IRVING, Texas -- With audio now available to back up Dez Bryants claim that he was saying only positive things when he was seen shouting at Tony Romo in a sideline rant last weekend, the Dallas quarterback was ready to offer a passionate defense of his top receiver. Romo took care of it without the arm-waving that landed the emotional Bryant in the headlines again. Enabling Dez If Dez Bryants sideline outburst was a display of passion, it was misguided at best. And saying it was less doesnt help him, Jason Whitlock writes. Story NFL Nation Says: Handling outbursts Does he need to sometimes maybe look a little different for whats going to be written and talked about? Sure, Romo said Thursday in the Cowboys locker room. Does it really matter in here? No. Hes a positive guy who loves his teammates. What else do you want? Hes passionate and he comes to work every day with a great attitude. Id like a lot of teammates like that. Romo tried to warn the masses in the moments after a 31-30 loss to Detroit. Thats because he knew the cameras would catch what was happening right in front of him -- Bryant waving his arms wildly, walking away from the quarterback, turning around abruptly to yell a few more things while coach Jason Garrett made an effort to steer him in another direction. And he knew Bryant wasnt saying much. The best sound bite? We the best in the NFL on that! Bryant yelled, slamming a fist into an open hand. Told you so, said Romo. Im like, everyones going to go run with it because of the demonstrative hand movements, Romo said. Theres no audio of a heated exchange between Bryant and tight end Jason Witten after the Lions scored the winning touchdown with 12 seconds left, but the intent there was pretty clear -- and later backed up by both players. You just got to find a way to get him the ball and he had two touchdowns last week, Romo said. Thats usually a pretty good game, but obviously the guy on the other side had a real good day. I think when the seasons over, youll find that Dez had a pretty good year and he did a lot of great things. Bryant was agitated by the sudden turn of events, and Witten was afraid his teammate wasnt ready to go back on the field. Regardless of the hopelessness in those final seconds, Witten wanted Bryant ready for a couple more plays. Witten had forgotten about the tiff almost as soon as he turned away from Bryant. I know hes got a lot of respect for me, and Ive honestly got a lot of respect for him, Witten said. Its a close relationship, and really its a handful of guys. He wants to make Tony proud and know that he can throw it up to him in any of those situations. Thats what makes him such a great teammate. If it was just about him, it would be different. Bryant offered his defense Monday, a few hours before NFL Films released the audio that showed he was telling the truth. Beyond clarifying what he said, Bryant reiterated the strength of his relationship with Romo and Witten and scoffed at the question of whether he had lost credibility in the locker room. Dont think that I [dont] know theres not a million and one cameras out there on that field, said Bryant, who is tied for the NFC lead with eight touchdowns heading into Sundays home game against Minnesota. You cant worry about whos watching, whos paying attention. Its all about motivating, trying to get guys minds right and things like that. Bryants gyrations are always news because commentators presume No. 1 receivers are always hollering for the ball. And since Bryant was targeted just six times against the Lions, it was easy to forget he had two touchdowns. Garrett said Bryant is the farthest thing from a receiving diva. Somebody told me a long time ago that it took 13 guys to get Secretariat into the gates when he won by 33 lengths, Garrett said. Whats the lesson there? You know what Im saying. You love the enthusiasm. You love all that. Youve just got to channel it and get him in the gates and let him run. #Jon
Posted on: Fri, 01 Nov 2013 15:05:20 +0000
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