The Miami Dolphins have opted to suspend Lawrence Timmons after the veteran linebacker went AWOL before Sunday’s win over the Los Angeles Chargers.
‘We have suspended linebacker Lawrence Timmons indefinitely,’ read the Dolphins’ Twitter account on Tuesday afternoon.
The suspension could prove costly for Timmons, who signed a two-year, $12 million deal before the season. Officially, $11 million of that contract was guaranteed, but the Dolphins are allowed to suspend him up to four games without pay according to the collective bargaining agreement.
Veteran linebacker Lawrence Timmons went AWOL before the Miami Dolphins’ game against the Chargers in Los Angeles on Sunday and has since been suspended indefinitely by the team
What’s more, the suspension ‘likely voids’ the $4.5 million in guaranteed salary Timmons was owed in 2018, according to a Tweet from NFL Network’s Ian Rappaport.
On Tuesday the Dolphins acquired linebacker Stephone Anthony from the New Orleans Saints for an undisclosed draft pick.
Timmons has yet to be seen publicly since last week, but has been in touch with the team.
The Dolphins got back in contact with Timmons after he went missing from the team’s hotel in Los Angeles, but the 31-year-old veteran wasn’t at their 19-17 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers.
On Saturday, Timmons abruptly left after a likely personal issue ‘angered’ him, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald wrote on Twitter. He was ‘not arrested’ nor did he ‘run afoul of the law’, according to Salguero.
The Dolphins filed a missing persons report after Timmons missed curfew on Saturday, according to a TMZ report. The police reportedly found Timmons at the airport, where a team official came and met him.
Dolphins head coach Adam Gase was not at liberty to say much at Monday’s press conference, but did tell reporters that he had ‘no idea’ if Timmons was even at the team facility.
When asked if he considers himself a coach who has a lot of rules, Gase said, ‘Be on time and play hard,’ adding, ‘I don’t know if that’s real hard.’
Dolphins coach Adam Gase was in no mood to discuss why Timmons went missing on Saturday, telling reporters on Monday that all he asks is that players ‘be on time and play hard’
Timmons’ issue could be health related.
According to an ESPN report on Monday, Timmons was doing better and hoped to play again soon, but first needed to speak with doctors about an unspecified problem. One source claimed that the issue is unrelated to chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a football-linked brain injury which has been linked to depression, dementia and suicidal behavior.
Timmons made a name for himself over 10 years with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Before Sunday, he hadn’t missed a game since 2009
Timmons’ agent Drew Rosenhaus also declined to provide details on the issue.
‘I don’t know. It’s a private matter,’ Rosenhaus told the Associated Press. ‘I’d love to be able to shed some light on it, but I’m not. It’s of a personal nature of Lawrence.’
The move ended a streak of 120 consecutive games played by Timmons, who hasn’t missed a game since 2009 when he played for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Gase declined to divulge many details about Timmons’s situation on Sunday, although he acknowledged the linebacker wouldn’t play due to a ‘coach’s decision’.
‘I need to figure some things out before I talk about this,’ Gase told reporters at the time.
Undrafted rookie free agent Chase Allen started in Timmons’s place, making three tackles. The defense yielded 367 yards, but just 71 in the fourth quarter while shutting out the Chargers.
Miami had just four linebackers for the Week 2 game out of a typical seven.