JJT: Dez Bryant's health makes WR an option for Cowboys in NFL draft

Cotton

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Dez Bryant's health makes WR an option for Cowboys in NFL draft
7:00 AM CT
Jean-Jacques Taylor
ESPN Staff Writer

FRISCO, Texas -- The Dallas Cowboys could take a receiver any time after they fortify their defense with their first-round pick and justify it pretty easily.

If Dez Bryant get hurts and misses a month or so -- it’s happened the past two seasons -- then ask yourself who’s going to replace his production.

The answer? Nobody.

Terrance Williams, who signed a four-year deal worth $17 million in the offseason, has proven he’s a solid No. 2 receiver, but he’s not a No. 1. He had three games to prove it last season and caught 13 passes for 189 yards and a touchdown.

Now, he brings a lot of other elements to the Cowboys’ offense such as speed and run blocking, but he’s not the kind of player defensive coordinators worry about stopping.

Brice Butler, who signed a one-year deal in March, has the ability but he’s caught only 28 passes in two seasons with the Cowboys. Cole Beasley is terrific in the slot and taking advantage of mismatches, but at 5-foot-8 and 174 pounds, he’s too small to consistently play outside.

If Bryant can hold up physically, then it’s not an issue.

Bryant, though, has missed 10 of the Cowboys' past 32 games. In 2015, foot, ankle and knee injuries forced Bryant to miss seven games, and the Cowboys went 1-6 without him. Bryant missed three games last season with a hairline fracture just under his knee cap, but the Cowboys went 3-0.

In the past two seasons, Bryant has caught 81 passes for 1,197 yards and 11 touchdowns. For some guys that would great. For Bryant, that’s not even an average season. From 2012-14, Bryant caught an average of 91 passes for 1,312 yards and 14 touchdowns.

The Cowboys need that guy to take pressure off Ezekiel Elliott and the running game, which remains the epicenter of the Cowboys’ office. Jason Garrett would tell you the one aspect of Bryant’s game that’s been compromised the most the past two seasons has been the receiver’s ability to practice.

Injuries kept Bryant from practicing regularly in 2015, when the Cowboys used four quarterbacks. And he was limited in training camp and the preseason in 2016 after offseason surgery to repair the toe.

After returning from the hairline fracture in Week 7, Bryant gained more than 100 yards in two of his first three games. He failed to surpass the 100-yard mark in the past seven games.

He’s had a total of six 100-yard games in the past two seasons.

Some of that can be blamed directly on his lack of practice time, which is among the reasons he caught 31 of the 72 passes directed his way in 2015. The 43.1 percent catch rate was the lowest of his career. He caught 50 of 96 passes last season. The 52.1 percent catch rate was the second-lowest of his career.

You can also blame Garrett’s offensive philosophy, even though Scott Linehan calls the plays, because he doesn’t want an offense that forces the ball to Bryant the way Pittsburgh gets it to Antonio Brown or Atlanta gets it Julio Jones. Garrett wants a balanced attack that gives multiple players opportunities to make plays.

Still, If Bryant practices more often, he should mesh better with quarterback Dak Prescott.

One of the reasons why Bryant scored 42 touchdowns from 2012-14 is because he was effective both inside and outside the red zone. Bryant caught numerous touchdowns on back-shoulder fades from Tony Romo when he wasn’t catching deep balls.

Prescott and Bryant didn’t have nearly as much success inside the red zone. They struggled on a variety of back-shoulder throws, the type of passes that require timing and rapport created during the monotony of minicamps, training camp and regular-season practices.

For that to happen, Bryant has to maintain his health. He worked with a trainer last year in addition to his work with the Cowboys, and he spent the early part of the season raving about what a subtle difference it made in everything from his speed to his stride. Then came the injury.

Bryant turns 29 in November, so he remains in his athletic prime. The reality, however, is as players age, their bodies break down more frequently and it takes longer for them to recover.

Bryant has played seven NFL seasons, and he’s played 16 games twice. That’s why you shouldn’t be surprised if the Cowboys take a big receiver higher in the draft than you expect.
 

Simpleton

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I'd be all for someone like Josh Reynolds in the 4th or Smith-Schuster in the 3rd if he falls that far, but I don't see any reason to spend a higher pick on a WR given the talent that should be available at 28 and 60.
 

boozeman

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I'd be all for someone like Josh Reynolds in the 4th or Smith-Schuster in the 3rd if he falls that far, but I don't see any reason to spend a higher pick on a WR given the talent that should be available at 28 and 60.
Agreed. Plus whatever guy will be sitting around unless he can return punts or kicks. Zay Jones would be vera nace.
 

Plan9Misfit

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I'd be all for someone like Josh Reynolds in the 4th or Smith-Schuster in the 3rd if he falls that far, but I don't see any reason to spend a higher pick on a WR given the talent that should be available at 28 and 60.
I guess it would depend on who's still on the board. For example, if all of the solid DEs and TJ Watt are gone but Corey Davis is still there, I'd draft Davis ahead of just about any available DB.
 

Simpleton

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I guess it would depend on who's still on the board. For example, if all of the solid DEs and TJ Watt are gone but Corey Davis is still there, I'd draft Davis ahead of just about any available DB.
That is true, although it'd be difficult to take a WR that high after resigning Williams, I'd look for a trade down in that scenario.
 

shoop

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So much talk about teams trading up this year. Waiting for Jerry to get cute and trade down instead of taking a talented player that would improve the defense.
 

mcnuttz

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So much talk about teams trading up this year. Waiting for Jerry to get cute and trade down instead of taking a talented player that would improve the defense.
If they could find a team who is willing to pay a premium to get a 5th-year option QB at the end of 1, I'm all for it. The trade down when they picked Frederick made me furious at the time, but they ended up with an extra 3rd and still got the guy they wanted at 31. Seems to be a draft deep in secondary, and I'm sure they're gonna spend at least 3 picks there so netting a 3rd and still finding a pass rusher in top of 2nd could prove another sweet deal. And it could be shit, too.

It will be interesting to see if they actually have a couple top DEs in mind who they'd trade up for. If a run on DL starts and their man is still there, I wouldn't hate trading up.

Most of all I just hope they can start identifying DL talent the way they have OL. They start hitting there and we're set for a while.
 

midswat

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Either Josh Malone or no receiver.
 
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