Fan2Fan Alliance | A Case for Oklahoma St WR Dez Bryant?

A Case for Oklahoma St WR Dez Bryant?

April 03, 2010 By: phinfever Category: Miami Dolphins

(David Blake) You all read my blog last week when I critized the Dolphins brass for not taking the #1 WR position seriously. I do understand … Bill Parcells does not like Prima Donna wide receivers, and Dez Bryant is all ready one of those type of receivers despite not playing in a single NFL game. I am also sure that the NFL is short on selfless playmakers such as WR Andre Johnson. And do not think I was on the Anquon Boldin bus, because I applaud the Dolphins for not trading for him.

What position the Dolphins address at #12 is a mystery as we are weak in several starting positions: OLB, NT, OG, WR, S …. and maybe even RB since fan favorite Ronnie is in the final year of his contract and has been injury prone. Heck, there are rumors that the Cowboys are interested in moving up in the draft to address the safety position since they just cut S Ken Hamlin. The Dolphins are rumored to be possibly interested in this trade so that we can address multiple positions in a quality draft.

You all know the drill about Dez Bryant. Scouts are telling teams to stay away from him. Well respected Yahoo Columnist (and former Miami Dolphins writer) Jason Cole summed it up with this:

Bryant is expected to be a first-round pick in April. Some draftniks have predicted that he will go in the top 10, although the consensus appears to be the top 15. Whoever takes him does so at their own peril.

“I wouldn’t draft that kid unless I had someone to wake him up in the morning to get to meetings, someone to wake him up for practice and someone to wake him up for games,” one source said.

A second source said Bryant’s reputation was earned because he was consistently late to team activities. That included showing up late for games.

“We’re not just talking about being a little late for warmups, but like being late for the actual game,” a source said with a chuckle. “When you start to hear some of the stories of there, you go, ‘He did what?’ ”

“Dez isn’t evil, he’s not trying to hurt anybody. He’s just goofy,” another source said. “But it does make you think, ‘If he’s like this in college, what’s it going to be like when he gets paid?’ ”

He has been a player that his college teammates could not depend on, and he hurt his team with his behavor. Oh, did I tell you that he was banned for 10 games for lying to the NCAA concerning his relationship with Deion Sanders? That is on Deion as well as he knows NFL/NCAA rules. Immaturity. He was seen hanging out with Pacman Jones just a couple of weeks ago. Bad news there as he does not always choose his friends well. The fact that he did hang out with Deion Sanders is actually a plus as Deion is a good character person.

Our radio host, Tony Simmons (phinfansc), however makes a strong case for Bryant and is confident the Dolphins have the ability to turn this kid’s life around. Face it, Bryant had a very rough upbringing with his dad in prison and he pretty much raised himself.

“Dez Bryant has no criminal record. Is there a maturity issue and could he do better job of choosing the people he associates with, most definitely. But understand that this is a kid that went a stretch without a mother because she was in prison for selling drugs and his father was no where to be seen. Those are not the best of circumstances to go from a child to a young man with values, solid values in place.

As far as sympathy in the NFL, it does not exist. What the NFL is definitely about is finding kids that can play the game of football, kids that can be a difference maker in the NFL. You look on all of these various sites and there boards and there top 100, top 50, you will see Dez Bryant in those top 10-12 list. Dez Bryant is an elite talent, don’t make a mistake about that or twist that. ” (Tony)

The kid does have #1 WR talent and I will agree that the Dolphins could possibly baby-sit him into a respectible player and person. I would rather the Dolphins pass on Bryant as he has “bust” and “underachievement” all over him due to his issues, but would you draft Randy Moss if you had the overall #12 pick and he slid down to you? I certainly would despite his issues. The Dolphins do not have many “prima donnas” on the roster, so, they have a roster of players who can help in the maturity process.

So, with that, I say “do not write him off”. The Dolphins had him in this week for an interview. It could be another draft smoke screen as we know that Parcells has a fetish for pass-rushing outside linebackers in the first round. Still, Parcells can be unpredictable as we saw last year with the drafting of Pat White (I still do not understand that one as Ronnie throws the ball better out of the Wild Cat). While I have been critical of Dez Bryant on the forums, you will not find me bitter if we do select him, but I will be looking to the Dolphins to make this draft pick pay off for us. And, I will not be quick to criticize him. He will need time to develop mentally and physically.

Here’s ESPN Insider analysis on Dez Bryant:

Overall Football Trait
Production	2	2007: (12/3) 43 rec., 622 yards, 6 TD. 2008: (13/13) 87 rec., 1,480 yards, 19 TD. 2009: (3/3) 17 rec., 323 yards, 4 TD. Career: Averaged 19.6 yards on 22 punt returns, including three for scores, also averaged 23.8 yards on six kickoff returns.
Height-Weight-Speed	2	Above-average height and very good speed for his frame. Is chiseled with excellent bulk and strength for the position.
Durability	1	Flexible, strong, durable athlete. Has no significant injuries to our knowledge. Played in 28 of 29 games during three seasons prior to 2009 suspension.
Intangibles	4	The NCAA suspended Bryant for the final 10 games of the 2009 season for lying to an NCAA investigator who was looking into Bryant’s off-season meeting with former NFL player Deion Sanders. Multiple NFL scouts have told us that Bryant comes from a difficult home situation and as a result comes with some emotional baggage.

Wide Receiver specific Traits
Separation Skills	2	Can still improve as a route runner. Breaks aren’t always crisp. Comes from a spread-heavy system and hasn’t run a lot of NFL-type routes. Still, he is blessed with rare combination of size, speed and athleticism. In addition, he is naturally savvy, using head bobs and subtle double moves to set up DBs. Can separate vertically with speed, and if he doesn’t separate during the route, he uses his big frame, great leaping ability and rare body control to separate as the ball arrives.
Ball Skills	2	Focus can wane at times and will drop some catchable passes, but when dialed in few receivers even in the NFL catch the ball as smoothly. He has big, soft hands. Can pluck on the run and high-point the ball like no other in this class. Has a rare knack for locating the ball thrown over his shoulder and tracking it down vertically. Is similar to Randy Moss in this regard. His ability to adjust while elevating and make the acrobatic catch is unique.
Vertical Speed	1	Displays good initial burst and top-end speed for his size. Not quite as fast as Calvin Johnson (Lions) but should have vertical presence similar to Andre Johnson (Texans) in the NFL. He’s fast enough to get a half-step on most NFL cover corners one-on-one and has a rare knack for coming down with the jump ball.
Run After Catch	1	Unusually gifted as an open-field runner for a bigger wide receiver. Shows adequate-to-good initial burst. Not going to make multiple defenders miss in space but has the vision, shiftiness and top-end speed to go the distance if there’s a crease available. Strong runner after the catch who will break arm tackles and fight for extra yards at the end of the run. Was remarkably productive returning punts in college and could contribute in that department at next level.
Competitiveness/ Toughness	2	Competes like crazy when ball is in the air and when the ball is in his hands. Could work harder in practice and he also takes some plays off in games when he’s not directly involved. Has some trouble with physical corners who get in his face. Needs to improve his technique versus the press and prove early in his career that he’s tough enough to battle for four quarters versus more aggressive, physical cover corners.