*** DOLPHINS NEWS ***
Sep 28, 1999: -- Underwood Placed on IR --
** Underwood Placed on Non-Football Related IR
The Dolphins placed Dimitrius Underwood on their non-football
related injured reserve list today, ending speculation about if and
when Underwood might be able to return to the roster following a
bizarre incident over the weekend in which Underwood sustained serious
injuries from stab wounds to the neck.
Underwood was found in the streets of Lansing, Michigan on
Sunday afternoon with a life-threatening gash in his neck. He was
taken to the hospital, where he underwent successful surgery for the
injury.
Underwood was in Michigan for the weekend to visit friends.
However, he was arrested on Saturday night for non-payment of child
support and spent several hours in jail. He was bailed out that night
by the mother of the children he is required to support and reportedly
went to her house.
Despite the fact that no one saw the incident which caused the
injury, the police have determined that the injury was almost
certainly self-inflicted by Underwood in a suicide attempt. One
report says that he spent several hours on the phone with his sister
on Saturday night, with her trying to talk him out of killing himself.
Underwood's mother claims that her son may have been involved
with an extreme religious group, which may have been partially
responsible for his state of mind. She specifically referred to one
individual who had been following Underwood recently, although she
declined to name this person or the group that Underwood was involved
with.
Currently, Underwood is under sedation for his injuries and to
prevent him from attempting any further harm to himself. He is
considered to be in stable condition and is expected to recover fully.
The Dolphins have arranged for further medical care and for
counseling for Underwood once he is well enough to undergo treatment.
** Marcus Nash Released
One week after the Dolphins traded RB John Avery to the Denver
Broncos for WR Marcus Nash, the team has released Nash after he
refused to take a pay cut. According to a report from ESPN, after
Nash had practiced with the Dolphins several times, JJ approached Nash
and his agent about taking a pay cut. Nash reportedly refused the cut
and JJ waived him.
Nash was originally drafted by the Broncos in the first round
last year and was signed by them to a 5 year, $5.2 million contract.
The Dolphins wanted to reduce his impact against the salary cap, but
he refused.
** P Tom Hutton Signed
The Dolphins signed punter Tom Hutton yesterday to a one year
contract for the league minimum salary. In a related move, the
Dolphins placed punter Brent Bartholemew on injured reserve with a
torn ACL in his knee, that he suffered against the Cardinals.
Hutton punted for 4 years for the Eagles, but was injured at
the end of last year and was not re-signed by Philadelphia. Last
year, he had over 100 punts without having one blocked and averaged
41.7 yards per punt, while putting 21 inside the 20 yard line.
Also added to the team was WR Rondel Menendez, who was added
to the Dolphins' practice squad. Menendez was drafted in the 7th
round by the Falcons this year, out of Eastern Kentucky, where he
ranked 2nd in the history of the team in receiving yards. He will
most likely be used as a kick returner for the Dolphins.
In pre-season, Menendez returned 4 kickoffs for 109 yards (a
27.3 ypc average) and ran back 9 punts for 100 yards, including a 63
yard return for a touchdown. According to his bio on NFL.com, he has
run a 4.25 in the 40.
My Comments:
Just when I thought that the story of Dimitrius Underwood
couldn't get much stranger, it did.
While I don't normally like to draw conclusions from
incomplete information, it seems pretty clear that Underwood is a
seriously ill young man. He needs treatment and care for both his
physical and mental conditions.
Placing Underwood on the IR list was the right thing to do at
this point. That will allow him to get treatment and the Dolphins
will be able to get a better idea if he can return to the field next
year. It's entirely possible that Underwood can be treated for his
mental problems and return to the team next spring with no serious
debilitation.
It's also possible that he could never recover sufficiently to
be able to play in the NFL. But time is the key to figuring out
what his future will be and the Dolphins have given him that time,
without the pressure of having to worry about his job. This was the
right thing for the team to do.
In contrast, the Dolphins watched Marcus Nash practice 3 or 4
times and asked him to take a pay cut. He refused, so they cut him.
Apparently, JJ doesn't see enough talent there to pay a million a year
for. It remains to be seen if Nash ever catches on anywhere in the
NFL, but his departure ends his short tenure with the Dolphins - and
ends the story of John Avery, as well.
Of course, Avery is still in the league, but as far as the
Dolphins are concerned, his legacy ended with the departure of Nash.
I'm a little surprised that JJ fired Nash so quickly, but it's
a classic JJ move to dump a player that he doesn't think will
contribute to the team as soon as he decides that player won't be
playing.
And frankly, JJ doesn't need the roster room to sign another
player. Placing Underwood on IR gives him a roster space - waiving
Nash gives him another. That means that Nash was waived for
performance.
As for the legacy of Avery - he must now be classified a bust,
at least for the Dolphins. I was an Avery supporter last year and I
still see the talent there, but like Jerris McPhail, he could never
translate that raw talent into consistent play on the field.
Of course, I truly believe that he'd still be in Miami if his
attitude had been better. But you don't blow off a mistake by saying
that "everybody does it" and stay on a JJ team very long.
I don't have much comment about the Hutton signing - he is, at
least, a competent, consistent punter without much flash. I expect
he'll be unspectacular and won't hurt the team.
The signing of Rondel Menendez to the practice squad is
interesting, if the numbers on him are correct. He's small (5'9" and
175 pounds), but supposedly very fast and very tough for his size.
After his performance as a return man in the pre-season, he could
easily make the team with a couple of impressive practices.
Related Info:
[Return to Dolphins News]
Curt Fennell,
curt@phins.com, DOLFAN in New Rochelle (almost)
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