Raiders Today

Former Raider Incognito Vindicated After Bullygate Revelation

Following recent reports, former Las Vegas Raiders guard Richie Incognito has finally beaten "bully" allegations due to Jonathan Martin coming forward and admitting it was all a lie.
Dominic Minchella|
Aug 15, 2019; Glendale, AZ, USA; Oakland Raiders guard Richie Incognito (64) during a preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Aug 15, 2019; Glendale, AZ, USA; Oakland Raiders guard Richie Incognito (64) during a preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

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Over a decade ago within the Miami Dolphins franchise, offensive tackle Jonathan Martin claimed that guard Richie Incognito, and several others, were actively going out of their way to use derogatory and racial remarks towards him. Now over a decade removed, the former Las Vegas Raider got his vindication.

Martin was a 2012 second round draft pick by the Dolphins that was said to have a high ceiling, but is highly remembered for the instance that would be known as "Bullygate". Bullygate began in 2013. After spending only three years in the NFL, Martin retired at the age of 25.

After news surfaced that Incognito was allegedly bullying Martin in the locker room, Incognito would be suspended and was under review by the Dolphins organization, the NFL and the NFL Players Association for harassment of teammate Jonathan Martin, which costed him two years of his playing career.

In a recent article published by ESPN's Anthony Olivieri, Martin has come forward to announce that all that Incognito was accused of doing was a lie, sprouted by his parents in an act to protect him, yet it took him over a decade to admit it.

"I never believed for a second I was being bullied," Martin now says. "It's a story that I've been trying to fix for 10 years." ... I had a situation with my teammates that I wasn't super happy about," Martin said. "But my mother had her own read on the situation."

"I had a situation with my teammates that I wasn't super happy about," Martin said. "But my mother had her own read on the situation.... I hadn't even told my coaches, hadn't told anyone," Martin said. "And suddenly it's on ESPN, right?.... I didn't believe any of the stances I was taking, right, where I'm this victim," Martin said. "I wasn't a victim, right? And, again, it's been a point of consternation."

Incognito has since taken to social media after the ESPN article gained massive attention, to sound off on the recent weight of over ten years of lies taken off of his chest, and calling out Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk's article breaking down the story, and ESPN's Adam Schefter, who called it a 'notable excerpt'.

Incognito wrote in a tweet, "He {Martin} couldn’t cut it in the NFL so he quit and his mom blamed me. Legacy media pushed this narrative long and far. Too bad it was all a lie! They lied to protect his money. He quit… the team had every right to claw back that money. His mom started the bullying narrative with @ESPN @AdamSchefter so that @MiamiDolphins wouldn’t go after his signing bonus!"

Incognito even took to social media to post picture alongside Martin showcasing that the facade surrounding the narrative that he was Martin's bully was all misleading.

In Olivieri's article, Martin said he did not believe his mother was trying to hurt him or his image, but he couldn't read her mind.

"My mother maybe in her mind -- I can't read her mind -- she thought she was doing the right thing," Martin said. "She wasn't intentionally trying to hurt me."

Even former Miami Dolphin cornerback Nolan Carroll joined the social media party to give his two cents about the lives impacted by the extensive lie.

"Y'all don’t understand everyday it was never about opponents but how bad of a locker we had (which we didn’t) I remember when he {Martin} was crying leaving the locker room because he couldn’t handle that he just wasn’t playing good and didn’t bother to work himself out of a hole." Carroll wrote on X. "He just ran like a coward! Admitting this now does nothing. I don’t respect him, never will."

Incognito would eventually return to football in the 2015 season as a member of the Buffalo Bills, the previous team he played on before his four year tenure with Miami, and collect three straight Pro Bowl nods. After missing the 2018 season, Incognito joined the Raiders organization and felt very welcomed by the franchise, before hanging up the cleats in 2022.

"Once I got here {Las Vegas}, Mr. Davis welcomed me with open arms, Mike Mayock was the GM, coach Gruden, they let me come in and be myself," Incognito said in an interview in 2022. "They trusted in who I was, they plugged me in and let me be a leader... Just felt like home from the get go."

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Dominic Minchella
DOMINIC MINCHELLA

Dominic Minchella holds a communications degree from Eastern Michigan University. He is a former MLB writer and joins our team as an NFL/College team reporter On Sports Illustrated

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