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Dez Bryant backs up bold words
December, 15, 2014
By Tim MacMahon | ESPNDallas.com
PHILADELPHIA -- Dez Bryant made a promise in loud, profane fashion more than an hour before kickoff Sunday night at Lincoln Financial Field.
Bryant, the Dallas Cowboys' emotional, electrifying receiver, and Philadelphia Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins met on the logo and exchanged heated words, heads bobbing as they jaw-jacked while wearing shorts, T-shirts and stocking hats. They briefly went their separate ways before Bryant went back for more. And Bryant returned one more time for a third round of trash talk.
"The game was going to be different," Bryant said, referring to his relative lack of impact in the Cowboys' home loss to the Eagles on Thanksgiving. "I told him it was going to be different."
Bryant backed up his bold words over and over and over again after they put on the pads and helmets. It was a XXX night, as Bryant scorched the Eagles' secondary for 114 yards and a career-high three touchdowns on six catches, keying the 38-27 victory that gave the Cowboys control of the NFC East race.
The touchdowns, all of which were of course celebrated by Bryant's normal routine of making the Roc Nation hand symbol before crossing his arms into an X, weren't his only huge plays of the night. Bryant responded after the Eagles rallied from a 21-0 deficit to take a three-point lead, getting a pair of 22-yard gains on the eight-play, 78-yard touchdown drive that gave the Cowboys the lead for good.
The Cowboys' biggest win in five years had Bryant's sticky fingerprints all over it.
You could debate whether this was the best performance of Bryant's often brilliant five-year career. There is no doubt that it was the most important for a high-profile player who is obsessed with getting to the postseason stage for the first time.
The Eagles didn't change their approach against Bryant from Thanksgiving, when they held him to four catches for 73 yards and only one impact play. Philadelphia played a lot of single coverage against Bryant, leaving cornerback Bradley Fletcher alone on the Pro Bowl receiver.
Bryant simply made that strategy look stupid in the rematch between the division rivals.
The Eagles made stopping the run their priority and largely accomplished that mission, holding NFL rushing leader DeMarco Murray to 81 yards on 31 carries. But Bryant exploited the Philadelphia defense's biggest schematic and personnel weakness, burning Fletcher on all three of his touchdowns.
"One of the things we knew we had to do coming into this ballgame was win outside," Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said. "And no better player to do that than Dez Bryant."
Bryant's first score was from 4 yards out on a fade route in the first quarter, when he soared over Fletcher in the end zone and plucked the ball out of the air, making a twisting, acrobatic catch look amazingly easy. His next two scores were on simple go routes -- a 26-yarder in the second quarter and 25-yarder in the fourth -- when he beat Fletcher on his release and used his body to make sure the cornerback didn't have a chance to make a play on the perfectly thrown passes by Tony Romo.
Safety Nate Allen at least got in the picture on Bryant's last two scores, but he had no hope of getting all the way to the sideline by the time the ball arrived. For all intent and purpose, poor Fletcher had no safety help on any of Bryant's touchdowns.
And Fletcher certainly didn't get any safety help before the game.
This was already a matchup that Bryant -- who sees single coverage as a slap in the face, although he refrained from saying it while watching his mouth after the win -- had been anticipating since the previous game against Philadelphia got out of reach. His midfield meetings with Jenkins turned Bryant's burning desire to get even with the Eagles into a bonfire.
"Oh, I knew he's about to blow up," Cowboys safety Barry Church said. "Once you get him fired up like that, it's pretty much you better double cover him or he's just going to go off."
The Eagles didn't double Bryant, at least not often enough.
"We got the last word," said Bryant, who has matched his career high with 13 touchdowns this season. "We got the last word."
Bryant didn't feel the need to say anything inflammatory after the game. He was calm in the visiting locker room, even expressing admiration for Jenkins as a competitor.
There was no postgame meeting at midfield between the two. No need after Bryant's actions in the end zone spoke so loudly.
______________________________________
FUCK! YEAH!
