NFL '15 Dread News - Week 22

Two years earlier they fielded one of the finest offenses the league has ever seen. But when all that got them was that train wreck of a defeat in Super Bowl 48, the Denver Broncos went back to the drawing board - and got it right this time, putting together what proved to be one of the best defenses in NFL history. With 2 weeks to prepare for the game, that defense went out and made mincemeat of the Carolina Panthers' offense, leading the Broncos to a victory in Super Bowl 50 that clinched the franchise's 3rd ever NFL championship and their first in 17 years. LB Von Miller (photo on right) and his friends in the white jerseys were the ones doing most of the dabbing while dealing the Panthers only their 2nd defeat of the season. After going 17-1 in their first 18 games, the Panthers emphatically found out they weren't the baddest bully on the NFL block. They'll begin next season still in search of their first title after dropping to 0-2 all time in their Super Bowl appearances.

The greatness of the Broncos' defense cannot be disputed. I mean, just look at the numbers: 194 total yards (3.5 per play), 11 first downs, 1 for 14 on 3rd down conversions, sacked 5 times, 7 punts, 2 turnovers, 27:13 time of possession.
No, that's not what the Broncos' D held Carolina's offense to. Those were the pathetic stats put up by the Broncos' offense. And yet, not only did the Broncos win, they won by two touchdowns, 24-10. Of course, this was nothing new for Broncos fans. All season they watched their defense carry the load while the offense contributed just enough whenever needed.

It had been more than a month since either team had played away from home, and both teams had lost the last time they had played away from home. So I was very interested to see if the Broncos' D would hold up away from the friendly confines of Denver against a good offense (the Panthers ranked 11th in the NFL in total yards and 1st in points). And I wanted to see if the Panthers, without having the crowd behind them, could again jump out to a big lead early - as they did in their previous two playoff wins. As far as I was concerned, the key to the game would be if the Panthers' O-line, including two players selected to the Pro Bowl, would be able to give QB Cam Newton enough time to throw against the Broncos' great pass rush. Well, I was right about that being the key; but I was wrong in believing they would succeed. As you know by now, Newton rarely had enough time to throw. He was sacked 6 times and forced to run for his life on numerous other plays, forced into 3 turnovers, and hardly at all looked like the player he was in the Panthers' first 18 games, when he played so well that he was named league MVP (which he reminded everybody of when he led his team onto the field wearing flashy gold cleats with the letters "MVP" on them big enough to be easily seen (photo below) - by league rules he was forbidden to wear them once the game started, which turned out to be a very good thing considering how the game went).

Actually - and any Panthers fan will tell you this too - the game wasn't as one-sided as I'm making it sound. Even though they trailed for the final 55 minutes, the Panthers were never out of the game and had a real chance of winning it up until the Broncos scored a TD to up their 16-10 lead to 24-10 with 3:08 remaining in the 4th quarter. The game kept screaming for somebody - anybody - in a Panthers uniform to make a play. There certainly were enough chances for somebody to make one, but nobody came up with one big enough to turn the game in their favor. Not helping their cause at all was the officiating. I know, I know - bad calls are a part of the game. But when those bad calls keep happening on key plays, they're really hard to overcome. I counted three such bad calls that made a huge difference in the game.

The first of those came midway through the 1st quarter. Trailing 3-0, the Panthers, after going three-and-out on their opening drive, began their 2nd possession at their own 15-yard line. On 1st down a play-action pass had the defense fooled. Newton's thrown down the middle was perfect, hitting WR Jerricho Cotchery in stride. If Cotchery catches it cleanly, he would have needed to break just one tackle to take it all the way to the house. But even if he didn't break the tackle, it still would have been at least a 30-yard gain. But instead he played hot potato (photo on left), bobbling the ball a couple of times before getting control of it just as he was tackled. However, the officials ruled he didn't have control when he hit the ground. It was the wrong call, but no need to worry. Just challenge the ruling and get the call reversed. So they showed the play in slow motion about a dozen times, and each time you see Cotchery gaining control before hitting the ground then losing control when he hits the ground but keeping his hand under the ball so that the ball doesn't touch the ground and then re-gaining control and the ball never touching the ground. I couldn't find a photo that shows this, but you can see the play for yourself on this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSUixkjw69U
A good catch, right? Wrong, instant replay breath. The call stands - incomplete pass. Huh? What!? Honestly I don't know what the referee was doing during the review. Either he was watching something else, he's blind, there was another camera angle that he saw that nobody else saw that shows the ball touching the ground, or he had the Broncos plus the 5 and a half points.

Of course, the Panthers have nobody but themselves to blame for that one. All Cotchery has to do is do his job - make a clean catch - and there's no chance for a blown call by the officials. But instead of scoring a TD or, at worst, having the ball at the 38-yard line (where Cotchery was tackled), it was 2nd and 10 at the 15. And that's when the blown call changed from infuriating to devastating. Just look at what happened on the next two plays. On 2nd down RB Jonathan Stewart injured his ankle while being tackled for no gain on a running play. And just like that the Panthers would have to go the rest of the game with the their best RB (by far) not at full strength. Stewart ended up with just 12 carries in the game. FB Mike Tolbert fumbled the ball the first 2 times he touched it (on carries he might not have gotten if Stewart was healthy); and 2nd string RB Fozzy Whittaker got 4 carries - 4 more than he would have gotten with Stewart healthy. If that wasn't enough for Panthers fans, things went from bad to much, much worse on the next play.

I don't know what the odds were, but you could have made a lot of money if you had bet that Malik Jackson, the Broncos' 293-pound DE, would score the game's 1st touchdown. That's what happened on 3rd and 10. Making the first of his several huge plays, Miller knocked the ball out of Newton's hand while sacking him (photo above on right), and during the ensuing scramble to make the recovery Jackson found himself in the right place at the right time and fell on the ball in the end zone (photo on left) for the TD and a 10-0 Denver lead.

The Panthers' offense came back onto the field right after that and went three-and-out again, only to pick up their 1st first down of the afternoon when Broncos Pro Bowl CB - and team idiot - Aqib Talib was called for a taunting penalty after Newton had been sacked on 3rd and 8, keeping the drive alive. It stayed alive just three more plays though, as CB Bradley Roby got the first of his 3 PBU in the game on a 3rd and 4 pass intended for Cotchery.

Then the 2nd quarter came, and the Panthers' offense started looking like it had all season, with Stewart capping a 9-play, 73-yard drive with a 1-yard leap over the top and into the end zone (photo below) to make it 10-7. The key play on the drive was TE Greg Olsen beating LB Danny Trevathan on 3rd and 1 for a 19-yard catch and run to the 15-yard line (photo above, but don't bother looking for Trevathan's dreads - they were reduced and confined inside his helmet.)

The Panthers went three-and-out on their next drive and paid for it on the punt when WR Jordan Norwood, who seemingly had nowhere to go on the return and really should have called for a fair catch, instead eluded the first two defenders (including S Colin Jones, photo on right) - who were backing away from him trying to avoid an interference penalty - and suddenly broke into the clear and wasn't stopped until he had taken the return 61 yards. On this play and others throughout the game the Broncos' special teams kicked the Panthers' special teams' ass. The Broncos nearly scored on their only punt return; and when they punted, they allowed a total of just 2 return yards despite punting 7 times. The usually dangerous Ted Ginn went all of -1, 0, and 3 yards on his 3 punt returns.

