Black Monday has a different meaning at Miami Dolphins camp this year. While other teams -- Atlanta, the New York Jets, Chicago, San Francisco, Oakland -- are making bold decisions and plans for upgrading in the future (they hope) the Dolphins are in something of a holding pattern.
Dolphins coach Joe Philbin talked to players individually throughout the morning. He then met with the team as a whole.
"I told them the reason we're here is to make a difference on and off the field," Philbin told the media today. "I told Mr. Ross when I interviewed for the job that we were going to get better week to week and year to year and 8-8 again, obviously I failed my responsibility and obligation I made to Mr. Ross. So I didn't do well enough coaching this football team to get them better.
"I started off with that and I said we're all in this thing together. It certainly is not all about Joe Philbin. It's not the Joe Philbin show here. It's about the Miami Dolphins and winning championships and reaching our potential. And we have to find ways to improve and do that quickly. That was really the message, the main message."
The major topic of conversation and buzz at camp today was the Mike Wallace incident at the end of the half on Sunday when Wallace told Philbin he wasn't playing unless something changed. Philbin then benched the wide receiver.
Both Wallace and Philbin were asked to elaborate on the episode. Philbin evaded:
"I had a conversation with him during the game and made a coaching decision," the coach said. "It's really nothing more complicated than that."
Philbin was asked by me to confirm that Wallace told him he didn't want to play.
"I've never really discussed private conversations with players with anybody," Philbin said. "Those are private conversations. He and I had a discussion and then I made a coaching decision. That's all there is to it."
The coach and receiver also had a meeting this morning.
"It was in the privacy of my office and the door was shut and those conversations are between me and him," Philbin said.
Wallace came into the locker room about 45 minutes after his coach spoke and addressed the issue by, well, telling a version of events that has been refuted by a handful of people I've talked to since last night and doubled back with today.
Wallace was asked if got into an argument with quarterback Ryan Tannehill or Philbin or anyone yesterday.
"Nah. Coach's decision," he said.
Wallace was asked if he had conversation with Joe and they told him he's not going back in in the second half:
"No. I found out when I was going back on the field," Wallace said.
Interestingly, yesterday Brandon Gibson said receiver were informed at halftime that Wallace would not be playing in the second half. Wallace was standing next to Gibson and approved everything his teammate said on his behalf at the time.
Wallace was asked If his preference was to get back out and play in the second half?
"Of course," he said.
Wallace was asked if the reports, obviously including mine, that he asked out of the game are true.
"No," he said.
Again, the report was completely true and accurate.
The question of Wallace's status with the team going forward will be interesting. Look, if today's words from Philbin and Wallace can be believed then all is well, there is nothing to see here, and Wallace will continue with the Dolphins next year.
If today was all a bunch of hooey then Wallace may be cut this offseason. We shall see.
Philbin was asked about the receiver's status with Miami going forward:
"Nothing's changed that I know of," Philbin said. "I don't think we've made any roster moves, have we?
"Again, I haven't spent one second thinking about 2015 yet. We took a look at the film. Watched the game film. I got meetings with every single player here over the next day or so. To get feedback, ways we can get better, ways we can improve, things I can do better, things they can do better. But I haven't really thought about who's playing what position in 2015 or any of that stuff."
One final thing: Philbin will wrap his meetings with players today and perhaps early tomorrow. Then he'll meet with assistants, at which time he'll decide the fate of coaches such as Kevin Coyle and Darren Rizzi -- coaches whose units were wildly inconsistent this season.
"The process is going to start here soon," Philbin said referring to Coyle. "Today is dedicated to the players and then I'm going to sit down with the coaches as I do every single year. I need obviously some time to think about things because the season just ended. I haven't made any decisions about any coach for 2015. None of them."
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