What will it take for Dez to overtake Megatron?

[Risen Star]

There's no way for Dez to be better than Megatron physically, so he would have to be a better student of the game and become a more polished WR, which may not be all that hard to do.

In short Dez would have to be smoother with his route running and put up big numbers consistently.

However, Dez may not even be the best candidate with the most potential to overthrow Megatron as the league's best. That honor may belong to both AJ Green and Julio Jones.

But in reality, unless Megatron falls off a cliff with his production, he'll likely be perceived as the best WR in the league until he hangs em up.

Good post.

I don't even think it's close right now. There's CJ then the next tier. Dez is part of that group.

 

[dallasfan4lizife]

Also, calvin johnson is 3 years older. he was targeted 67 more times last season. and had 7 less TD's than dez bryant.

Put dez in that situation and i bet he puts up numbers like calvin johnson.

 

[Doomsday101]

Red zone touchdowns will. And that's why having a receiver like Dez can be so important. He has the physical ability to dominate, even in tighter spaces like the red zone. I'm a firm believer that all meaningful stats start and end inside the 20s. Moving between the 20s is virtually meaningless. We sucked in the red zone last year because frankly, we weren't very good, most because of our horrific offensive line, but got marginally better when Dez came into his own in the second half of the year. Combining Dez's continued ascension with better o-line play, which would give Romo more time and give us at least a moderately effective running game, will significantly improve our red zone success. With greater red zone success comes more wins and I firmly believe that is going to happen this year, barring injuries.

You don't have to sell me on Dez. For Dallas to have success Dez has to play a big role however winning is the key and as long as Romo is not forcing it to Dez then it benifets the Cowboys. If the running game is working better then maybe we don't throw 45 to 50 times a game if others can step up then when teams go to double on Dez someone else is getting the one on one and making them pay. I hope the best for Dez as an individual player but main concern will always be the team accomplishments over the individual accomplishments.

 

[Nova]

Depends on how you define physical talent. Is coordination and body control included in that? How about lateral quickness and acceleration? They should be. Again, if it were only about size and straight line speed, there are any number of guys that could be defined as having more athletic talent than Dez, just as there were compared to Rice back in the day. But it's not just Rice's "drive" and "determination" that made him the best, he was also the best from a physical standpoint, but they were physical traits that don't necessarily show up at the combine. But they sure as heck showed up on the field. Same was the case with Emmitt. He was so freakin' smooth changing directions that he made it look easy and people say he wasn't near the best running back of all time from a physical standpoint. But go back and watch video of him, watch how many times he broke the ankles of defenders who were trying to tackle him, he could change direction without losing speed better than any of them and turned defenders inside out on a regular basis.

Physical talent, just about everything is incorporated. But Megatron has an undeniable advantage in the size and speed department that dwarfs the aspects Dez has a slight advantage in. Megatron is 3 inches taller and has about +5 inches on his vertical over Dez. And he outruns him. Dez is about a 4.4 guy while Megatron is more of a 4.3 guy. He gets better separation downfield because of it.

 

[cowboys2233]

What exactly has Julio Jones done better than Dez at this point? I think Jones has more potential than Dez, but I'd say Bryant is above Jones, at worst equal.

You really think Julio Jones has more potential than Dez? Julio Jones is a GREAT receiver but Dez just looks different out there, he looks like one of a kind to me. Maybe I am completely biased, who knows. But I know this, I wouldn't take another receiver over Dez heading into this season, not a single one.

 

[Risen Star]

Physical talent, just about everything is incorporated. But Megatron has an undeniable advantage in the size and speed department that dwarfs the aspects Dez has a slight advantage in. Megatron is 3 inches taller and has about +5 inches on his vertical over Dez. And he outruns him. Dez is about a 4.4 guy while Megatron is more of a 4.3 guy. He gets better separation downfield because of it.

The only WR in the history of the league that can compare physically to Calvin Johnson is Randy Moss.

 

[cowboys2233]

Physical talent, just about everything is incorporated. But Megatron has an undeniable advantage in the size and speed department that dwarfs the aspects Dez has a slight advantage in. Megatron is 3 inches taller and has about +5 inches on his vertical over Dez. And he outruns him. Dez is about a 4.4 guy while Megatron is more of a 4.3 guy. He gets better separation downfield because of it.

I don't believe that to be the case at all. I think Dez gets noticeably better separation than Megatron.

 

[Nova]

The only WR in the history of the league that can compare physically to Calvin Johnson is Randy Moss.

I agree. It's such a tough call because Johnson is more physically imposing but Moss is still the faster of the two. I'd still probably take Moss in his prime just because he was such a dominant deep threat and had a bit more natural instincts.

I'd like to put AJ Green in that category since he's such a fluid player for his size, and actually has longer arms than Calvin, but he just lacks the speed, strength, etc.

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

An injury to Johnson would be about the only way IMO.