The Broncos faced a 4th and 1 on the first series following Norwood's big play and went for it. But after a holding penalty wiped out a 2-yard gain to the 3-yard line, they settled for a 33-yard FG to make the score 13-7. On the first two plays of their next drive the Panthers moved from their 20-yard line to their 49. And the 3rd play of the drive was successful too - right up until Tolbert fumbled (photo on right) at the end of an 11-yard run, with Trevathan getting the FR at the Denver 40. All four of the Panthers' turnovers were absolute killers. This was the second of the four, and it stopped a drive that looked like was going to end with points, and it took away the Panthers' momentum just when it looked like they were starting to take control of the game. I sure would like to see what would have happened if the Panthers had finished that drive and taken a 14-13 lead.

Instead it stayed 13-7 for the rest of the half. After driving for a FG on their opening possession, the Broncos' offense didn't do anything the rest of the half - to the tune of 1 first down in 6 possessions. But at least you can say they weren't wasteful.  Of their 194 yards, 64 came on that opening drive, and 49 came on their 2nd half opening drive, which also ended with a FG, making the score 16-7. Sandwiched around the Broncos' 2nd FG drive were two drives by the Panthers during which their level of frustration had to be close to reaching the maximum.

After being silent in the 1st half, Ginn finally started seeing some passes thrown his way. On the 2nd play from scrimmage after halftime he made a catch 18 yards downfield and, after the safety took a bad angle, had a chance for a big play. You would like to have seen him cut back toward the middle of the field and tried to make Talib (#21 in photos on left) miss the tackle. Doing that would have given him a chance to score; but instead he cut outside and tried to outrun Talib and ended up running out of bounds without even being hit. Yes, it was still a big play - 45 yards - but when you have a chance to get a TD against the Denver defense, you don't go out of bounds. If you like, here's the video of the play, where you can see the room Ginn had if he had just cut inside of Talib instead of outside: http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-super-bowl/0ap3000000634248/Ginn-roasts-Broncos-for-45-yards

Ginn picked up another 1st down 3 plays later with a 14-yard reception to the 25-yard line. But the Panthers were foiled 2 plays after that thanks to another great play by Miller. On a pass down the right sideline on 2nd and 11 Cotchery got both hands on the ball (top photo on right) at the 5-yard line; but Miller, a LB covering a WR almost step-for-step, was close enough to Cotchery to reach in and knock it out of his hands (bottom photo).

Two plays later the Panthers had to settle for a FG, and they didn't even get that - thanks to the 2nd big missed call by the officials. Talib, who had already been flagged for penalties 3 times, tried for his 4th, jumping offside on the FG attempt, which hit the right upright and bounced away no good. It was rather obvious that he was in the neutral zone before the snap, but for some reason there was no flag thrown. It can be argued that Talib's head start distracted K Graham Gano enough to cause him to miss. Whether or not that was the case, the bottom line was that instead of it being 4th and 6 and Gano getting another shot at the FG, the scored stayed 13-7.
 
After the Broncos upped their lead to 16-7 the Panthers moved from their 20-yard line to the Denver in 28 in 4 plays. But on the 5th play of the drive Newton, with plenty of time to throw for a change, fired a pass over the middle that was too hot for Ginn to handle. I mean, even a receiver with great hands would've had a hard time catching that fastball.

But Ginn, who has 'A+' speed but at best 'C' hands, had no chance. The ball bounced right off of him (photo above), kept right on going downfield and was intercepted. But opportunity arose again for the Panthers when S T.J. Ward fumbled the ball on the INT return. But in yet another case of the Broncos making the plays and the Panthers not making them, Trevathan beat Ginn to the loose ball (photo below) and recovered it at the 7-yard line - his 2nd huge FR of the game. So on two drives on which the Panthers moved the ball well, they scored nothing. And you can't do that in the Super Bowl and expect to win.

Early in the 4th quarter the Panthers started the drive at the 50-yard line after the Broncos' 2nd turnover of the game. They moved to the Denver 16 in 4 plays but then had a false start penalty on 3rd and 4, moving it back to the 21. And on 3rd and 9 the officials one more time did the Panthers no favors when no penalty was called on Roby as he broke up a pass to Ginn at the 10-yard line. I mean, Roby should have been called for two penalties on the play. He held Ginn before the pass was thrown then hit him again before the pass got to him. Ginn got up and, like the millions of us watching, expected a flag to be thrown for PI, only to be, like the millions of us watching, left in disbelief (photo below) when no foul was called.

If this were the CFL, Coach Rivera could have thrown the challenge flag, and a penalty certainly would have been called. But, of course, pass interference is not a reviewable play in the NFL, so the Panthers settled for a FG on the next play to make it 16-10 with 10:21 to play. You know, I'm not going to say the Panthers definitely would have scored a TD if a flag had been thrown there. But it was at the 10-yard line, and they deserved the chance to try for that TD. It's sad that they didn't get that chance. If the score had gotten to 16-14, I believe the Panthers would have won.

On the 3rd play of the Broncos' next possession QB Peyton Manning threw a pass that could have been intercepted; but just as he had done in the 1st half when the score was 10-7, All-Pro CB Josh Norman couldn't make a difficult catch (photo on left) and get the INT. You always hear players talking about making plays. Twice Norman had the chance to make a game-changing play and twice didn't get the job done. Yes, I know both of those plays would have needed fantastic catches. But hey, sometimes you have to be great - especially when you talk as much as he does.

The Panthers got the ball back at their 28-yard line with 9 minutes remaining and went three-and-out, then started their next drive at their 24 with 4:51 to play. And what happened? Miller happened - again - that's what, making the play that iced the game MVP award for himself. On 3rd and 9 for the 2nd time in the game he stripped the ball from Newton - this time just as Newton was about to throw (photo below) - and after a scramble for the loose ball that Newton wasn't exactly very enthusiastic about getting involved in, the Broncos recovered it at the 9-yard line and returned it to the 4 with 4:04 remaining. At that point the Panthers were pretty much toast. Even if the Broncos didn't get a TD, they were at least going to get a FG and go up by 9. And the Panthers weren't about to score two more times.

It took the Broncos 4 plays to go the 4 yards, but they did get the TD (and a 2-point conversion) to make it 24-10; and to show how dominant the Broncos' defense was in the 4th quarter, the Panthers punted on their next possession - even though they trailed by 14 with 2:08 to play - because they knew they had little chance of converting on 4th and 24. After the officials missed that interference penalty on Roby, the Panthers didn't make another 1st down until the meaningless 14-yard gain they got with 45 seconds remaining; and they finished with a grand total of 12 yards on their final 12 offensive snaps. 12 penalties, 7 sacks allowed, 4 turnovers, and a missed FG - no wonder the Panthers lost. But that's the kind of stuff that happens when you face a great defense.

