Details On Timmons Disappearance Will Be Kept In House, Says Adam Gase
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DAVIE (CBSMiami) - Miami Dolphins head coach Adam Gase addressed the media on Wednesday, a day after the team announced an indefinite suspension for linebacker Lawrence Timmons.
Timmons went AWOL the night before Miami's 19-17 win over the Chargers last Sunday. The details that led Timmons to leave his team without permission are unknown, and will probably stay that way.
"Everything dealing with that, we're just going to keep in house," Gase said. "We've handled it the way we feel like we needed to handle it, and really I don't have anything to add to that."
An indefinite suspension without pay could last up to four weeks. The Dolphins could reinstate him at any time before that, or could choose to release him once the suspension is lifted.
Gase did affirm that it's safe to assume Timmons will not practice or play this week.
When asked if Timmons will have a chance to come back to the team at any point, Gase answered: "That's something I'm going to keep in house. I'll decide on that later."
Without speaking specifically on Timmons' case, Gase shed some light on the Dolphins team culture. Gase has two general rules for every player to follow: "Play hard and be on time." Clearly, Timmons was in violation of at least the second of those.
So, when a player violates the rules and goes against the team's culture, can he be forgiven?
"I think every situation is different and I would say you can be forgiven if the right steps are taken."
Whether Timmons returns to the fold could likely depend not only on how well he handles himself by re-establishing trust, but on how well the linebacker group performs in his absence.
Less than two hours after announcing the Timmons suspension, the Dolphins announced Tuesday they've acquired linebacker Stephone Anthony from the New Orleans Saints for a fifth round pick.
Anthony was drafted 31st overall by the Saints in 2015 after a successful collegiate career at Clemson.
According to Gase, the deal to acquire Anthony was in the works even before Timmons went AWOL.
"This has been going on for a while," noted Gase. "It's just finally happened. We're excited we had an opportunity to add someone to the roster who can help us."
Anthony made 16 starts and registered 70 solo tackles (112 total) his rookie year, 2015, at New Orleans, but apparently fell out of favor with head coach Sean Payton in 2016.
When asked if Anthony's 'mental game' may have been the issue in New Orleans, Gase said, "it's hard (to say) because I haven't had a chance to meet him yet. We'll just go through our process and determine where we feel he fits for us and the right way for us to coach him, teach him, and make our own assessment of how we want to use him."
Stephone Anthony has arrived in South Florida and will wear the number 44. Asked if he will play this Sunday, Gase said, "It's too early to know that right now."
The Dolphins face the Jets this Sunday, September 24th from Met Life Stadium. You can watch the game on CBS 4 and listen on 560 WQAM.