Industrious parents give LB Spaight inspiration
DAVIE — When new Miami Dolphins linebacker Martrell Spaight needs a boost of encouragement, like he did shortly after being cut earlier this month by the Washington Redskins, all he has to do is take a quick glance at his chest.
There, sits a tattoo of his smiling mother, Tela, and a stern expression from his father, Mark, inked into his skin serving as a daily reminder of the hard work and perseverance his family has endured in his home state of Arkansas.
Looking at his tattoo from his new seat in the Dolphins locker room Thursday, Spaight smiled while explaining his parents’ reaction to the tattoo, and his new opportunity in the NFL.
“I actually had a feeling the night before that somebody was going to call me, and I felt like it was going to be the team where I was supposed to go to,” said Spaight, who signed with the Dolphins on Monday after four seasons with the Redskins.
“Sure enough, it was Miami. You can’t go wrong with going to Miami. I’m definitely happy to be here.”
Spaight, 25, was a fifthround pick by the Redskins in the 2015 NFL draft after a standout season at Arkansas, where he was teammates with Dolphins tight end A.J. Derby, and a firstteam All-SEC player after leading the conference in tackles with 128 in 2014.
Spaight, who is from North Little Rock, had to play two seasons of junior college football at Coffeyville Community College in Kansas before he could play for his dream school.
Being an underdog is nothing new.
The Dolphins hope Spaight can become a reliable player on special teams and provide depth to Miami’s linebacker rotation behind Kiko Alonso, Raekwon McMillian, Jerome Baker and Stephone Anthony. The unit lost Chase Allen, who suffered a foot injury during last week’s win over the Oakland Raiders.
“I’m really going to learn it all and get in where they put me,” Spaight said.
Spaight has drawn inspiration from his parents, whose soul food restaurant — Feastros in Sherwood, Ark. — has been closed after a fire destroyed the kitchen in January.
Spaight grew up in the family business, washing dishes before working his way up to being a cook, learning most of the recipes, including the restaurant’s list of desserts.
The restaurant, which started in a trailer more than 25 years ago, is known from their ribs, chicken and his mother’s greens and candied yams.
“Even though going through my tough time, they own a restaurant back home. Owning your own restaurant, a lot of times when things go wrong, it comes out of your pocket and hits you more than the workers. I’ve seen them go through a lot of hardship and bounce back and come back stronger,” Spaight said of his parents.
“The tattoo on my chest is just a symbol of when things go wrong, just remember what they’ve been through and just keep going harder. It’s more of a refresher for me when I get down at times.”
Spaight’s father has posted updates to the restaurant’s Facebook page with hopes of completing renovations this month.
“If you’re ever in Arkansas, come on down,” Spaight said with a smile.