Don Banks: Is Dez Bryant the next Randy Moss?

[O'Doyle Rules!]

But the comparison that comes to mind for me is LenDale White. Highly touted draft pick, starts to slide when he shows up out of shape to pre-draft workouts and generally projects an unprofessional demeanor. So perhaps White's trajectory is the best bet: non-factor and iffy locker-room guy as a rookie, eventually comes around to to be a productive NFL player, but hardly the type of impact player to make GMs sit up nights, wondering "what if?"

I'm not sure that the LenDale White comparison is completely accurate or fair to Bryant. First off, he is unquestionably more talented a prospect than White ever was. Secondly, I've seen no evidence to suggest that he has "shown up out of shape" to his workouts. He certainly looked pretty ripped to me at his pro day. I know people were hoping he'd run faster and test better, but who's to say those numbers are a reflection of his being out of shape as opposed to a result of him simply being slightly less athletic than expected?

A comparison that may prove to be more accurate when all is said and done you could say kind of comes out of "left field." I'm starting to see a lot of Manny Ramirez, formerly of the Red Sox, in Dez Bryant. He comes across as unintelligent, unprofessional, lacking drive, and just generally a little weird (who forgets their cleats?), yet at the same time also appears to be insanely talented and generally of a harmless nature. I see neither one as cancers nor as bad seeds, just two guys who might be off in la-la land at any given time.

Back to the original point though. No, he's not Randy Moss talent-wise, and no, teams won't regret passing on him to the same degree. But I'm not sure I really see at this point how Bryant's going to be a detriment to the team that takes him. After all, the Sox benefited greatly from the addition of Manny Ramirez, despite his antics ... I could live with "Dez being Dez."

 

[upstater1]

In the interviews I've seen, Bryant said he brought 13 pairs of shoes with him. In the pictures of the pro day I saw, he was wearing cleats.

So...

What happened? I think he forgot the proper cleats.

But you see this sort of thing in the NFL all the time, and even during games. Players have a problem with footwear.

 

[Peachhead]

I think (former Lions) WR Carlos Rogers is a better comparison.

 

[O'Doyle Rules!]

I think (former Lions) WR Carlos Rogers is a better comparison.

While I understand you are in fact referring to Charles Rogers, I don't understand how he represents a better comparison. His game was predicated mainly on speed (posting an official 4.28 at his pro day) while Bryant's strengths are clearly ball skills and toughness (the latter being the exact opposite of Rogers, who logged Crable-esque IR time). Rogers had an extensive history of drug abuse, failing drug tests in each of his college seasons. He also had already fathered multiple children before he even left high school and was rumored to be domestically abusive (which would later be confirmed by his related arrest). Bryant had lunch with Deion Sanders and some people speculate that he may be a bit of an oddball type guy. Comparable? No, not really. On top of all of Rogers' red flags he was also grossly over-drafted by the legendary draft guru Matt Millen in order to supply the equally legendary Joey Harrington a "weapon" - as opposed to Bryant, who would be sliding in this hypothetical scenario to the point where inferior talents are being taken in his place. I would say the comparison is not exactly warranted.

 

[FredFromDartmouth]

Dez has a learning disability.

BB calls Moss the smartest football player he has been around.

Nuff said.

Dez is not coming to the Patriots even if he falls to the second round (which I could see).

 

[bucky]

A comparison that may prove to be more accurate when all is said and done you could say kind of comes out of "left field." I'm starting to see a lot of Manny Ramirez, formerly of the Red Sox, in Dez Bryant.

Talk about comparing apples to oranges! Baseball is about as far from a team sport as a "team" sport can be. Sure, you play as a team, but in reality it's a series of 1 on 1 matchups - batter vs. pitcher. In many ways, it's the opposite of football. I would say that Many would compare more to TO - a major talent and a major headache.

The other thing to note about both Manny and TO - their attitude problems began after they became very well-established, successful and wealthy. Dez managed to get suspended for the whole year from his college team.

 

[upstater1]

Dez has a learning disability.

BB calls Moss the smartest football player he has been around.

Nuff said.

Dez is not coming to the Patriots even if he falls to the second round (which I could see).

People say stuff.