December, 15, 2014
By Tim MacMahon | ESPNDallas.com
PHILADELPHIA -- Dez Bryant made a promise in loud, profane fashion more than an hour before kickoff Sunday night at Lincoln Financial Field.
Bryant, the Dallas Cowboys' emotional, electrifying receiver, and Philadelphia Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins met on the logo and exchanged heated words, heads bobbing as they jaw-jacked while wearing shorts, T-shirts and stocking hats. They briefly went their separate ways before Bryant went back for more. And Bryant returned one more time for a third round of trash talk.
"The game was going to be different," Bryant said, referring to his relative lack of impact in the Cowboys' home loss to the Eagles on Thanksgiving. "I told him it was going to be different."
Bryant backed up his bold words over and over and over again after they put on the pads and helmets. It was a XXX night, as Bryant scorched the Eagles' secondary for 114 yards and a career-high three touchdowns on six catches, keying the 38-27 victory that gave the Cowboys control of the NFC East race.
The touchdowns, all of which were of course celebrated by Bryant's normal routine of making the Roc Nation hand symbol before crossing his arms into an X, weren't his only huge plays of the night. Bryant responded after the Eagles rallied from a 21-0 deficit to take a three-point lead, getting a pair of 22-yard gains on the eight-play, 78-yard touchdown drive that gave the Cowboys the lead for good.
The Cowboys' biggest win in five years had Bryant's sticky fingerprints all over it.
You could debate whether this was the best performance of Bryant's often brilliant five-year career. There is no doubt that it was the most important for a high-profile player who is obsessed with getting to the postseason stage for the first time.
The Eagles didn't change their approach against Bryant from Thanksgiving, when they held him to four catches for 73 yards and only one impact play. Philadelphia played a lot of single coverage against Bryant, leaving cornerback Bradley Fletcher alone on the Pro Bowl receiver.
Bryant simply made that strategy look stupid in the rematch between the division rivals.
The Eagles made stopping the run their priority and largely accomplished that mission, holding NFL rushing leader DeMarco Murray to 81 yards on 31 carries. But Bryant exploited the Philadelphia defense's biggest schematic and personnel weakness, burning Fletcher on all three of his touchdowns.
"One of the things we knew we had to do coming into this ballgame was win outside," Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said. "And no better player to do that than Dez Bryant."
Bryant's first score was from 4 yards out on a fade route in the first quarter, when he soared over Fletcher in the end zone and plucked the ball out of the air, making a twisting, acrobatic catch look amazingly easy. His next two scores were on simple go routes -- a 26-yarder in the second quarter and 25-yarder in the fourth -- when he beat Fletcher on his release and used his body to make sure the cornerback didn't have a chance to make a play on the perfectly thrown passes by Tony Romo.
Safety Nate Allen at least got in the picture on Bryant's last two scores, but he had no hope of getting all the way to the sideline by the time the ball arrived. For all intent and purpose, poor Fletcher had no safety help on any of Bryant's touchdowns.
And Fletcher certainly didn't get any safety help before the game.
This was already a matchup that Bryant -- who sees single coverage as a slap in the face, although he refrained from saying it while watching his mouth after the win -- had been anticipating since the previous game against Philadelphia got out of reach. His midfield meetings with Jenkins turned Bryant's burning desire to get even with the Eagles into a bonfire.
"Oh, I knew he's about to blow up," Cowboys safety Barry Church said. "Once you get him fired up like that, it's pretty much you better double cover him or he's just going to go off."
The Eagles didn't double Bryant, at least not often enough.
"We got the last word," said Bryant, who has matched his career high with 13 touchdowns this season. "We got the last word."
Bryant didn't feel the need to say anything inflammatory after the game. He was calm in the visiting locker room, even expressing admiration for Jenkins as a competitor.
There was no postgame meeting at midfield between the two. No need after Bryant's actions in the end zone spoke so loudly.
______________________________________
FUCK! YEAH!
