Tony Sparano has a reputation as being a bit of a disciplinarian, but when Dolphins CB Vontae Davis was suspended two weeks ago for showing up to practice with alcohol on his breath, it was the reaction of his grandmother he feared the most.
"Whatever she says goes," he told the Sun Sentinel about Adaline Davis, the woman who raised him.
Fortunately for Davis, his grandmother reacted better than teammate Brandon Marshall did. Marshall threw a football in Davis' face, while the woman he calls "Ma" sent a message that was more maternal wisdom than unbridled rage.
On Wednesday, Adaline Davis told the Sentinel her grandson probably just lost track of time the night before practice. "They know what they have to do but some of them just start having fun and they'll be at that party and time goes by without them realizing."
"I told him it's all right to make mistakes because we all make mistakes," she added. "But you have to learn from them. If you don't, you're a fool."
Either Davis is a lot more animated behind closed doors, or Vontae has nothing to fear from his sexagenarian mother figure.
I know he's doing his best, and that's all that matters," Davis says, "but he's got to get a little bit more motivated. He just needs to do a little bit more work off the field."
