Is it possible that Oklahoma State WR Dez Bryant could act as the replacement for the now departed Brandon Marshall?
Denver holds the 11th pick of the draft next Thursday night and it could be hard for head coach Josh McDaniels to pass on the top WR in the draft if he is sitting by the phone when the Broncos are on the clock.
From a production standpoint, Bryant will not have the same impact. Trying to replace Marshall’s numbers from the 2009 season (101 receptions, 1,120 yards and 10 TDs) and asking that from a rookie is near impossible with the transition to the pro game.
But, do the Broncos want to take on another receiver who is considered to have character issues off of the field?
That seems to be the discussion at hand. However, I do see Bryant as a possibility to Denver because any of the issues he has — or that we assume he has — are not related to McDaniels, the Denver locker room or the Broncos front office. Issues that need to be taken into account when drafting a player as high as No. 11, but still issues that don’t apply to the Marshall drama we got to see first hand last season.
The Broncos needed to trade Marshall. Yes, the idea of actually extending his deal for the future had plenty to do with it, but we have to believe that McDaniels working with Marshall, the suspensions and the distractions that were all a part of the ’09 Broncos season did weigh in their decision to trade away a receiver who I see as a Top 5 player at this position. There were internal issues that had to be taken care of before another season between player and coach.
Denver got fair value in return and can now move on to studying Bryant, watching more tape and deciding if he can be a player who not only fits in their offensive system, but in the locker room as well.
Move out one receiver who doesn’t fit what you are trying to do from a team and money aspect, and then draft another — and hope he can develop into a No. 1 option.
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