After a long wait, veteran wide receiver Dez Bryant has finally signed with a new team in the New Orleans Saints. Bryant’s reputation during his time with the Dallas Cowboys was anything but saintly, though, as he developed a negative image as a locker room presence over the years.
But Bryant has pushed back on that perception of him, saying he’s always been a “good guy” who has loved the locker room and considered it as a family at every level he's played in.
“I'm always going to be me, you know, who I am. I'm not a bad guy. I've always been a good guy,” Bryant said per Brett Martel of The Associated Press. “You can ask my teammates — my ex-teammates — how I am. I love the locker room. It's like family. Every locker room that I've been in — from middle school, high school, college, to the pros — it's always been like a family.”
While Bryant claims to be a good egg, he did have quite a turbulent tenure in Dallas, which didn’t exactly end amicably. After his release, he called former Cowboys teammate Sean Lee a “snake” who played a part in his release. He also fired some shots at the Cowboys organization.
It remains to be seen how Bryant will conduct himself with the Saints. But since he is essentially auditioning for a job for next season and has a chance to compete for a Super Bowl, there’s a decent chance he will be on his best behavior in New Orleans.