 

[Nova]

You really think Julio Jones has more potential than Dez? Julio Jones is a GREAT receiver but Dez just looks different out there, he looks like one of a kind to me. Maybe I am completely biased, who knows. But I know this, I wouldn't take another receiver over Dez heading into this season, not a single one.

Yeah man. Julio is Dez Bryant, just a little bit taller and noticeably faster. Bryant's more physical and the better route runner, but Julio's raw gifts are probably 2nd only to Megatron.

I wouldn't take Julio over Bryant either for this next season, but I think overall Jones is physically superior to Bryant. It's not a knock on Dez either.

 

[conner01]

Also, calvin johnson is 3 years older. he was targeted 67 more times last season. and had 7 less TD's than dez bryant.

Put dez in that situation and i bet he puts up numbers like calvin johnson.

maybe so. the real key is the times you are targetted. but the most important stas is td's. that what wins games is scoring . it does'nt matter to me if dez is the 2nd or 3rd best in the league. as long as he gets to his full potenial and keeps scoring them td's i will be happy

 

[cowboys2233]

Yeah man. Julio is Dez Bryant, just a little bit taller and noticeably faster. Bryant's more physical and the better route runner, but Julio's raw gifts are probably 2nd only to Megatron.

I wouldn't take Julio over Bryant either for this next season, but I think overall Jones is physically superior to Bryant. It's not a knock on Dez either.

Personally, this is how I would rank them in terms of being the biggest threat to a defense...

1. Dez Bryant
2. A.J. Green (I agree, this guy is incredibly dangerous)
3. Megatron
4. Julio Jones
5. Everyone else

 

[Nova]

Personally, this is how I would rank them in terms of being the biggest threat to a defense...

1. Dez Bryant
2. A.J. Green (I agree, this guy is incredibly dangerous)
3. Megatron
4. Julio Jones
5. Everyone else

I'd still have Calvin and Green over Bryant, but it's not a gap that Bryant can't overcome by any means.

I'd have Bryant over Jones at this point too, though.

Factoring everyone else in is tough... maybe I'll attempt to do it later in this thread.

 

[dstovall5]

What exactly has Julio Jones done better than Dez at this point? I think Jones has more potential than Dez, but I'd say Bryant is above Jones, at worst equal.

I disagree that Julio has a higher potential than Dez. I think Dez and A.J both have a higher ceiling then Julio, but that's just my opinion. Though, I'll admit I've watched Dez and A.J a lot more than Julio.

If you're asking about who's "done better" at this point, then I'd say - A.J Green > Julio > Dez
A.J Green and Julio Jones both came into this league as rookies tearing it up, and if the trend continues they're both out to have a stellar 3rd year. Dez also has only come on recently during the last 8 games of last season, while A.J and Julio have done it since game 1 of their rookie year.

Though to be honest, It's really close with those 3 WRs that you could make a case for either one. But I will say that Dez hasn't even separated himself from those other 2 WRs, yet alone Calvin. Just to be clear though, I would rather have Dez over Julio.

 

[Risen Star]

I agree. It's such a tough call because Johnson is more physically imposing but Moss is still the faster of the two. I'd still probably take Moss in his prime just because he was such a dominant deep threat and had a bit more natural instincts.

I'd like to put AJ Green in that category since he's such a fluid player for his size, and actually has longer arms than Calvin, but he just lacks the speed, strength, etc.

I have to agree but it's tough. Moss did seem to be the more natural WR and I think was a little better playing the ball in flight, but man am I splitting hairs here. They're both all-world. Moss was faster. Calvin stronger. Moss was a diva. Calvin is all business.

 

[dstovall5]

Also, calvin johnson is 3 years older. he was targeted 67 more times last season. and had 7 less TD's than dez bryant.

Put dez in that situation and i bet he puts up numbers like calvin johnson.

I guess people don't really understand this, but for the most part Calvin Johnson's lack of TD production last year was a fluke. He was tackled 6 times inside the 1 yard line which is more then anyone else, also you can't tell me that's going to happen every year.

 

[xwalker]

It does not matter to me, just like it didn't matter that Irvin never bypassed Jerry Rice. Irvin still won 3 Super Bowls.

 

[dstovall5]

I have to agree but it's tough. Moss did seem to be the more natural WR and I think was a little better playing the ball in flight, but man am I splitting hairs here. They're both all-world. Moss was faster. Calvin stronger. Moss was a diva. Calvin is all business.

I honestly don't think Calvin is in the same league as Randy Moss league in over all physical ability. That's not a slight to Calvin either, Moss just was insane. I do think that Calvin is the most talented though since Moss.


They didn't call Moss the super freak for nothing -

 

[Red Dragon]

Dez is a great player, but I don't think he will overtake Megatron. Sometimes one player is simply better than another.

 

[cowboys2233]

Dez is a great player, but I don't think he will overtake Megatron. Sometimes one player is simply better than another.

So, in other words, you would trade Dez Bryant for Calvin Johnson straight up, right now? Not me. Dez has more dimensions to his game, IMO.