Brandon Marshall and Sheldon Richardson probably weren’t going to be exchanging Christmas cards before Richardson decided to publicly call out Marshall last weekend. But now, they aren’t even speaking to one another.
After the New York Jets were demolished by the New England Patriots on Christmas Eve, Richardson unloaded on Marshall and said he should be “embarrassed.” The defensive tackle didn’t really elaborate, and Marshall took the high road when asked about the remarks.
On Tuesday, Marshall told reporters he has not spoken to Richardson since Saturday.
“Um, we have one more week. I’m sure we’ll cross paths,” Marshall said. “We see each other more than we see our families. We’re here six days out of the week, long hours, so I’m sure we’ll cross paths. But that story’s in the past. He said what he said, I said what I said, and it’s time to move on and go win a ballgame.”
Marshall added that he probably has clashed with Richardson because they’re both “alpha males,” though it sounds like there’s much more to it than that. Jets head coach Todd Bowles expressed disappointment in both players for airing their grievances publicly.
“We don’t handle things like that outside,” Bowles said. “We handle everything in house. I’d rather for a guy to be frustrated and pissed off, which means they care, than lackadaisical and nonchalant, which means he doesn’t. We just got to handle it better.”
Richardson and Marshall have a history of clashing in the locker room. Fortunately for them, it’s a definite possibility that one or both players will not be with the rebuilding Jets in 2017.