After seeing all of the photos I have included in this report so far, you might be asking, "But where are the dreads?" Or maybe you're not asking because you already know that this just was not a good Super Bowl for seeing a lot of great dreads. In fact, it was a lousy one - so lousy that without the 34 plays that Tre Boston's sick dreads were on the field, this would have been a disaster. Between the two teams there were only 7 players with dreads in uniform to begin with. And of those there were three with dreads either so short (Ginn and Shane Ray) or so reduced (Trevathan) that you couldn't even see them, while two others whose dreads you could see (Roby and Chris Scott) had theirs reduced. Other than Boston, Shaq Thompson was the only player whose dreads were worth seeing.

Boston had almost no impact on the game - other than the stupid unsportsmanlike conduct penalty he was called for (photo above on right) on the first play of the 4th quarter. The penalty moved the ball into FG range, but the Broncos turned the ball over 3 plays later, letting Tre off the hook. He finished with 1 tackle (1-0). Thompson finished with 5 tackles (4-1), including 1 TFL. In addition to his 3 punt returns for 2 yards, Ginn had 4 catches for 74 yards and was sacked once, wisely holding onto the ball and taking the 4-yard loss rather than throwing a pass across the field on a trick play in the 2nd quarter that did not fool the Broncos at all. (Actually if he had been thinking ahead, he could have just thrown the ball out of bounds and saved the loss.) Scott unexpectedly found himself on the field for 19 plays on offense after starting G Andrew Norwell left the game in the 3rd quarter with a hamstring injury. The Panthers' pass protection didn't improve at all with Scott in there.

Trevathan led the Broncos with 8 tackles; and thanks to his 2 big FR I included him on the dread stars list (the only player to make it from this game). Ray finished with 2 tackles (2-0) and got credit for a FF on one of them (photo above), although Tolbert was able to recover his own fumble on his 1st carry of the game in the 1st quarter. Roby gave up a couple of completions but also got those 3 big PBU, all of them coming on 3rd down (even though he cheated on that last one).

Miller was the easy choice for game MVP (in photo on left he holds the Vince Lombardi Trophy after the game - as is custom he wouldn't be formally be presented his MVP award until the next day) after putting on one of the best performances ever by a defensive player in the Super Bowl. Just his 2 sacks alone - which set up both of the Broncos' touchdowns - would have been enough to earn the MVP. But he also had 4 other tackles, including another half sack. And on at least 2 other plays it was his initial pressure on Newton that resulted in sacks by his teammates. And he had that great PBU too, which prevented a TD. After that kind of highlight reel, it's no wonder he wants a raise.

After I was finished writing this recap of the game I went searching for some better pictures of Boston than I had already saved. Instead I ended up stumbling upon a couple of articles you might find interesting. The first link is to a piece from a Panthers blog in which the writer mentions some of the same things I did. You can actually feel his pain as you read it. The second link is to an ESPN.com article critiquing the officials that offers a different viewpoint than I had on some of the calls.

http://www.catscratchreader.com/2016/2/8/10935098/little-big-plays-carolina-vs-denver-super-bowl-50
http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/198038/grading-the-officials-as-broncos-improve-to-6-0-in-clete-blakemans-games
.

DREADS FOCUS (UPDATE)

I thought I was through with my 2015 dreads focus in my Week 21 report. But in the time since then and in search of photos for the dread gallery section in this report I browsed through hundreds of pictures - and discovered I needed to add one more player with dreads to the rosters of 4 different teams. It's very easy to understand how I missed them until now. All four just started their dreads this season, and the only way you'd know they had dreads is if you'd seen them with their helmets off.
Reserve DE Jeoffrey Pagan (top photo on right) played in 6 games in his 2nd season with the Texans and had 1 tackle. Also in his 2nd season, LB Chris McCain (bottom photo on right, being helped onto a cart after injuring his knee at San Diego in Week 15) played in 9 games for the Dolphins - mostly on special teams - finishing with 2 tackles, 1 sack, and 1 FF. I wasn't sure about LB Eli Harold, the 49ers' 2015 3rd round draft choice; but looking at photos of him, his hair looked more and more like dreads the further the season went along. The photo of him below on the left is from Week 17. Harold played all 16 games (starting once) and had 13 tackles and 1 FR in his rookie season. And after 6 seasons in the NFL, the last two of which were with the Chargers, LB Kavell Conner has decided to start growing dreads. In the photo below on the right he's shown before the Week 15 game vs. the Dolphins, a game for which he was inactive. In the 10 games (3 starts) in which he was active he had 15 tackles and 1 PBU. If you've been following this blog for a long time (I mean going back to when it was on Yardbarker), you might remember the ACC game years ago when Conner, playing for Clemson, infamously grabbed the long dreads of Georgia Tech RB Anthony Allen to make a tackle. Now, if his career lasts long enough, maybe one day somebody will grab his.

.

MYSTERY SOLVED?

If you scan the sidelines as closely as I do when you're watching football, you probably noticed some super long dreads on the Houston Texans sideline at least a couple of times during the season - as I did. I figured that whoever had them wasn't a player, so I never remembered to find out who it was that had them - until I found this photo of him (on left) helping WR Keith Mumphery warm up before the Week 4 game at Atlanta. If you check all of the Texans coaches' bios on the team's website, it appears that none of them has dreads. But I think - actually I'm almost certain - that Brian Bell is the one with those long dreads and that he's just keeping his dreads out of sight in his photo. In a photo of him from training camp last August (below on left) a couple of his locks are visible. And the face looks like the same face that's in an old headshot of him (below on right) from 2007, when he was trying (and not succeeding) to make the Redskins' roster as a TE. Seeing how long his dreads were back then, it makes sense that they would be as long as they are now eight and a half years later. 2015 was Bell's 1st season as the Texans' assistant strength and conditioning coach, and he still in the same position heading into 2016.

.

UNDER-COVER CORNER

Hard to believe, but not everybody is a football fan. Not even in Seattle, where the Seahawks' recent run of great success has only expanded the team's already large and rabid fan base. We know this to be true because in an episode of Undercover Lyft from late April of this year, none other than the Seahawks star CB Richard Sherman went undetected by a number of his riders. Sherman put on a rasta cap to hide his dreads and some dark shades over his eyes; and I don't know how many people were still able to recognize him (the woman at the very beginning of the video certainly was), but the disguise fooled enough people to create a segment nearly 4 minutes long. Riders hoping for some peace and quiet on the way to their destinations got none of either from Sherman, who just doesn't know how to stop talking. Anyway, if you're as big a fan of Sherman that I am, you've probably already seen this video. But if you haven't seen it, click on the link below. You might even get a couple of laughs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTE5xPKI9Wg
.

DG

1. Super Bowl media day, traditionally on the Tuesday five days before the game, moved to primetime on Monday (Feb. 1) this season and officially was renamed Super Bowl opening night. And among the festivities here we have Panthers rookie DE Ryan Delaire and CB Bene Benwikere teaching Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach - better known as Miss Universe - the proper way to dab as she does a segment for Inside Edition. Neither Benwikere nor Delaire played in the game 6 days later. Benwikere was on IR, while Delaire was designated as inactive for the game.

.

2. Although they did not duplicate the feat accomplished by Melvin Gordon and Trae Waynes of being former high school teammates to be selected in the 1st round of the same draft, Panthers rookie LB Shaq Thompson and 49ers rookie DE Arik Armstead came close. Representing the 916, Thompson and Armstead attended high schools 20 miles apart in the Sacramento area before going on to star in the Pac-12. Thompson, the #25 pick in the 1st round of the 2015 draft, and Armstead, picked #17 overall, meet up at the opening night event at San Jose.

