Odd Man Rush: Cowboys riding growth of Dez Bryant

[Gryphon]

By Michael Rushton, Contributing NFL Editor

Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Mature wasn't a word associated with Dez Bryant at the beginning of the season. Not with his past off-the-field issues and certainly not after his arrest on domestic violence charges against his mother.

But things seem to be coming together for Bryant as he continues to grow into the player the Dallas Cowboys hoped when they traded up to take him 24th overall in the 2010 draft.

The first thing that jumps out about Bryant's 2012 campaign is the numbers: 88 receptions, 1,311 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Anything else?

No, and that is a good thing.

All of Bryant's headlines have been made on the field. No more legal issues (Bryant's mother opted against filing charges) and no locker-room flair ups or stories of lavish spending that seem to plague a lot of NFL players. Bryant has kept it all on the field.

"Dez works very hard," Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said on Wednesday. "He cares a great deal about the game. He wants to be a great player. He wants to help our football team and he's grown right before our eyes in so many different ways, as a person and as a player since he's been here."

Bryant can even now be viewed as a blossoming leader. At the very least, he is setting an example of the sacrifice it takes to win by postponing surgery on a broken finger so he can keep playing.

If the Cowboys weren't in the hunt for the NFC East title, which they can claim this weekend with a victory over the Washington Redskins, Bryant would have probably gone under the knife already. Instead, he is blocking out the pain and spending frequent time in the end zone, having scored a touchdown in seven straight games to tie a Dallas franchise record.

"This is what you play for. I felt like the finger, at the time, really was a non-issue. I felt like what's going on right now is more important," said Bryant.

"It's a mental thing. If you think it's going to hurt, it's going to hurt. If you don't think about it, there's nothing to worry about. That's my mindset every time I step on the field, the finger's not an issue."

So does the finger hurt Bryant?

"No," he said with a smile and a laugh.

Defensive backs haven't found much humor when trying to slow down Bryant this season. He is second in the league among wide receivers in touchdowns and has hauled in 13 passes for 283 yards and three scores in two games since hurting his finger versus Cincinnati on Dec. 9.

He posted the best game of his young career last Sunday in an overtime loss to the New Orleans Saints, making nine grabs and racking up 224 yards. That included a pair of touchdowns of 58 yards each and a big 41-yard catch in the fourth that helped Dallas rally from 14 down to force overtime.

Not bad for a receiver who came into the season with just one career 100-yard receiving game.

It came too late to help get Bryant a Pro Bowl nod, but the 24-year-old can settle for having more catches and touchdowns through his first 42 games than another Cowboys receiver who wore No. 88: Michael Irvin.

"The Pro Bowl gets picked for a lot of different reasons and that's just the way it's been for a long time," said Garrett. "Certainly, Dez has had as good a year as any receiver in the National Football League and his impact on our team has been very significant. He just has to feel good about that."

LINK TO REST OF ARTICLE: http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/t...spx?id=4552037

[WPBCowboysFan]

Hope he has the biggest game of his career Sunday and the Boys get a big win!

He has been fun to watch for sure.

[Oh_Canada]

I like how he practiced today in shorts/tshirt while most of the team was bundled up according to a Broaddus tweet.

Guy is a beast.

[T-RO]

I'm sure glad he's improved on the field and at least kept his nose clean. It's all I can ask.

As for this over-wrought, over-wrenching, over-typed rhetoric about his sudden maturity and locker-room leadership from the mediots...

Pulease.

I don't seriously buy that anybody is looking to Dez for leadership. Nor do I believe that in 10 weeks he suddenly purged much immaturity from his system.

It's just more lazy writing...contriving a easy, brainless narrative.

[FiveRings]

Originally Posted by T-RO

I'm sure glad he's improved on the field and at least kept his nose clean. It's all I can ask.

As for this over-wrought, over-wrenching, over-typed rhetoric about his sudden maturity and locker-room leadership from the mediots...

Pulease.

I don't seriously buy that anybody is looking to Dez for leadership. Nor do I believe that in 10 weeks he suddenly purged much immaturity from his system.

It's just more lazy writing...contriving a easy, brainless narrative.

Thaaaaaank you. I got toasted for a similar thread after the Washington game. Dez just turned it on from around the second Giants game, on. No leadership was gained, no corner turned and no breakthrough in his career.

If you look at his numbers from his first two years you could argue he was on pace for such a year anyway.

[Frozen700]

Originally Posted by T-RO

I'm sure glad he's improved on the field and at least kept his nose clean. It's all I can ask.

As for this over-wrought, over-wrenching, over-typed rhetoric about his sudden maturity and locker-room leadership from the mediots...

Pulease.

I don't seriously buy that anybody is looking to Dez for leadership. Nor do I believe that in 10 weeks he suddenly purged much immaturity from his system.

It's just more lazy writing...contriving a easy, brainless narrative.

You're right...

He's an immature punk, who has not changed, because that's impossible.

[Oh_Canada]

Originally Posted by Frozen700

You're right...

He's an immature punk, who has not changed, because that's impossible.

Yup, people can't possibly change....Tony Romo-Cabo.....Hollywood Romo....the Romo Parcells warned about becoming a celebrity QB....guess that guy never changed either????

[T-RO]

Originally Posted by Frozen700

You're right...

He's an immature punk, who has not changed, because that's impossible.

Of course people can change...and do. But people don't mature in the course of 8 weeks. Maturity takes time. Lots of time and persistent effort. It's baby steps and it's three steps forward, two steps back. It takes years.

In the first four, five games of the year Dez was running a lot of wrong routes and dropping passes. So now its a few months later...and he's playing better on the field...so we are therefore to believe he's also blossomed into a different person?!?

Give it a break with the Hollywood fantasies.

Maybe Dez is on a better path. Maybe Dez has "turned a corner." Let's get him through one offseason without major legal or moral issues before we throw him a banquet.

I'm not dogging on Dez. I'm dogging on the media (and perhaps the Valley Ranch chatter.) Dez was deprived the opportunity to grow and mature in his youth in normal fashion. So he's understandably an immature man, prone to trouble. Prematurely celebrating him as some blossoming leader will NOT help him...and is ultimately nothing but a deceit.

[Boyzmamacita]

Originally Posted by T-RO

Of course people can change...and do. But people don't mature in the course of 8 weeks. Maturity takes time. Lots of time and persistent effort. It's baby steps and it's three steps forward, two steps back. It takes years.

In the first four, five games of the year Dez was running a lot of wrong routes and dropping passes. So now its a few months later...and he's playing better on the field...so we are therefore to believe he's also blossomed into a different person?!?

Give it a break with the Hollywood fantasies.

Maybe Dez is on a better path. Maybe Dez has "turned a corner." Let's get him through one offseason without major legal or moral issues before we throw him a banquet.

[View Full Quote]I'm not dogging on Dez. I'm dogging on the media (and perhaps the Valley Ranch chatter.) Dez was deprived the opportunity to grow and mature in his youth in normal fashion. So he's understandably an immature man, prone to trouble. Prematurely celebrating him as some blossoming leader will NOT help him...and is ultimately nothing but a deceit.

Just give credit where it's due. He's making strides and being praised for it. There's no reason to inject negativity into a thread about a refreshing article about Dez Bryant. We've already read about the negative stuff.