A timeline of events in the Miami Dolphins’ tampering scandal
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Dolphin Dilemma
The NFL announced the Dolphins will forfeit two draft picks, and team owner Stephen Ross is suspended through Oct. 17 as a result of the league’s investigation into the team’s violation of the integrity of the game in its pursuit of Tom Brady and Sean Payton.
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After six months of investigating claims of violating the integrity of the game, the NFL concluded that the Dolphins were engaged in an egregious violation of tampering rules. These “impermissible communications” involved star quarterback Tom Brady and Super Bowl-winning coach Sean Payton and spanned three years.
Here is a timeline of key events in the Dolphins’ tampering scandal:
August 2019
▪ The Dolphins’ “impermissible communications” with Brady begins when he is a member of the New England Patriots, the league’s investigation found. These discussions are conducted by Dolphins vice chairman Bruce Beal and continued throughout the regular season and postseason.
December 2021
▪ The Dolphins have impermissible communications with Brady and his agent during and after the 2021 season, now with Brady a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the investigation found. The discussions focus on Brady becoming a limited partner or executive in Miami and also include the possibility of playing for the Dolphins. Both Beal and Dolphins owner Stephen Ross are involved in these discussions, the investigation concluded.
January 2022
▪ The Dolphins have impermissible communications with Don Yee, the agent for coach Sean Payton, about Payton becoming the team’s next head coach. The league’s investigation found these conversations are conducted before Payton’s retirement in February and the New Orleans Saints did not give their consent. The Dolphins fire former coach Brian Flores on January 11, one day after the regular season ends.
February 2022
▪ Flores files a sweeping lawsuit, accusing the NFL and multiple teams, including the Dolphins, of racial discrimination. He also alleges Ross attempted to initiate a meeting against league rules with a “prominent quarterback” — later determined to be Brady — in the winter of 2020.
▪ In a memo sent to NFL teams, Goodell on Feb. 5 says the league will look into Flores’ claims. Goodell writes that the league “take[s] seriously any issue relating to the integrity of NFL game. Those matters will be reviewed thoroughly and independently. We expect that those independent experts will receive full cooperation from everyone associated with the league or any member club as this work proceeds.”
▪ The Dolphins on Feb. 6 announce the hiring of Mike McDaniel as the team’s next head coach. Media reports later claim the team intended to pursue Payton as head coach but decided against it after Flores’ lawsuit.
August 2022
▪ The NFL on Tuesday releases the findings of its six-month independent investigation. Goodell calls the Dolphins’ violation of the league’s anti-tampering policy “of unprecedented scope and severity.” The league docks the team its 2023 first-round pick and a third-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Ross is suspended through Oct. 17 and fined $1.5 million. Beal is suspended from all league meetings for the rest of the 2022 season and fined $500,000.
This story was originally published August 2, 2022 at 4:41 PM.