.

3. "Reporting" for the Rich Eisen radio show, Snoop Dogg encounters Panthers G and fellow reduced dreadhead Chris Scott as he makes the rounds during the team's mandatory media session on Feb. 4. Says Scott, "Forget the interview, how 'bout a picture instead?"

.

4. Never one to be shy whenever he gets a chance to show off his dance moves, S Tre Boston livens up the Panthers while they loosen up before practice on Feb. 5.

.

5. DB Omar Bolden has his dreads reduced while admiring his game jersey in the locker room before putting it on for the team picture during the Broncos' final practice on Feb. 6, one day before the game. Unfortunately Bolden's #31 wouldn't be seen on the field during the game - because he was placed on IR after injuring his knee during the 1st quarter of the Broncos' first playoff game (vs. Steelers in Week 19).

.

6. Also on IR (after injuring his knee during Week 17), Panthers CB Charles Tillman snaps some pictures for his collection before the game on Feb. 7. Had he played, it would have been the 2nd career Super Bowl for Tillman, who was with the Bears when they made the Super Bowl 9 years ago. Now 35 years old, Charles wants to return to the Panthers and play a 14th NFL season in 2016, but it remains to be seen if the Panthers want him back. He currently is still a free agent.

.

7. LB Danny Trevathan takes a moment to pray before the game: "Oh Lord, if this is to be my final game in a Broncos uniform, please let's make it a good one!"
This photo isn't large enough to get a clear view, but it looks like Trevathan has his dreads semi-reduced. But just the same as when the Broncos were in the Super Bowl two years ago, you couldn't see them with his helmet on.

.

8. CB Bradley Roby's look during pregame warmups included reduced dreads (as usual) and a "vampire fangs" mouthpiece - which made the company that manufactures them very happy.

.

9. From a Panthers point of view the bad officiating began right from the opening kickoff, as LB Shaq Thompson gets blocked in the back by LB Shaquil Barrett (left photo, no penalty was called) while WR Andre Caldwell cuts left to avoid him at the 15-yard line. Thompson still had a chance to make the first tackle of the game but got blocked again (legally this time) and Caldwell got past him (right photo) at the 17-yard line before being tackled at the 20 by RB Fozzy Whittaker.

.

10. On 3rd and 4 on the 4th play of the Broncos' opening drive S Tre Boston, playing deep in the Panthers' zone defense, comes up too late to prevent the catch by Andre Caldwell then drives him out of bounds at the Carolina 34-yard line after a 22-yard gain. It turned out to be Boston's only tackle of the game; and it also was the Broncos' only 3rd down conversion of the game - they went 0 for 13 for the rest of the game .....




.

11. Two plays later RB C.J. Anderson carries on 2nd and 2 and easily gets the 1st down, dragging Shaq Thompson from the 19-yard line (left photo) to the 14, where CB Josh Norman helps him make the tackle after a 12-yard gain .....



.

12. After being gashed for 66 yards on the first 6 plays, the Panthers' D finally comes up with a good play on the next play, as penetration by DE Charles Johnson (lower right corner of left photo) allows Shaq Thompson to drop RB Ronnie Hillman for a 3-yard loss back to the 17-yard line. The play took momentum away from the Broncos, and they settled for a FG three plays later to take a 3-0 lead. Besides these back-to-back tackles, Thompson had 3 other tackles in the game and finished with 5 (4-1).

.

13. After Panthers' opening drive went three-and-out and their 2nd possession ended with the Broncos scoring a TD, their 3rd possession ends here with 3:19 remaining in 1st quarter as WR Jerricho Cotchery tries to catch a short pass on 3rd and 4 but Bradley Roby hits him just hard enough to cause him to bobble the ball (left photo) at Broncos' 44-yard line then grabs his leg (left photo) to prevent him from catching the deflection, and the ball falls incomplete. Roby was credited with a PBU on the play, and Panthers punted on the next play.

.

14. After Broncos' offense and defense were responsible for their first 10 points, their special teams join in on the fun during 2nd quarter. After Panthers had pulled within 10-7 with a 73-yard drive, their next drive was a three-and-out, ending with a punt on 4th and 12. Panthers had the punt well covered, but WR Jordan Norwood catches them, including Shaq Thompson, by surprise, deciding to return to punt instead of calling for a fair catch at the 25-yard line. S Colin Jones (#42) and CB Teddy Williams (#21) were both inches away from Norwood when he caught the ball; but both backed away, trying to avoid being called for an interference penalty, instead of tackling him, only to watch Norwood suddenly cut to the right away from them .....   

.

15. ..... and into the clear. Thompson and Williams trail Norwood by 10 yards as he sprints down the right sideline. Bradley Roby looks for somebody to block, but he can't keep up with Norwood either as Norwood nearly takes the return to the house before finally being caught and tackled at the 14-yard line. The 61-yard return was the longest punt return ever in any of the 50 Super Bowls. Broncos settled for a FG five plays later to up their lead to 13-7. 

.

16. If you look closely enough, you can actually see a couple of Danny Trevathan's locks sticking out the side of his helmet as he does the dab to celebrate his FR, which ended the Panthers' next drive with 6:32 remaining in 2nd quarter. Trevathan got the recovery at the Denver 40-yard line on a play on which FB Mike Tolbert had run for a 11-yard gain until dropping the ball. It was the first of two FRs for Trevathan, who was the only player in the game to make the dread stars list.

.

17. Two plays later on 2nd and 10 C.J. Anderson carries and cuts through a small hole in the line and is already 14 yards downfield when he encounters Tre Boston near the Carolina 45-yard line. Anderson switches the ball to his left hand to better keep it away from Boston as he cuts sideways and then breaks Boston's attempted tackle as he cuts forward again .....






.

18. ..... leaving Tre behind in the dust and rumbling for another 18 yards before finally being run out of bounds at the 26-yard line. Anderson's 34-yard run turned out to be the Broncos' biggest gain from scrimmage in the game and was by far the biggest gain on a running play by either team. But it was all for naught because three plays later .....

.

19. ..... on 3rd and 8 the Broncos' scoring chance goes down the drain. Tre Boston looks on as DE Kony Ealy returns the ball after intercepting a pass, eluding OT Michael Schofield (#79) at the 25-yard line and going 19 yards on the return before being stopped at the 39-line. It was a highlight reel play by Ealy, as the 270-pounder dropped back into coverage and tipped the ball to himself to get the INT then sent Broncos fans into panic mode when he eluded several players on the return until WR Emmanuel Sanders fell down in front of him and was able to knock him off his feet .....
.

20. ..... As Ealy heads to the sideline he is met by the welcoming and congratulating committee of (left to right) the long-haired LB David Mayo (#55), Chris Scott, and WR Kelvin Benjamin, and the no-haired C Fernando Velasco. Benjamin, of course, was not in uniform because he has been on IR for the entire season since tearing his ACL during training camp. Ealy, who had 0 INT during the regular season, kept the Panthers from falling any further behind with his big play, as the score remained 13-7 with 4:23 remaining until halftime.

.

