Before we get into this article I want to say that this is still an ongoing situation that we don't have all of the details on yet. It's very difficult to judge someone when you don't have all of the information. Even though what Dez is being accused of is unethical and appalling, we should take a step back and wait before we place judgement on him.
As a fan of the Dallas Cowboys, this situation is unfortunate because it brings negative attention that the Cowboys have done such a great job of avoiding all offseason, but as a human being, I feel sad for the entire Bryant family. Dez is my favorite football player on my favorite team in the world, but I feel compelled to see him get his life on track and live out the rest of his life happily. It's awful to see my favorite player going through an incident like this, but I can't even begin to imagine what it feels like for Dez Bryant and his family.
With that being said, let's dive a little deeper into the recent comments from current and former members of the Dallas Cowboys; Tony Romo, Michael Irvin, Roger Staubach and others.
Take the jump for more...
Since the very public arrest of Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant, current and former Dallas players have come out and released their take on the situation. Michael Irvin has been through a lot in his life, and he is someone that has been at rock bottom, but managed to straighten up and get his life in order. Irvin was deeply saddened and emotional about the Bryant arrest, and his comments were truly deep and thought provoking.
"I don't even care to talk about what the Dallas Cowboys must be doing here. I need to know what some counsel is going to tell Dez or what guy he is talking to about this issue. You cannot -- and you heard (Bryant's mother) say she is tired of this, she can't take it. Obviously it's so sad because it's not the first time and there certainly is something going on there. If we care anything about him, the man -- forget the football -- we need to make sure somebody looks into this."
"This is uncharted waters," Irvin said, referring to the allegations facing Bryant. "I like to speak out of my spirit on a lot of things, both the highs and the lows, the peaks and the valleys I've experienced. But this is out of the world for me. I've never laid my hands on any woman, let alone talk about the No. 1 woman in any man's life, which should be his mother."
"You have to only try to think about where the anger and all of that is for you to get to that point. That's why the pressures or the stress of what you're dealing with, whatever is going on, we can't have that. I know he has to be saying the same things now."
Bryant has some trust issues and is unwilling to accept the mentoring some are willing to offer him, but if there was one person that Bryant would be willing to team up with, it might be Michael Irvin.
Jason Witten is a huge advocate and supporter of preventing domestic abuse. If you check out his website, you can read a detailed summary of the charity work Witten is involved with. The topic of domestic abuse is one that comes close to home for Witten. After watching this video, you will get a better understanding of the foundation Witten created to prevent domestic abuse. Witten recently touched on the Bryant subject before a golf event and offered support for his teammate.
"I don’t know enough about the situation to really comment too much on it until I get further information, but I support him as a teammate," Witten said before teeing off. "Obviously, he’s a good young man that’s going to be a phenomenal football player, and I was saddened to see that. I do support him. I don’t know enough about it to really comment much more than that, but he’s a good teammate and obviously, hopefully, we can work through it."
Roger Staubach is a legendary player who earned the nickname "Captain America", and he was a big part of the early success the Cowboys had in the 1970s. When Staubach talked about the Bryant situation, he didn't offer a lot of support for the wide receiver.
"If it’s actually factual that he’s had all these episodes, there is definitely a pattern of behavior that’s not good that’s affecting him, then it affects your teammates and affects what you do on the field," Staubach said on the Ben and Skin Show [KESN-FM] 103.3 in Dallas. "So that’s not good. If you can’t repair that, it affects the rest of the team.
"I don’t think there’s any excuse in the world, even if you have a bad mother, that you physically do anything to your mother. If that’s true, there’s no excuse for that."
The relationship between the quarterback and wide receiver can be a love/hate relationship, fortunately for the Cowboys, Tony Romo and Dez Bryant appear to have a great relationship. Just a few weeks ago, Romo came out and said that Dez had the ability to be a great player, but he also talked about how he loved working with the young wide receiver.
"He just keeps improving and improving. He’s a kid that I enjoy playing with because he wants to get better," Romo said during an interview that was aired Sunday on CBS 11’s The Blitz. "He’s always asking, ‘Hey Tony, what can I do to be better?’ I love playing with guys like him, Miles (Austin) and these guys. They want to be better themselves and they’re trying to do anything they can to get better."
"The guys that really want to be great and have that ability to be great, you can’t have enough of those guys," Romo added. "And we got a few of them. Dez is just a great kid like that. He’s getting better and better every week."
While all of the current and former players who have commented on Dez Bryant are important, none hold the weight that quarterback Tony Romo does. He is the face of the franchise and the starting quarterback, so people will look to him first. It wasn't surprising when Romo finally talked about the situation that Bryant is in. I knew that Tony was going to show Dez his support because Tony Romo is a great teammate.
"The one thing I know is that Dez knows I have his back," Romo told ESPN's Ed Werder on Friday at the American Century Celebrity Golf Championship in Lake Tahoe. "Dez knows I'll be there for him. Dez knows that I'm going to stick up for him."
"None of us are directly involved in what's going on in his life," Romo said. "So everyone, the speculation, the articles and things that are written are just people that are guessing. And they're going to have their opinions based on it but no one knows exactly the way that Dez grew up, the way that things have shaped his life and his difficulties."
"Stuff happens and we all wish that certain things wouldn't, and I know that he's going to try to make sure in the future those things don't happen again," Romo said. "But friends and your teammates don't leave you during those moments. They come back and they tell you that we're here for you. Our football team is a close-knit team, and these moments should show that."
There is a lot of talk about how Tony Romo "lacks leadership", but I really believe that Romo is a great teammate who possesses the leadership qualities you want in a quarterback. It's a shame that some perceive Romo as a poor leader, something I will never truly understand. It's moments like this when a leader rallies his troops and keeps the team together; and Romo is stepping up to the plate and doing just that.
Right now we need our Dallas Cowboys to stick together, and it looks like this team has a great chemistry. This incident will continue to stay in the news for the rest of the summer, perhaps the rest of the season. While we don't know if Dez is innocent or guilty, it's comforting knowing that our franchise quarterback is supporting him, leading the way. That is what a leader does.