"There were guys in the huddle not happy with Santonio's demeanor throughout the game and in the two-minute drill," said Jets running back LaDainian Tomlinson. "And they said something to him about it."
The team source told Schefter that Jets offensive tackle Wayne Hunter got into a shouting match with Holmes after the wide receiver said something the players resented in the huddle.
"It was definitely boiling" in the huddle, Tomlinson said. "Guys had had enough of it at that point."
According to Tomlinson, players said to Holmes, "C'mon, we still have a chance."
The Holmes blowup actually had been building. On the previous series, a veteran player sensed that Holmes wasn't into the game and told him to "go home," the team source told Cimini.
The same source said, "It's been boiling over all season."
Tomlinson criticized Holmes for his "demeanor, body language -- not really into the game, feeling like it's over, feeling sorry for himself. We were still in the game."
"It's tough for guys to follow a captain who behaves in that manner," Tomlinson said. "When you are a captain, guys are looking for you to lead by example, and you have to play your tail off to the last play."