21. Late in the 2nd quarter Bradley Roby has good coverage on 3rd and 12, but the problem is he is only 5-foot-11 and unable to keep 6-foot-5 WR Devin Funchess from making the catch. Roby got credit for his 1st tackle of the game, but the 24-yard reception moved the ball to the Carolina 41-yard line with 1:14 to play. But the Panthers not only didn't score a TD on the drive, they couldn't even get into FG range, advancing no further than the Denver 45 in the final 5 plays of the half. 

.

22. On the first play of 4th quarter Emmanuel Sanders decides to celebrate after his 16-yard reception on 2nd and 10, and for some reason this bothers Tre Boston so much that he has to give Sanders a little shove - and the official is all too happy to flag him for unsportsmanlike conduct. Tre's stupidity turned the 16-yard gain into a 31-yard gain, moving the ball to the Carolina 37. But the Broncos turned the ball over 3 plays later, keeping their lead at 16-7.

.

23. After Panthers advanced from the 50-yard line to the Denver 21 on the first 4 plays of the ensuing drive, Bradley Roby gets credit for his 3rd PBU of the game, preventing WR Ted Ginn from making the catch at the 10-yard line on 3rd and 9. Of course, what these photos don't show is what happened before the pass got to Ginn. Roby both held and interfered with Ginn before the ball arrived, but for some reason neither penalty was called. Instead of the drive continuing with a 1st and goal, Panthers settled for a FG on the next play to make the score 16-10 with 10:21 remaining. In addition to his 3 PBU - all of which came on 3rd down plays - Roby had 2 tackles (2-0) in the game.
This was the last hurrah for the Panthers' offense. They never crossed midfield from then on, gaining just 12 total yards on their final 12 snaps during their last 4 possessions of the game. 

.

24. Tre Boston looks on as C.J. Anderson plunges into the end zone for a 2-yard TD on 1st and goal to give Broncos a two-score lead with 3:08 to play. Boston was one of three Panthers who seemingly had Anderson stopped at the 1-yard line, only to have him spin out of the tackle with a strong second effort. The TD (plus a 2-point conversion) completed a 4-yard TD drive following a turnover and upped Broncos' lead to 24-10, effectively putting the game out of reach for Carolina.

.

25. The game got even further out of reach for Carolina on the 2nd play of their next possession. Broncos' D-line did a stunt on 2nd and 10, and both DE Malik Jackson (#97) and LB DeMarcus Ware (#94) get free. Chris Scott, originally assigned to block Jackson, retreats to block Jackson instead of turning to his left and blocking Ware. QB Cam Newton ended up eluding Jackson, only to be sacked by Ware for a 14-yard loss at the 6-yard line. It was the 7th and last sack of the game by the Broncos' defense. Panthers punted 2 plays later, even though they were down by 14 with 2:08 on the clock. Scott, #2 on the depth chart, got into the game for 19 plays on offense after Panthers' starting left G was injured during 3rd quarter; so he was on the field for all of their 4th quarter futility (although it was hardly all his fault).

.

26. Ted Ginn, with his one-month old dreads, sits on the somber Panthers' bench near the end. It's no fun getting your ass kicked, is it, Ted? All season the Panthers were the ones kicking ass; but after averaging 32 points per game in their first 18 games, all they got were a measly 10 points in the biggest game of the season. Ginn was on the field for 68 plays (59 on offense, 9 on special teams) and finished with 4 catches (on 10 passes intended for him) for 74 yards. He returned 3 punts and the longest of the three went for only 3 yards. He was also sacked once (on a trick play that didn't work) and was credited with 1 tackle (1-0) on the play in the 3rd quarter when Trevathan beat him to the ball for a huge FR (the play that began with a pass deflecting off his hands and being intercepted).

.

27. Teammates in college at Missouri in 2012 and 2013, LB Shane Ray and DE Kony Ealy embrace after the game. If the Panthers had won, it might have been Ealy taking home game MVP honors. In just 23 plays on the field he had a Von Miller-esque 3 sacks, 1 FF, 1 FR, and 1 INT - doing more than his fair share to keep his team in the game. But his big plays didn't result in any points. Miller's did.
As for Ray, he had 2 tackles (2-0) and 1 FF in his 20 plays - and he's a Super Bowl champion in his rookie season. Just think. He may go on to have a great career, but this may already be the greatest team success he'll ever enjoy.

.

28. CB Josh Norman stews after the game, perhaps thinking about the two chances he had to make interceptions during the game but failed to make the catch. It was a sensational, breakout, All-Pro season for Norman - but it certainly ended with a sour taste in his mouth.
I wasn't sure whether or not to welcome Norman back to the house (you might remember he had very long dreads when he was in college at Coastal Carolina) this season. At times it looked like his hair was in beginner dreads and at other times it didn't; so I'm going to wait until next season. Maybe by then we'll have a clearer picture of if he's serious about growing dreads again or not. And next season, as you probably know by now, will be with a different team. Panthers decided he wasn't worth all the money he was asking for, allowing him to become a free agent, and he has signed with Washington. Actually not being with the Panthers next season might be a good thing. They'll play the 2016 season as the 2015 (season) Super Bowl losers - and you know what that means. 

.


29. Omar Bolden - check. Danny Trevathan - check. Bradley Roby - check. Shane Ray - check ..... You've seen 4 of the Broncos' 5 players with dreads so far in this dread gallery section. The one you haven't seen yet is S David Bruton, who was on IR and did not play in the game. The best photo I could find of him is from after the game on his Instagram page:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BBgxiBkvKes/
Of course, he has his dreads reduced too ..... You may have noticed that Bruton's Instagram profile photo shows him in a Redskins jersey. That's because Broncos have allowed him to leave as a free agent, just the same as with Trevathan and Bolden. Not enough room under the salary cap to pay everybody.

.

30. This is what it's all about.
Back in photo 27 you saw a shot of the back of Shane Ray's dreads. Here the rookie LB gets some face time, raising the Vince Lombardi Trophy during the Broncos' celebration parade and rally back in Denver on Feb. 9, two days after their 24-10 victory. The Denver Broncos - your 2015 NFL champion. As much as I dislike them, I still have to congratulate them after winning their 3rd ever NFL championship, their first since 1998.
.

And now, for the 2nd half of the DG section, I promise the dreads will be a lot better than the 1st half. In fact, they'll be some of the best dreads in the league. In my Week 21 report from the 2012 season I did a countdown of the 20 NFL players with (in my opinion) the longest dreads. Well, a lot can change in 3 years; so I guess it's time to do an updated edition. This is totally unofficial, and it's based only on the games, videos, and photos I've seen. If you took out a yardstick and measured everyone's dreads precisely, you'd very likely end up with a countdown much different than this. In fact, I'd probably be way off on a few of the selections. Since there are so many players with long dreads now, I'm increasing the countdown to include the top 30. Actually, after you get past the top 10 or so, there are nearly 50 players you arguably could put in the next 20; so you could do your own list that might be drastically different than mine, and I wouldn't be able to disagree with it (too much).
Due to my dislike of reduced dreads, I'm eliminating players who had their dreads reduced for every game this season, although I will admit that Adrian Clayborn (for sure) and Janoris Jenkins (maybe) would make the top 30 if I was including reduced dreads. Players eligible for consideration had to be on their team's rosters (active or injured list, but not the practice squad) when their team's 2015 season came to an end. The number in parenthesis after a player's nam is where he ranked (if he ranked) on my list 3 years ago.
So, without any further delay, I'll shut up and let you enjoy my 2015 edition of the longest dreads in the NFL.

