Dez Bryant and the NFL

Dez Bryant is the 2010 first round draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys football team. He was the 24th player picked overall in the NFL Draft. This means he's a very good football player. It was said that he could have gone higher but he comes with what ESPN calls "some risks."

Well, one of those risks came home to roost Sunday morning at the Cowboy's practice.

One of the "time honored traditions" of sports (at all levels) is rookie hazing. Athletes can make fraternities look timid with hazing. Cowboys veteran wide receiver Roy Williams told the rookie Bryant to carry his pads in from practice to the locker room. Well, Dez doesn't play like that. Dez Bryant told Roy Williams that he wasn't to carry other player's pads. He was there to win football games.

Well, this didn't set well with sports pundits everywhere. The links I have provided lead to other links if you are interested in what others have to say. As for me, I am torn.

As a Minister and former fraternity member, I am against hazing. People say it contributes to camaraderie. Well, it adds to resentment and a continuing pattern of violence against pledges, or in this case rookies.

Yet, I want to say, "C'mon Dez, he told you to carry his pads, he didn't tell you to do something more degrading." I once heard of a baseball team that was playing at "The K" in Kansas City and was forced to go from the locker room to his hotel room in a go-go dancer outfit.

"Yeah, cross dressing, that's how I spell camaraderie! I can smell the team spirit growing."

On a side note, some one shot the visiting team's bus and the bullet, which went through the side of the bus, was stopped by the leather boots. Lucky? I hate to use the argument "It could be worse," thankfully that's not all I have.

What could have Dez done to mess with the hazing on the other side of civil disobedience? I would have loved it if Dez took Roy's pads and started walking toward the parking lot. It would have been wonderful if Roy yelled "Meat, where're you going with my pads?"

I would have loved to hear Dez reply, "I'm takin' them to your car. You aren't going to need 'em out here much longer."

Yes, a lot of people would have not liked this answer either. It might have been seen as uppity; not respectful of the veteran Williams. Some would say it's petulant; he hasn't done anything yet. But what it would have done is fire a shot across the bow of the Cowboy's locker room saying, "I came to take your spot."

With this statement, Dez would have said what he is going to do, not what he isn't going to do. That will earn a lot more respect than saying "I didn't come to..."

Proactive Dez, that's the way to go.