Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Lawrence Timmons shockingly took an unauthorized leave of absence from the Miami Dolphins on Sunday and as a result, failed to play in the team’s game against the San Diego Chargers.
After the Miami game was over, Dolphins head coach Adam Gase indicated he wasn’t ready to talk about the situation with Timmons.
“I’m not saying anything right now,” Gase said during his post-game press conference, according to Pro Football Talk. “I need to figure some things out first before I talk about this.”
Timmons failing to play Sunday put an end to his streak of 101 consecutive starts. The Steelers former first-round draft pick had last missed a game in 2009.
After the Steelers game against the Minnesota Vikings was over, a few defensive players were asked about their former teammate and specifically if they had heard about what happened earlier in the day with Timmons. None of them appeared to know what exactly happened, according to a few media reports.
“I’m about to call him tonight, though, and see what’s up with him,” Steelers linebacker Vince Williams said, according to Jacob Klinger of pennlive.com.
Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald reported earlier Sunday that Timmons had not been arrested and did not run afoul of the law.
It certainly will be interesting to see what ultimately happens with this situation with Timmons as it was certainly out of character for him to leave the team the way he did. The veteran linebacker signed a two year, $12 million contract with the Dolphins this past March after failing to come to an agreement with the Steelers.
Timmons’ agent, Drew Rosenhaus, was a guest Sunday night on WSVN’s 7Sports Xtra and he was asked by host Steve Shapiro if he could shed some light on what’s going on with his client right now.
“Unfortunately, Steve, not a lot,” Rosenhaus said. “It’s a private matter. I’d love to be able to shed some light on it, but I can’t.”
Rosenhaus was then asked if he’s concerned about the situation with Timmons.
“It’s of a personal matter nature of Lawrence and when he gets back to Miami and we get together and converse with the Dolphins, then obviously there will be a joint statement on it,” Rosenhaus said.
Rosenhaus was then asked if he thinks Timmons will play next week.
“I dont know,” he relied.
Timmons reportedly attended a Steelers practice a week ago Friday after he had evacuated Miami ahead of Hurricane Irma hitting Florida. He reportedly, and not shockingly, was well-received by his former coaches and teammates while in Pittsburgh.
