Dez Bryant is back. You heard it here. TD scoring is highly randomized season to season, we know this, except with Dez Bryant, the touchdown metronome. Bryant was one of only six wide receivers to score ten or more touchdowns last season (in only 15 games).
Once upon a time, Dez Bryant scored 10 or more touchdowns in three consecutive seasons. A feat only matched by a few Hall of Famers. Michel Irvin did it just once.
Beyond touchdowns, Bryant has been an efficiency monster this decade. He is one of two WRs with a 30+ Production Premium in multiple seasons on PlayerProfiler.com. When does efficiency matter? When situations change. Dallas was the most run-oriented teams in the NFL last season. The Cowboys led the league in run plays and finished last in total pass plays.
Look for the game script to flip in 2017, because:
1. Ezekiel Elliott is slated to miss close to half the season.
2. The Cowboys schedule is much harder this year.
Counter intuitively, no Ezekiel Elliott combined with difficult match-ups is good for Dez Bryant, because pass volume would spike in that case. Draft him with confidence in the late first round.
