Josh Norman insists he respects Dez Bryant, relishes matchup
BY CHAREAN WILLIAMS
cjwilliams@star-telegram.com
Dez Bryant can’t wait to see Josh Norman again, and the feeling is mutual in Washington.
“Dez, he gets going, man, and he’s a hard guy to control,” the Redskins cornerback told reporters in Washington on Wednesday. “He really is. He gets that motor going, and it’s all he wrote. He’s a physical specimen. He’s going to get the ball at its highest point. He’s a threat, man. He’s a threat. I’m going to be excited to see him again. Looking forward to it as always.”
Bryant had only two catches for 26 yards on Thanksgiving Day against Norman and the Panthers last season. But the Cowboys receiver is healthy this season after not being 100 percent for any game last season.
Norman ran to the locker room in November yelling, “Hey, they need to get Dez’s 70 mil back.”
But Norman makes it clear he respects Bryant.
“We played him last year, and I’m sure he knows that, and wants to get back at it,” Norman said. “We had a few conversations about it. I’m sure he’s as anxious as we are. We don’t look at it as any type of disrespect. We look at it as respect knowing that two dogs are going to see each other. Not just two individuals, but Washington Redskins versus the Dallas Cowboys, and a bunch of individuals on those teams that have those matchups. But we’re just coming out there trying to win for our team. That’s the biggest thing. We have fun within the game, but we want to come out victorious, and that’s what we’re trying to do each and every Sunday.”
Bryant signed a five-year, $70 million deal with the Cowboys before last season. Norman signed a five-year, $75 million deal with the Redskins in the offseason after the Panthers pulled the franchise tag.
Washington chose not to have Norman shadow Steelers receiver Antonio Brown on Monday night, and Brown caught nine passes for 126 yards and two touchdowns.
“I think Antonio and Ben [Roethlisberger] had obviously a big game, and a lot of the catches (eight) were on Breeland,” Redskins coach Jay Gruden said on the conference call with Dallas reporters. “But we feel really good about our two corners no matter who’s on who really, and that’s the faith and confidence we have in both those two players.
“Obviously, Josh is a premier corner in this league. He’s Pro Bowl and All-Pro. Breeland, we feel like is an up-and-coming corner with a lot of skill and a lot of talent. He’s covered Odell [Beckham]. He’s covered Dez before. He’s covered all these players before Josh got here. We’re not going to lose any confidence in Breeland. We’re going to continue to do things the way we’ve been doing.”