Dez Bryant responds to Jerry Jones 'No. 1 WR' comment
ByPATRIK WALKER
Dez Bryant has responded, on cue.
Not long after Jerry Jones made an eyebrow-raising comment regarding the Dallas Cowboys' wide receiver situation that included what could be interpreted as a veiled shot at wide receiver Bryant, the All-Pro fired up his Twitter account to clarify a few things. It's a saga that's been ongoing since December 2017, when Bryant politely criticized the offensive scheme and how it fails to routinely set him up for success. He'd find himself released four months later, but that wasn't the end of the soap opera. Instead, it was the true beginning, both sides heaving comments -- either indirectly or directly -- at each other.
Jones' latest one was sure to get a rise out of his former pro bowler.
"First of all, a true No. 1 you saw one the other night," Jones said. "You see Julio Jones, you see players like that. In my mind, every team doesn't have a true No. 1 receiver. When you put it in that class, those guys that just absolutely change the ball game with where they are. And that hasn't been our case for several years here that we've had a true No. 1.
"Not a true No. 1."
Bryant caught wind of the comment, as he usually does, and replied with a double-down on his December comments that now include a bit of a warning for current and future wideouts who may come in under the current coaching regime.
"As a receiver playing for the Dallas Cowboys, your mind [has] to be right, because you will never see targets like [Antonio Brown, Odell Beckham, Jr. or DeAndre Hopkins] or none of those guys," he tweeted. "I was never schemed into things. I made things happen throughout my career. I’m Mr. 73.
"They had [Jason] Witten as our No. 1, so Jerry is right."
The reference to 73 being his total career touchdown tally, the highest in Cowboys' franchise history.
"Don’t look at this as a negative," said Bryant, adding context to his words. "Teams have different schemes."
The one the Cowboys are currently operating under has remained outdated with very few adaptations, a key reason even with Bryant no longer in the fold, other wideouts are having a difficult time putting up numbers. Cole Beasley currently leads the team in 2018 with only 193 receiving yards, previously operating at an aberrantly positive click before the Week 5 los to the Houston Texans, where his first catch didn't come until overtime.
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Additionally, it was running back Ezekiel Elliott who led the team in receiving one week prior, and no wideout has broken the 100-yard single game mark since Bryant reeled in 132 yards on nine catches against the Green Bay Packers in the 2016 NFC Divisional Round, and the current stable of WRs have a total of only three receiving TDs in 2018 -- one of them being a shovel pass.
It can be argued if Jones is correct or not, but it's difficult to call Bryant a liar here