ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported yesterday on NFL Live that former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant is getting very little interest around the league. Schefter said that there is no other team willing to pay Dez the $7 million a year that he was offered by the Baltimore Ravens. Schefter went on to say that,
"there are far more teams that are unwilling to pay Dez Bryant the veteran minimum than that there are teams willing to give him the veteran minimum type contract right now...Eventually, Dez Bryant will find work. But it's not going to be, I would imagine, anywhere near the contract that many thought he would get."
Folks, we don’t get to see this kind of thing very often: complete and utter stupidity on an insane level. The disrespect directed towards Dez should be thoroughly repulsive to anyone who has ever watched an NFL game.
I understand that Dez has had serious injury issues and I fully recognize that there is some cause for concern. In 2015, he missed a lot of time and was very ineffective once he came back. The following year in 2016, he missed 3 games and only had 61.2 yards per game once he returned. Finally, in 2017 he struggled again, having some difficulties winning one-on-one matchups while finishing with only 52.4 yards per game.
With all of that being said, there are major caveats to these criticisms, the first of which being that he played in 2016 and 2017 with Dak Prescott—an extremely overrated quarterback as we all now know after his putrid play last season. Dez Bryant was never going to gel with Dak. It just wasn’t going to happen. As I’ve been saying for some time now, Dak Prescott is a glorified version of Alex Smith. He’s a game manager and nothing more.
Secondly, the notion that Dez has struggled to get separation is true, but people forget that he is still one of the best receivers on tight window throws in the NFL, as NFL.com so aptly pointed out.
Dez Bryant still possesses an enormous amount of talent and can become great again. All it will take is the right team to give him a shot, and I think that team should be the New England Patriots.
There is no reason for the Pats not to take a shot on Dez. Schefter reported that Bryant seems to want a one-year deal and nothing long term, probably because he feels he can prove himself to be one of the top WRs in the game (once again) and cash-in come 2019. So why not indulge him? He’s not going to cost very much, and the Patriots have a history of rehabilitating great players who—up until their arrival in New England—had been struggling for awhile with on and/or off the field problems. Some of the names that come to mind are Corey Dillon, Aqib Talib, and most interestingly Randy Moss.
From 2004-2006, Randy Moss had very similar production to Dez Bryant’s output from 2015-2017.
Here are the key numbers:
Yards Per Game: Moss 55, Bryant 53
Receptions Per Game: Moss 3.6, Bryant 3.9
Catch %: Moss 49. 86%, Bryant 49.16%
It’s also important to note that both players were 27-29 years old in their respective timespans shown above, and Moss also dealt with his fair share of injuries. The similarities are too great to ignore, and we must not forget that Moss put up possibly the greatest receiving season in NFL history following his slump. In other words, Moss recovered. Can Dez do the same?
I certainly believe that Dez Bryant can put together a successful 2018 campaign if he is signed by the right team. The 49ers, Saints, Packers, and especially the Patriots are the top candidates to do so in my mind.
If the Patriots are serious about making another run for a Super Bowl in the twilight of Tom Brady’s career, why not sign Dez? It seems like a clear low risk/high reward situation to me.
(Stats via Pro Football Reference)
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