Ajayi gets last word
As running back celebrates Super Bowl championship with Eagles, Instagram post rails at criticism he felt in trade from Dolphins.
Former Miami Dolphins running back Jay Ajayi took to Instagram in an apparent callout of his critics.
In the post, Ajayi is holding and kissing the Vince Lombardi Trophy. Ajayi writes: “THEY may have tried to discredit you, discount you, throw dirt on your name…none of it matters now. LEGACIES LAST FOREVER. funny how
they were GASsEd over journalistic… look at me now. ONLY GOD. YURP^”
It seems clear that Ajayi is upset that journalists (many of whom he blocked on Twitter after his departure from South Florida) out- lined some of the reasons the Dolphins chose to move on from the Pro Bowl running back.
After the Dolphins traded Ajayi to Philadelphia for a fourth-round pick at the end of October, multiple reports (including in The Palm Beach Post) indicated the reasons extended beyond Ajayi’s skill level and concerns about the long-term viability of his knees. Ajayi, as it was reported, was sometimes perceived as pouty and/or self-centered.
He can also now be perceived, correctly, as a Super Bowl champion.
Ajayi ran nine times for 57 yards (6.3 yards per carry) in Philadelphia’s defeat of New
England on Sunday night.
Ajayi clearly still has a positive relationship with some ex-teammates.
During the week, Dolphins running back Kenyan Drake put out some photos taken with Ajayi on social media. After the game, Dolphins star Jarvis Landry tweeted a series of train emojis and put out an Instagram image of an apparent postgame video chat.
“God don’t make mistakes @jaytrain,” Landry wrote.
Ajayi was not the Dolphins’ only connection to the big game. In perhaps the game’s biggest moment, Eagles coach Doug Pederson called a trick play that his team borrowed from newly hired Miami offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains.
The Eagles led the Patriots 15-12 with less than a minute left in the first half and the ball at the Patriots’ 1-yard line. Instead of playing it safe, Pederson, a former Dolphins quarterback, called a play designed to end with quarterback Nick Foles catching a touchdown pass.
It worked, and set a tone for the rest of the game.
Foles lined up in the shotgun and walked up to the line of scrimmage to fake a protection call. The ball was then snapped to running back Corey Clement, who quickly pitched to tight end Trey Burton, the former Florida Gator and a free agent who should interest the Dolphins.
Burton, who played some quarterback in Gainesville, then passed to Foles, who had sneaked out in the right flat untouched.
“I trust my players, I trust my coaches and I trust my instincts,” Pederson said. “I trust everything I’m doing, and I want to maintain that aggressiveness.
“In games like this, against a great opponent, you have to make those tough decisions that way and keep yourself aggressive.”
It’s a call Dolphins coach Adam Gase might make, given the opportunity. And it turns out the man Gase just hired inspired the Eagles’ decision to install what they call “Philly Special.”
After the game, Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich said the team had seen Bears tight end Cam Meredith throw a touchdown pass to QB Matt Barkley out of the same formation. At the time, Loggains, who has a successful record of installing trick plays, was Chicago’s offensive coordinator.