Report: Team plane incident was final straw for Quinton Coples with Jets

When the New York Jets released defensive end Quinton Coples on Monday, it came as a bit of a surprise. Yes, the 2012 first-round pick had become a bit player, but he was released late Monday morning, not long after the Jets returned home from a disappointing loss in Houston to the Texans.

Though first-year head coach Todd Bowles told reporters the release had to do with playing time and Coples being ill-suited to the defensive scheme, there reportedly was an event that led to the team cutting ties with him.

ESPN Jets reporter Rich Cimini, citing a team source, reported Sunday that Coples was "involved in an incident" on the team's charter home from Houston. Cimini wrote that it is unclear what happened on the flight, "but it didn't sit well with the powers-that-be, sealing his fate."

Coples played a season-low five snaps (out of 75) against Houston, part of a pattern over the last several weeks that saw his snaps plummet. After starting the first two games of the season, Coples played just 120 of 532 (22.6 percent) defensive snaps over his final eight games with the Jets.

Earlier this week, Newsday's Kimberley Martin reported that there had long been questions about Coples' passion for the game of football, and that Rex Ryan and Mike Tannenbaum overlooked Coples' lack of drive because they were enticed by the athleticism the 6-foot-6, 290-pound prospect from North Carolina possessed.

In his time as head coach, Bowles has shown he has little patience for bad behavior - he cut IK Enemkpali immediately after Enemkpali sucker punched Geno Smith during training camp, and now he's cut ties with Coples.

Coples was claimed off waivers by the Miami Dolphins, where Tannenbaum is in charge of football operations, though the Bills, where Ryan is now head coach, also put in a claim for him.

Miami and its newest player, Coples, play the Jets on Sunday, a key game for both teams if they want to stay in the race for an AFC wildcard spot.