P.K. Sam bounced around the NFL and the CFL as a wide receiver for several years and had a largely forgettable pro career, but he bitterly remembers one incident with one of his coaches, Nick Saban.
Sam wrote on Twitter on Wednesday that when he was on the Dolphins’ practice squad in 2006, Saban cut him for missing a practice -- even though the reason he missed practice was that he needed to see his dying father one last time.
“Thank you Nick Saban. Ten years ago today you cut me from the Miami Dolphins because I flew home to hug my dad before he died,” Sam wrote. “CLASSY!”
Thank you nick saban @AlabamaFTBL. 10 yrs ago today you cut me from the @MiamiDolphins bc I flew home to hug my dad before he died. CLASSY!
— P.K. Sam II (@PKSamII) December 14, 2016
Saban left the Dolphins to coach Alabama shortly after that, and the Dolphins brought Sam back for training camp in 2007. Saban hasn’t responded to Sam’s claim, but if true, it would certainly fuel the belief that some coaches view their players merely as cogs in a machine, and not as human beings.