Just Do It

I'm back from my vacation and I came with some beef. Today's beef is with Dallas Cowboys rookie Dez Bryant.

The other day, Dez Bryant refused to carry veteran Roy Williams' pads when asked by Williams to do so. Williams didn't mean much by it, nor did many of the other Cowboys think much of it; it was just another act of rookie hazing that occur so often in sports. Dez Bryant however, took offense to it saying "I'm not doing it. I feel like I was drafted to play football, not to carry another player's pads."

Dez Bryant is no stranger to controversy. The Oklahoma State star was suspended last season after the NCAA found out that Bryant had not disclosed all of the details concerning a meeting he had with former NFL player Deion Sanders, who is not affiliated with Oklahoma State. After sitting out the season, Bryant felt that his 2008 statistics, which were arguably the best of any wide receiver in college football, were enough to impress NFL teams, and make sure he was a first round draft pick.

Bryant ended up being selected 24th overall by the Cowboys this past NFL Draft, although many believed he would have gone higher had he played last season. He was the second wide receiver selected, but as Roy Williams said, none of that matters when you finally get to camp as a rookie.

"Everybody has to go through [hazing]," Williams said. "I had to go through it. No matter if you're a number 1 pick or the 7,000th pick, you've still got to do something when you're a rookie."

Rookie hazing is a time-honored tradition in sports, and for the most part it can't really even be called hazing, because of how simple and silly some of the activities are. MLB rookie relievers, or those with the least seniority are famous for having to carry kids' themed backpacks (for example Barbie, My Little Pony, etc.) to the bullpen containing whatever the other relievers would like including gum, sunflower seeds, etc. MLB rookies are also famous for having to get dressed up in embarrassing costumes from everything like Teletubbies (http://www1.whdh.com/news/articles/sports/BO62342/) to The Wizard of Oz characters (http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/galleries/rookies_in_oz/rookies_in_oz.html) to Hooters girls (http://www.gaslampball.com/2008/9/17/616757/padres-rookies-photographe). No one ever complains, because it's just tradition, it's nothing personal and nothing at all is meant by it.

Football training camp hazing however, is some of the most popular rookie hazing in sports. From carrying pads to taping players to goalposts to standing up and singing songs at meals, rookies have had to put up with hazing for decades now. Dez Bryant should just be thankful that he's not a Cowboys offensive linemen and didn't have to go through this: http://www.arrowheadpride.com/2009/8/9/983023/chiefs-have-nothing-on-the-cowboys

Some people say that the problem isn't with rookies that refuse to the hazing, but with the veterans that keep the tradition of hazing alive. Here's the thing: in sports, tradition is extremely important. Although Dez Bryant claimed that he "didn't know" about the tradition of rookie hazing, and had he known, he would have would have "took his shoulder pads, his pants, his helmet, his socks, his shoes. I would have took everything," it's tough to imagine that he hadn't heard about rookie hazing. Although based on his poor use of the English language, Bryant doesn't seem like the smartest of the bunch, everyone knows about hazing, and that this statement is just him trying to make up for his wrongdoings. Although the hazing is a bit immature, it's very rarely harmful and there's really no need to change it. If Dez Bryant's well-being was being put into danger, then I would agree with the critics, and say that hazing does need to stop, but it's all just a bunch of silly stuff that's not a big deal, so why make a big deal out of doing it? Instead of just trying to buck a tradition that doesn't hurt anyone anyway, and is just another way for the team to build camaraderie either by being hazed, or doing the hazing, just let it go.

It's not as if hazing only happens in sports either. Hazing happens everywhere we look, and as I said earlier, it's not as much hazing in the way we know the term today, as it is "rookie treatment." In any professional setting in the country, there's always a hierarchy. Those that are most senior can call on the new, young workers to do things like get them coffee, and help with paperwork. At big law firms and financial firms, guess who works the longest and the hardest and does a lot of the grunt work? The rookies do. Dez Bryant isn't expected to make anyone's coffee or help with anyone else's work, all he has and has had to do is carry someone's pads and maybe sing a song. I'd rather be taped to a goalpost than be making coffee everyday.

But here's the thing with big name rookies like Bryant that really gets to me: they've been babied their entire lives that they don't realize they're in the wrong when things like this happen. They have never really been treated like freshmen or rookies because wherever they went they were always treated like kings, whether it be on Pop Warner or high school or even college teams. Now, when they get to the professional level and they're treated just like everyone else, they can't accept the fact that they're not king of the world, and that they're just one of the guys instead of the standout player who everyone looks out for. The problem is that things like this aren't Bryant's fault, but the fault of the people that helped raise them. When you have people worshiping you throughout your life, it's tough to be modest and humble. Although Bryant should have realized his place, some of the blame has to be put on the people who treated Bryant differently than the other players.

"Rookie treatment" is a great way to form bonds between players on the team, an ice breaker of sorts for rookies and veterans. Everyone in one point in their career has done it, and sometimes even had it worse than the players do today. As long as no one is being put at risk for being injured, this type of hazing should be tolerated and even encouraged by NFL teams and certainly accepted by NFL rookies. So Dez Bryant, just grab those pads and don't ruin the fun for everyone else, because if you do, you're breaking the camaraderie that activities like these are supposed to help build.