Before we start, I am going to need you to enter this place called……..
THE REAL WORLD
In the real world, life isn’t fair, people aren’t treated equally. Sometimes they aren’t treated equally because of asinine reasons (like race or sexual orientation) and other times it is because of their own doing.
To the general public perception is reality and stereotypes rule the day, people like myself are around to make sure people like Dez Bryant and others get a fair shake when things like this happen.
The first thing that came out of Dez’s defenders mouth was that when Tom Brady yells at his coaches or players he’s being a leader and Dez is described as having a temper tantrum.
This is when I would hope common sense would kick in. First, anyone who has a meltdown on the sidelines, should be called out on it. Screaming at your coach or teammates with all the cameras rolling isn’t a good look. But, there is a reason that Tom Brady gets a little more rope.
You go to five Super Bowls, are considered one of, if not the best quarterback of your generation and have no zero off the field problems, would cause a rational person to shrug those type of outbursts as just heat of the moment or in some cases say it is “leadership”.
That’s all BS, Brady or Rodgers just get pissed off like Bryant does, but they have built up such a reputation that it gets packaged by the mainstream media as “leadership”.
Unfortunately, Bryant’s reputation is that of being emotional, hot headed, undisciplined and a bit of headcase. A lot of that is his own doing. When you are accused of hitting your own mother when you are upset, people are more prone to think bad things when you blow up on the sidelines. When your off the field behavior is so bad Jerry Jones has to assign a curfew and babysitter for you, people are more likely to take Jason Witten’s side of an argument.
I believe Dez Bryant when he says this.
“My passion is always positive,” said Bryant, who had three catches for 72 yards and two touchdowns on six targets in the loss. “It’s always positive. It’s going to remain the same way. I’m not saying anything wrong. I’m not saying anything bad. It’s all positive. That’s just what it is.
“I’m the nicest person off the field. When I’m on the field, even when I look angry, it’s still all good passion. It’s all good passion. I feel like that’s what we need. I’m going to remain the same way. I feel like I love this game. I love it. In order to win, you’ve got to be passionate about this game. You have to be. You’ve got to let that dog come out and just put it all out there on the line.”
That is all fine and dandy, but someone needs to sit him down (it won’t be Jerry Jones, because he babies him) and let him know the whole passion, bringing the dog out is great, but not in the way he is expressing it.
You can voice your frustrations without bringing negative attention to yourself and your team. The fact Bryant doesn’t understand why people might see an issue with his outbursts, is probably a bigger problem than the outbursts themselves.
There isn’t a more talented player in the NFL than Dez Bryant, but winning football isn’t just about talent. You can keep the passion without acting like a child who just been told by his mother he has to eat store brand cereal. Being a leader isn’t screaming at your quarterback, position coaches and teammates. Being a leader is using that passion on the field and supporting your teammates through good times and the bad. Being a leader is understanding that it isn’t always about “me, me, me”.
The Cowboys are always going to be a circus, but it is time for Dez to leave the Clown Act at home.