Former Dolphins player alleges Nick Saban cut him for visiting his dying dad

Nick Saban’s relatively brief time as head coach of the Miami Dolphins is not looked upon fondly by most fans of the team. He went 15-17 in his two seasons, but basically quit on the team in the final weeks of the 2006 season, focused more on his next job, at the University of Alabama, instead of the one he was under contract for.

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And at least one player who played – or at least practiced – under Saban during those ill-fated final weeks hasn’t forgotten how he was treated.

According to receiver P.K. Sam, a journeyman who spent time with five NFL teams as well as two CFL clubs, Saban cut him after he left the team briefly to see his dying father.

Sam was part of Miami’s practice squad at the time, and the team brought him back in 2007. Teams churn the players on their practice squad frequently, so it could be that Saban and the Dolphins just wanted a player at a different position. Actually, we hope it was that, because practice squad or not, losing your job because you wanted to see your dying parent one last time is really crappy.

A fifth-round pick of the New England Patriots out of Florida State in 2004, Sam only played in two career regular-season games, both as a rookie with the Patriots (and got a Super Bowl ring).