31. NUMBER 30 - DENARD ROBINSON. No doubt worried about somebody grabbing his dreads, Robinson more often than not played with his dreads reduced this season; but there were still a few games we got the treat of seeing them flowing at their full length. Denard had 266 of the Jaguars' 1,473 yards rushing in 2015.

.

32. NUMBER 29 - CHARLES GODFREY. His dreads were already visible outside his helmet during his rookie season. That was in 2008, so it's no surprise to see them this long now that he's been the league for 8 years, the last one and a half of which have been with the Falcons. Godfrey has 11 career INT, but none since tearing his Achilles early in the 2013 season.

.

33. NUMBER 28 - WILLIE COLON. Drafted by the Steelers in 2006, started growing his hair in 2007, began his dreads in 2008, signed with the Jets in 2013. A player with some of the worst luck, Colon has finished the season on IR 4 times - 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2015, when he injured his knee in Week 3 before going on IR after playing 6 games. Hopefully he'll be playing his 11th NFL season in 2016, but as of right now nobody has signed him yet.
As for Chris Ivory (#33), stay tuned.

.

34. NUMBER 27 - MATT JONES. It's always exciting to see a rookie come into the league with dreads this long. But Jones' plans to play with them flowing freely took a turn for the worse when they got tackled (and not gently either) in Week 4 (the photo on right is from before the game in Week 4). After that I don't think there was another game (maybe one) where he didn't reduced them at least a little to make them less of a target. After getting 11 carries per game this season (good for 490 yards rushing) Jones is expected to be the Redskins starting RB and get many more touches in 2016.

.

35. NUMBER 26 - MarQUEIS GRAY. He was on the field for only 100 plays all year and touched the ball only once before breaking his arm in Week 4, so it was hard to find good photos of him. The photo on left, from the Bills' preseason opener on Aug. 14, is this best one I could find that shows how far his dreads stick out of his helmet - although you'll have to squint to see it. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think Gray is cheating (by adding extensions). I just think it's that his hair grows really fast. But you can definitely notice his dreads get much longer every season. Look for MarQueis in a Dolphins uniform next season.

.

36. NUMBER 25 - JARVIS JONES. One of 3 LBs in this countdown, Jones almost got left out of the countdown by keeping his dreads reduced too often. Finally in the Steelers' play game at Denver we got to see them flowing full blast. The photo on left is from training camp on July 26.

.

37. NUMBER 24 - CHRIS IVORY. As was advertised earlier, here's Ivory, one of two Texas natives in the countdown (Charles Godfrey is the other). Jets fans have gotten to see these dreads in the end zone 18 times in his three years with the team. But after 3 years with them and 3 with the Saints before that, it's on to Jacksonville now, where he signed a big-money contract after rushing for a career high 1,070 yards this season.

.

38. NUMBER 23 - TRAE WAYNES. The highest ranked rookie in the countdown and only rookie other than Matt Jones. Not that it matters, but you'd have a hard time convincing me that Waynes' dreads are all his own hair. From where they were in high school in 2011 to where they are now takes longer than 4 years to grow. But either way they certainly look great.

.

39. NUMBER 22 - MARIO BUTLER. It's a good thing Butler doesn't believe in giving up, otherwise these dreads would never have made the countdown. He spent most of the first 3 years in the NFL (2011-13) on practice squads then spent all of 2014 on IR. Finally this season he got the chance to play a bit (265 plays, about half-and-half between CB and special teams).
Two Bills down, one to go in the countdown.

.

40. NUMBER 21 - STEVE McLENDON. He's the only Alabama native in the countdown and the only player besides Willie Colon who didn't have dreads when he first came into the league (2009). He started his dreads in 2010, and it has taken only 6 years for them to get this long, so might have cheated a bit. Look for McLendon in a N.Y. Jets uniform in 2016, while a player with even longer dreads than his will be wearing #90 for the Steelers. Stay tuned!

41. NUMBER 20 - KEMAL ISHMAEL. He has allowed the parts of his dreads closest to his head to become permanently reduced; but I didn't disqualify him because most of his tips are as they should be. Just like everybody else in this countdown, you wouldn't be able to identify Ishmael just by looking at the number on the back of his uniform. After playing just 4 games in his rookie season, the Falcons' 7th round draft pick in 2013 has played in all 16 games the last two seasons.

.

42. NUMBER 19 - GREG TOLER (14). His dreads aren't as impressive as everyone else's because he doesn't have that many locks. But the ones he does have are certainly long enough. He's one of 6 players in the countdown who were free agents at the end of the season that signed with a new team. Toler, after 3 seasons with the Cardinals and then three with the Colts, signed with his hometown team - the Redskins.

.

43. NUMBER 18 - JONATHAN COOPER. Although he was on the field for 717 plays this season on the Cardinals' O-line, these were the best two photos I could find that show how long his dreads are. On the right is a shot from an OTA practice on May 19. And on the left he's cleaning out his locker on Jan. 25, the day after he played just 1 play in the Cardinals' loss to Carolina in the NFC championship game. Why he's wearing a Boise State basketball T-shirt I have no idea. Maybe he lost a bet. Cooper is a Tar Heel.
I suppose this will be the last time we'll see him in this countdown. After being traded to New England in mid-March, sadly he has cut off his dreads.

.

44. NUMBER 17 - MATT DANIELS. The first of 4 San Diego Chargers in the top 20, Daniels almost didn't make it. He was on the practice squad for 8 weeks before finally getting a chance to play in the last game of the season at Denver (left photo). The photo on the right is from a Jaguars' OTA practice on June 11. He was cut by the Jaguars at the end of training camp. Like Mario Butler, Daniels has spent far more time on practice squads and IR lists than he has on the field. He's played just 7 games in the first 4 years of his career. And like Steve McLendon, his dreads have gotten too long too quickly to believe that they're all his own hair. After being injured again (in a practice) about 7 weeks ago, he was released by the Chargers and has not yet signed with anybody else.

.

45. NUMBER 16 - JAHLEEL ADDAE. Back-to-back Charger safeties in the countdown. Maybe I'm just seeing things; but when you look at his dreads from when he was in college (Central Michigan 2009-12), it seems like they actually should be even longer now than they are. But I'm not going to complain. After not being drafted in 2013, Addae became a full-time starter for the first time this season; so hopefully he'll be in the league long enough that we'll be able to see these dreads get much longer in the seasons ahead.

.

46. NUMBER 15 - PHILIP WHEELER (1). Make no mistake about it, I still really love his dreads, they way he lets them flow freely every game; but quite obviously they're not the longest in the league anymore. And that's too bad, because they should be. I mean, just look at the photo below. That's from a preseason game in 2011, when he was with the Colts. 4 years after that his dreads ought to be hanging down close to his pants; but apparently at some point he decided to cut them slightly shorter. I'm not going to complain, but it sure would have been cool to see them if he had just let them keep growing. 2015 was Wheeler's 8th season in the league and his 1st with the Falcons, who have brought him back for next season.

.

