Jmart" and fined himself for it.
- The Racial Angle: Even though Incognito and Martin were "friends," Incognito used the N-word frequently. He argued it was just how they talked. The report disagreed, calling it workplace bullying, plain and simple.
The "Best Friends" Defense
Here’s where it gets complicated. Incognito didn't hide. He went on TV with Jay Glazer and argued that he was Martin's best friend. He showed over 1,000 text messages they’d exchanged. In those texts, they joked about drugs, sex, and violence. Martin even sent some pretty "out there" texts back to Incognito.
Basically, the defense was: "How can I be a bully if we're best friends?"
Honestly, if you read the texts without context, they look like two dudes being vulgar. But the report found that Martin was "performing" a role. He was trying to fit in with the "alpha" culture because he didn't feel he had a choice. He was a "go along to get along" guy until he couldn't go along anymore.
👉 See also: Lo que nadie te cuenta sobre los próximos partidos de selección de fútbol de jamaica
Did Jonathan Martin Recant?
This is a big rumor that popped up recently. In 2025, some media outlets claimed Martin admitted he was never bullied. That’s not quite the whole story. While Martin has talked about his own mental health struggles and how they played a massive role in his departure, the factual evidence of the harassment—the voicemail, the fine book, the trainer's testimony—didn't just vanish.
Incognito, for his part, has stayed vocal. He’s still salty about the "bully" label. He’s posted photos of them together on social media, essentially saying, "Does this look like a guy being bullied?" It's a debate that has no real winners.
Where Are They Now?
The aftermath was wild.
Richie Incognito actually managed to save his career. After being blackballed for the 2014 season, he signed with the Buffalo Bills and made three straight Pro Bowls. He finished his career with the Raiders, retiring as a respected veteran leader in their room. It was a complete 180.
✨ Don't miss: Listen to Dodger Game: How to Catch Every Pitch Without a Cable Bill
Jonathan Martin’s path was much harder. He was traded to the 49ers, played a bit, then retired in 2015 due to a back injury. But the ghosts followed him. In 2018, he posted a photo of a shotgun on Instagram, tagging Incognito and his old high school. He was taken into custody and admitted to a mental health facility. It was a scary reminder that the trauma from 2013 hadn't just gone away.
The Lasting Impact on the NFL
The "Bullygate" scandal changed the league. You don't see "hazing" the way you used to. Teams have actual HR policies now. Coaches like Jim Turner (the Dolphins' O-line coach who supposedly participated in the taunting) were fired and found it much harder to keep jobs.
The NFL had to admit that a locker room is a workplace. You can't just threaten to kill someone's family and call it "culture."
Actionable Insights for the "Real World"
While most of us aren't 300-pound linemen, there are actual lessons here for any high-pressure environment:
- Impact vs. Intent: Incognito claimed he didn't intend to hurt Martin. It didn't matter. In the eyes of the law (and the NFL), the impact on the victim is what defines harassment.
- The Danger of "Go Along to Get Along": If you feel you have to adopt a persona to survive your workplace, you're already in a toxic situation. Martin's "friendly" texts were a survival mechanism, not a sign of a healthy friendship.
- Locker Room Culture is No Excuse: Using "it's just our culture" as a shield for racism or harassment doesn't hold up in 2026. Whether it's a sales floor or a football field, the rules of human decency still apply.
The Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin saga wasn't a simple case of a big bad bully and a victim. It was a collision between a prehistoric sports culture and the modern reality of mental health. It ended careers, ruined a friendship, and forced a billion-dollar industry to grow up.
To understand the full scope of NFL workplace changes since this incident, you can review the 2014 Ted Wells Report or the updated NFL Personal Conduct Policy, which now includes specific language regarding hazing and professional workplace behavior. These documents remain the blueprint for how the league handles internal discipline today.