Fashion Police cracks down on Dez

With the 24th pick in the first round of last year's NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys selected Dez Bryant out of Oklahoma State. Within days of his arrival to training camp, the standout wide receiver was an instant hit amongst Cowboy fans. And if it wasn't for the combination of St. Louis' Sam Bradford who nearly turned a 1-15 Rams team just a year ago into a Playoff contender and an injured ankle suffered by Bryant in week 13, we could very well be looking at last year's Rookie of the Year. But even with the impressive numbers Dez accumulated despite the insufficient playing time, his off-the-field issues would often overshadow his rookie campaign.

Dating back to as early as April of 2010 before being drafted, Bryant has been an unfortunate victim of numerous incidents, first starting with his infamous pre-draft interview where he was asked about his mothers past and most notably if she was a prostitute. The shenanigans continued when he refused to take part in a long-lived Cowboys tradition of carrying the pads of veteran players during training camp, followed by an injured ankle during practice. And of coarse, who could forget the $860,000 he's being sued for after allegedly taking jewelry without payment. However, none of the above compare to his most recent episode.

While spending a day at the North Park mall popping some tags and reenacting the Fabolous 'Just throw it in the bag' music video, Bryant along with his posse, were strolling around the mall when suddenly they were approached by a security guard who asked them to pull up their sagging pants. The request angered Bryant who began to make a scene and responded with profanity which eventually led to them being kicked out of the mall. What should have ended there, then escalated to the parking lot where Bryant's entourage parked in a red zone, refusing to leave. The mischievous acts eventually landed the Cowboys wide-out a 90-day ban from the mall, along with a trespassing warning.

With the whole NFL lockout thing going on, I don't expect Cowboys owner Jerry Jones to comment like he usually does, but this can't paint a pretty picture for the Oklahoma State alum. As for the man himself, Dez who commented on the subject, agrees. "I know how much I mean to the people of Dallas," Bryant said. "I feel like the people of Dallas give me a lot of love. I want to make them proud." If that's the case, he's gotten off on the wrong foot, entering only his second year in the lone star state. Luckily for him, he won't have to resort to buying sneakers online for long, as his ban from the mall is expected to be dropped sometime this week, pending an approval from officials. Perhaps next time he makes a trip to the outlet, he'll buy some belts for him and his crew.

Though he claims he plans to clean up his act, something tells me this won't be the last of Dez Bryant's head shaking adventures. So until next time, wear a belt kiddies!

Cowboys Endruing Early Problems

With the 24th overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys select -- Dez Bryant out of Oklahoma State University. Less than a month after signing with the Cowboys, rookie wide-out Dez Bryant is already causing problems within the clubhouse by refusing to continue a long standing team tradition that has lived on longer than Dez has been born. That tradition just so happens to be carrying the pads of veteran players. And in his case, it was fellow wide receiver Roy Williams' pads who Bryant was assigned to carry. "I was drafted to play football, not carry pads." Said Bryant. The story eventually hit tabloids and was talked about on SportsCenter along with every other major sports media outlet before Bryant criticized the press for blowing the incident out of proportion.

You can't argue the passion and commitment he has for the game of football, but considering it's common rookie hazing and those before him have done it including the games best, he might as well continue the ritual. Or who knows, maybe a player will take it the wrong way and purposely hurt the kid. It's unknown if the acts were on purpose or not, but that's exactly what happened. During practice at the teams training facility, Bryant was injured on a routine passing drill. Backup QB Jon Kitna threw a ball intended for his rookie WR, when cornerback Orlando Scandrick broke up the pass before landing on Bryant's leg. After being helped off the field, an MRI revealed a high ankle sprain in Bryant's right foot. The injury will sideline Bryant for up to 4-6 weeks and will cause him to miss the rest of camp, including valuable practice that won't be made up in time and could prove to be costly for a rookie WR that will be under the microscope due to playing in Dallas. The good news is he should be back in time for the season opener.

Back to the controversy surrounding the injury, could there be a possible conspiracy that follows? Cowboys owner Jerry Jones believes so and thinks the players were going too hard too late in the practice and the injury could have been avoided. Whether or not it all links back to Bryant's refusal to carry another players pads, Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips made it clear that he doesn't approve of any sort of rookie hazing. The defender in the midst of it all, however, downplayed the incident like anyone else fighting for a job. Karma or not, the injury couldn't have came at a more crucial time as the Cowboys finish up the final half of preseason and prep for the upcoming 2010 regular season that sees 'America's Team' as a potential favorite with home field advantage if they can make it to the Super Bowl, given the game will be played in their very own Cowboys Stadium. Granted they haven't played in the big game since 1995, could this be the year they reach the promise land?

From Ireland With Love

With the 24th overall pick in the NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys found themselves selecting a wide receiver out of Oklahoma State -- Dez Bryant. Regarded as the best WR in the draft, Jerry Jones' Cowboys weren't the only team to show interest of coarse. With a trade just days earlier that saw WR Brandon Marshall ditching the high altitude of Denver, Colorado for the sunny beaches of Miami, the Broncos were in need of a young wide-out to help fill the void of Marshall's absence. With the 25th overall selection, the Broncos were just one pick away from selecting Bryant. But that was before his name was called one pick earlier by commissioner Goodell, as Denver would eventually settle for Florida Gator QB Tim Tebow.

But prior to the draft itself, Dez Bryant met with numerous teams in a pre-draft interview. One specifically was with the Miami Dolphins. Meeting with Dolphins GM Jeff Ireland, Bryant was asked what his father did in the job-field, with Bryant answering, "My dad was a pimp." Ireland then asked Bryant what his mother did. Bryant answered, "My mom worked for my dad." Then came the million dollar question. "Your mom was a prostitute?", Ireland asked. The question angered Bryant and has been talked about ever since, creating quite the controversy. With ESPN and every other major sports network covering the story, it wasn't long before Bryant's mom received the news of Ireland's personal question. Mrs. Angela Bryant who was previously in prison on drug charges for selling crack cocaine in 1997, told the media that once they couldn't find any dirt on her son, that they brought up her charges of 12 years ago.

But after a wide-spread investigation, it's been learned that Mrs. Bryant has had more than one run in with the law and a lot more recent than 12 years ago. Records show she was also arrested in April of 2009 after selling crack cocaine to police informants. And in August of last year, she was found guilty for two felony counts for possession of a controlled substance and the manufacture and delivery of a controlled substance. In result, she was sentenced to 10 years' probation. Also worth mentioning is the young age she gave birth to her son. Dez's mother was only 15 years old at the time. Regardless of her more lengthy legal troubles than she admitted to, Angela Bryant demanded an apology from the Dolphins GM himself. Ireland has since then apologized as seen here:

"My job is to find out as much information as possible about a player that I'm considering drafting. Sometimes that leads to asking in-depth questions. Having said that, I talked to Dez Bryant and told him I used poor judgment in one of the questions I asked him. I certainly meant no disrespect and apologized to him. I appreciate his acceptance of that apology and I told him I wished him well as he embarks on his NFL career."

According to Bryant, Ireland wasn't the only one who asked him questions about his mothers past. He said he sat there and answered a handful of questions aimed towards his mothers drug use. My question is, so what if Mrs. Bryant was a prostitute, what does that have to do with anything football related? What surprises me most is that someone would even ask that question. And if Bryant's future wasn't at stake, I'm sure he would've taken the guys head off. At least that's what I'd do...