47. NUMBER 14 - DANNELL ELLERBE. The highest ranked LB in the countdown, Ellerbe has been bitten hard by the injury bug the last two seasons. Saints fans got to see these dreads for only 6 games in his first season with the team, after he had spent the previous season on IR after injuring his hip in the Dolphins' 2014 season opener. And that's too bad, because he has shown that he's a really good player when healthy. 2016 will be his 8th year in the league, and hopefully before he's through his dreads will make it all the way down past the bottom of the number on the back of his jersey.

.

48. NUMBER 13 - DuJUAN HARRIS (17). Who's the RB with the longest dreads? I don't think there's much doubt that it's Harris. I'm just so happy to see that he's still in the league. Actually he has always impressed when given the chance. But at 5-foot-7 and without great speed, he isn't exactly what teams are looking for in a franchise RB. Still the fact that he's been with 8 different teams in his 5 years in the NFL shows that teams know that he has some talent. He carried the ball for the Seahawks and 49ers late this season and rushed for a career high 189 yards in 4 games. You might remember back in 2012 when DuJuan, after being cut at the end of training camp, turned down a chance to work as a salesman at an auto dealership because they wanted him to cut off his dreads. Thank goodness he did, because he had a lot of football left in him. And hopefully a lot more in the seasons ahead. The 49ers are bringing him back for next season.

.

49. NUMBER 12 - CHRIS SCOTT. Earlier we saw him with his dreads reduced during the Super Bowl. Here we see why he should never be on the field with his dreads reduced. In the photo on the left he's congratulating K Graham Gano after kicking a game-winning FG in overtime in Week 8. Most of Scott's playing time this season came on the Panthers' field goal/extra point team (so he was pretty busy). Scott is one of 6 O-linemen in the countdown, and the first of two who went to college at Tennessee.

.

50. NUMBER 11 - KENDRICK LEWIS. Unfortunately the best shot of his dreads this season came from the Ravens' Week 6 game at San Francisco (right photo), when he had to be helped off the field after injuring his knee. Thankfully the injury caused him to miss only 1 game; he was in the starting lineup for the other 15. It was definitely a treat in the games Lewis had his dreads flowing fully; but far too often during his 6th season in the league - and 1st with the Ravens - he had them reduced.

.

51. NUMBER 10 - JASON VERRETT. We begin the top 10 with the only player in the countdown from California. A native of Fairfield (about halfway between San Francisco and Sacramento on I-80) he has gone from having to play his freshman college season in junior college (not because of poor grades, but because he got no scholarship offers to D-1 schools) in 2010 to the Pro Bowl in his 2nd NFL season with the Chargers in 2015. With hopefully a long career ahead of him, Verrett has a great chance of climbing higher in the top 10 in the near future.

.

52. NUMBER 9 - DEREK NEWTON. I tried to get photos of every player in the countdown from two different games; but clearly the Texans' Week 3 game vs. Tampa Bay was the game where Newton's dreads were at their very best. He had them either reduced or bunched together in almost every other game. I wondered if he would even have a career when he wasn't picked until the 7th round of the round of the 2011 draft. But he moved into the Texans' starting lineup in 2012 and has started all 16 games the last three seasons. Just 28 years old, he too could be moving higher in the top 10 in the seasons ahead.

.

53. NUMBER 8 - ADAM GETTIS. There are three players in the countdown from the Midwest. MarQueis Gray is from Indianapolis, Trae Waynes is from Kenosha, WI; and Gettis is from suburban Chicago. Like Matt Daniels earlier Gettis barely made the countdown, not appearing in a game until Week 17 (right photo). The photo on the left is from the Jets-Giants preseason game on Aug. 29, not from their meeting in the regular season. It remains to be seen whether we'll get to see these dreads much in the future. Gettis seems to be a last-man-on-the-roster type of player. He's been on the field for just 101 plays since being drafted in 2012, and 93 of those were with the Redskins in 2013. The Giants, who signed him to the practice squad late in 2014, seem to like him; but he somehow is going to have to figure out how to play better if he's going to stick around.

.

54. NUMBER 7 - STEPHON GILMORE (12). In my countdown 3 years ago I mentioned that Gilmore had the chance to have the longest dreads in league history by the end of his career - and he's still trending in that direction. He was just 25 years old as he played the 2015 season, his 4th with the Bills, and figures to be around for several more seasons. As for having the longest dreads ever, I don't know; for the first time this season he started playing more often with his dreads reduced, and that's usually not a good sign. But I'm still hopeful he'll put my worries to rest and will be in the top 5 the next time I do a countdown.

.

55. NUMBER 6 - DALLAS THOMAS. He's the highest ranked of the 6 O-linemen in the countdown, and these photos show that it's kind of obvious why. A 3rd round draft pick by the Dolphins in 2013, he became a full-time starter for the first time this season - but some Dolphins fans will tell you that wasn't necessarily a good thing. But even if he's been a disappointment as a player, he can play both G and OT, and being versatile like that means he and those great dreads will be in the league for a couple more seasons at the very least.

.

56. NUMBER 5 - TRE BOSTON. Since I loaded up the first half of this dread gallery with as many photos of Boston as I could find, you've already seen how far his dreads hang outside his helmet. So I decided to go with a couple of incredible shots of him from this season with his helmet off. Everybody who starts growing dreads should hope that one day they look like this. Of course, Tre cheated a little bit to get to this point. I once posted a photo of him when he was in college where you could clearly see where the extensions were connected to his real hair. He's in only in his 2nd season after being drafted in the 4th round in 2014, so these dreads should be a fixture in the Panthers' secondary for years to come.

.

57. NUMBER 4 - DWAYNE HARRIS (8). There are 5 players from the state of Georgia in the countdown, and Harris ranks the highest. After seemingly for years avoiding having players with dreads on their roster as if they had leprosy, the Giants finally have gotten with the program lately and this season brought in Harris and his down-to-the-bottom-of-his-number dreads as a free agent. In an interview with the team's website shortly after the season ended, Dwayne mentioned that he started growing dreads when he got to college because he got tired of paying for haircuts so often. With hair that grows as fast as his, and with at least a few more years left in his career, he could move up to the top spot in the next countdown.

.

58. NUMBER 3 - RASHEAN MATHIS (4). When he first came into the NFL, the dreads covered the name but hadn't yet reached the number on the back of his jersey. Little did I suspect then (2003) that he would still be playing when his dreads looked like this. No doubt a lot of other players would like to take the same dread journey as Mathis; but to do that you have to be good enough to still be playing well when you're 35 years old. Unfortunately though, 2015 will be the last we see of these dreads in the NFL. Rashean made the mistake of trying to tackle Adrian Peterson by himself in Week 7 and suffered a concussion so serious the Lions put him on IR for his own safety. And since the Lions aren't exactly expected to be Super Bowl contenders next season, he has decided to retire after 13 seasons. He could probably stay in football by going into coaching, but I think he has other ideas. So if a few years from now you're watching golf on TV and see somebody with really long dreads ..... well, you'll know who it is.

.

