Visit to Steelers a case of tampering?

Lawrence Timmons, the wandering linebacker, has been reinstated by the Dolphins and is expected to play Sunday against the Saints in London. Thus ends one of the more bizarre escapades for the franchise.

Or maybe Timmons’ story isn’t over. Maybe his return isn’t the end. In light of his reported visit to a Pittsburgh Steelers practice earlier this month, I can speak for everyone on what a bad idea that was by quoting Glamour magazine’s eighth rule for getting over your ex:

“Sever All Contact — And Keep Your Vow of Silence.”

Or maybe I’ll just quote the NFL rule against tampering. That’s where Timmons’ visit seems to have wandered in this odd chapter wrapped into the larger, odder story.

First, the visit: The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported Sept. 8, the Friday before the Steelers’ opener, that Timmons, “attended practice and got a good reception from former coaches and teammates.” That was while the Dolphins were displaced because of Hurricane Irma, with their game that Sunday already postponed.

This was more than a week before Timmons went AWOL the day before the Dolphins’ opener, with the team filing a missing person’s report and

Timmons reportedly being found at the Los Angeles airport by a team official.

On Sunday, CBS’ Jason La Canfora reported that Timmons expressed regret about leaving the Steelers to sign a twoyear $12 million with the Dolphins this offseason and that he told former teammates he wished he was back with Pittsburgh. The CBS story also said that Steelers coach Mike Tomlin knew of Timmons’ “unannounced” visit to their facilities and practice.

On what planet are these Steelers and Timmons living?

Because it can’t be the NFL’s planet, where practices are closed to outsiders, coaches are paranoid about foreign eyes and two days before a game is the time the curtain comes down on everything.

Maybe it was an innocent visit among exes. Maybe nothing more than good friendship was shown. But assuming the Dolphins knew of this in suspending Timmons for what ultimately was one week, you can see why coach Adam Gase’s emotions were boiling.

Gase declined to answer any questions about Timmons on Monday. And, really, considering there are so many unanswered questions (publicly, at least) over Timmons’ departure, you’d need to know more before wading into a tampering charge. Also, tampering typically refers to a team recruiting another team’s player in free agency.

Still, the NFL rule on tampering reads like so:

“Any public or private statement of interest, qualified or unqualified, in another club’s player to that player’s agent or representative, or to a member of the news media.’’

“Any interference by a member club with the employer-employee relationship of another club or any attempt by a club to impermissibly induce a person to seek employment with that club or with the NFL.”

If you read the second definition — “Any interference by a member club with the employer-employee relationship of another club” — it seems the very definition of tampering. Of course, that gets into how you define “interference,” which would be up for all sorts of debate.

There’s a question for both sides here: Why did Timmons want to go? And why Tomlin allowed it? What professional sports team — especially those as secretive as NFL teams — allows another team’s player into their practice? That’s bizarre.

All this will probably fall to the wayside now that the Dolphins have activated Timmons. They need him. Their linebacking play has been awful, and he can solidify it immediately.

Since they’re going to keep him, you wouldn’t want to drag one of your players through a tampering charge. Especially when it appears he’s as much to fault as the Steelers if he initiated the visit.

We’ll see where it goes now that Timmons is back. But where this story never should have gone is to a Steelers practice.

Dave Hyde