59. NUMBER 2 - RICARDO MATHEWS (7). As if you didn't already know, Florida is the state with the most players represented in this countdown (big surprise, right?). And of the 10 players from Florida there are three from Jacksonville - Mario Butler, Rashean Mathis, and Mathews. Yes, it's unfortunate that he has has two and sometimes even three rubber bands around his dreads when he's on the field; but he really doesn't have much choice. You can play DB with your long dreads completely loose. But if you try that playing on the D-line, they're just going to get jostled, mangled, or grabbed on every single play. Just as long as he doesn't reduce them, I can tolerate the bands. After 4 seasons with the Colts and then 2 with the Chargers, Ricardo will have another new home next season, trading in his blue and gold Chargers jersey for a #90 black and gold Steelers jersey.

.

60. NUMBER 1 - REGGIE NELSON (2). Number 1, and it's really not even close. Dreads well past the bottom of his number and now creeping down to his pants - and still growing strong. I mentioned earlier about how Stephon Gilmore will have the chance to have the NFL's longest dreads ever. Well, the biggest reason he might not make it is that the player he is chasing - Nelson - is still playing. Reggie was 32 years old this season, and it arguably was his best season. He could probably keep playing another 5 years. I can't wait to see his dreads then! After going 0-5 in the playoffs in his 6 seasons with the Bengals, he's going from a team that never wins in the playoffs to a team that never makes the playoffs, although a lot of people say the Raiders are finally going to do something in 2016. We'll see.

.
Not mentioned, but certainly not forgotten, these are the players that I considered for the top 30 that didn't quite make it. Keep your dreads growing and (more importantly) keep your job in the NFL and no doubt you'll make the top 30 next time (which I have no idea when that will be). In no particular order: Richard Sherman (SEA), Sammy Watkins (BUF), Ronald Darby (BUF), Bradley Marquez (LA), Isaiah Crowell (CLEV), Will Sutton (CHI), Pernell McPhee (CHI), Erik Walden (IND), Jamari Lattimore (NYJ), Calvin Pryor (NYJ), Denzel Rice (PHIL), Tyson Jackson (ATL), Nick Williams (KC), Lance Louis (IND), Marlon Brown (BAL), Larry Fitzgerald (ARIZ), Lucky Whitehead (DAL), Kelvin Sheppard (MIA), Jadeveon Clowney (HOU), Josh Bynes (DET).
.

61. SPECIAL MENTION. Obviously WR Rico Richardson has dreads long enough to be included in the countdown. He didn't make it only because he wasn't on anybody's roster when the season ended. He actually played in 5 regular season games with the Titans this season before being released. He'll try to earn a job with the Cardinals (good luck with that) this summer. 

.

And now, to wrap up this DG section, let's head north.
I look forward to July each season because it means it's time for football - in Canada, that is. And if you've been watching any of the CFL games shown on ESPN2 this month, you probably noticed there's no shortage of sick dreads in that league either. I don't have the time to keep track of the CFL closely, but I just have to mention a couple of players with really long dreads - the kind of dreads that would make Reggie Nelson proud.

62. These are photos from 2015 of Montreal DB Dominique Ellis. No stranger to this blog, Ellis made my dread all-America team at least a couple of times when he was in college at South Carolina State. After trying to make the NFL in 2012 and 2013, he's now in his 3rd season in the CFL - now playing in 2016 for Hamilton.

.

63. The last (and only) time these dreads were seen in this blog was in Part 2 DG146. DB Abdul Kanneh did not make the Cleveland Browns roster in 2013, but he has turned into a star player in the CFL the last two seasons, playing for the Ottawa Redblacks. Looks like he'll wear the crown for the longest dreads in the CFL for several more seasons - unless some NFL team takes notice and decides to give him another chance.  

.

PLAYOFF DREAD STARS

• Larry Fitzgerald - Cardinals - 8 receptions for 176 yards, including game-winning 5-yard TD, in 26-20 home W in overtime over Packers in 2nd round

• Danny Trevathan - Broncos - team high 8 tackles (4-4) and 2 FR in 24-10 W over Panthers in Super Bowl

HOUSE OF DREAD

If Redskins WR DeSean Jackson had made a little better effort getting the ball into the end zone instead of going out of bounds inside the 1-yard line in the 1st quarter in Week 18, the 1st round game between Green Bay and Washington would have had 2 TD scored by players with dreads and taken H.O.D. honors. But since he didn't, neither that game nor any of the other 10 playoff games had more than 1 TD by players with dreads, so there is no award for this postseason.


HEAD DREAD 
       

Maybe if  Danny Trevathan had a little more success covering Rob Gronkowski in Week 20, I would have chosen him. Or if Tedd Ginn had scored a TD in the Super Bowl instead of running out of bounds or had caught that pass in the Super Bowl instead of letting it bounce off his hands and be intercepted, I could have picked him. But instead I voted for Steelers WR Martavis Bryant as the best player with dreads for the postseason of the 2015 season. He certainly earned it through his performance in the Steelers' two playoff games; but it's also a bit of a sentimental choice, because those two games might be the last we ever see of him. Bryant scored his team's only touchdown - on an acrobatic, highlight-reel 10-yard reception (photo on right above) - in a 1st round 18-16 road win over the Bengals and finished that game with 73 total yards - 29 receiving on 5 catches and 44 rushing on 1 carry. He followed that 8 days later with a sensational 194-yard game against the great Denver defense in the Steelers' heartbreaking 23-16 loss to the Broncos, finishing with 40 yards rushing on 2 carries and 9 receptions for 154 yards. I'm not going to go into the specifics of all the plays he made. The two articles on the first two links below do a good enough job of that. And the third link is to a video that does a good enough job of showing the highlights he had in the game at Denver.

http://www.todayspigskin.com/afc-today/pittsburgh-steelers/martavis-bryant-answers-challenge/

http://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/steelers-film-room/2016/1/24/10806898/steelers-film-room-martavis-bryant-shows-he-can-be-a-no-1-receiver-in

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVynTqE8pOo

Obviously those articles were written before the news came down in mid-March that Bryant will be suspended for the entire 2016 season. No, the 24-yard old hasn't gotten his act together. And this is some sad and very disturbing news indeed. Instead of talking about Martavis emerging as one of the top stars in the league heading into his 3rd season, we find out his 3rd season won't come until 2017, if at all. I mean, those articles aren't lying. We're talking about a player with Hall-of-Fame talent. What a waste it would be if his career gets cut short because he won't stop smoking pot. But that certainly could happen. Because if you don't shape up after your first suspension (he served a 4-gamer to begin this season) and have to be suspended again, you're probably never going to shape up. We've already seen that with too many other players. Hopefully I'll be wrong and Bryant will somehow figure it out and be back on the field in 2017, but honestly I don't have a good feeling about this.

Come on, Martavis, look at you. You are blessed to be a great athlete, so you decide to play sports for a living. And you turn out to be so good that you have a chance to be one of the best ever. And now that you get to what's supposed to be the good part - the part where they pay you millions of dollars - you decide to just throw your career away? Hell, no, you're not that stupid, are you? I hope not.

Hopefully you won't hear a thing about Bryant until around this time next year - because if you hear anything before then, it won't be good.
.

NEXT

The odds are not in my favor for finishing my annual DG on the next class of rookies with dreads entering the NFL before training camp starts (about 10 days from now). I'll try to get it done as quickly as possible; but you may have noticed I haven't been doing anything quickly this year, so it might be a while.