The 2018 Pro Bowl was the only game on the schedule for Week 21; and in keeping with the new tradition it was played a week before the Super Bowl instead of the week after, and it was played at Orlando instead of Honolulu. I had to resort to YouTube because my plans to watch the game live were dashed - that is, I kept on dozing off, so I only saw a few bits and pieces of the live telecast of the AFC's come-from-behind 24-23 victory over the NFC. When the two teams were first picked near the end of the regular season, there were 12 players with dreads among the 88 total chosen. But the 3 of the 12 with the longest dreads - Jadeveon Clowney and DeAndre Hopkins of the Texans and Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald - decided to skip the game, claiming they were injured (which gave me even more reason to doze off).
They weren't the only ones absent. 35 of the original 88 players picked were not in uniform on Jan. 28. The 6 members of the Eagles and 4 members of the Patriots chosen were excused from playing. But although some of the remaining 25 absentees were legitimately injured, I'd bet that a lot of them would have played if it had been a regular season game. By the time all the replacements were chosen, we were still left with 12 players with dreads; but Colts WR T.Y. Hilton (photo at top) was the only one with dreads you could easily see. You'd think that in a friendly, just-for-fun game like this that all of the players with dreads would turn their dreads loose. But no. Buccaneers DT Gerald McCoy felt it necessary to have his dreads reduced; and, even more disappointingly, so did Rams RB Todd Gurley (photo above on left, during the player introductions before the game).
There were two WRs with dreads in uniform. Tyreek Hill of the Chiefs gained 18 yards on his only reception but also was responsible for one of the 6 turnovers, as he muffed a punt (trying to field a ground ball while it was raining) in the 2nd quarter. That ended up costing the AFC 3 points. Davante Adams of the Packers had an uneventful day, finishing with no catches on the 2 passes thrown to him.
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DREADS FOCUS
AFC NORTH
Best player with dreads: C.J. Mosley
Player with best dreads: Maurice Canady
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BALTIMORE RAVENS
You might have suspected that my crystal ball picked the Ravens to win the Super Bowl only because they have more players with dreads than any other team; but there's no truth to that rumor whatsoever. That doesn't enter CB2's equation. Neverless there were 14 players with dreads who appeared in at least one game - the most of any team in the AFC and just one behind the Giants more most in the league. Unlike the Giants, the Ravens had all of their players with dreads on the roster for nearly the entire season. I doubt that it happened for many (if any) plays during the season, but when their opponents had the ball, the Ravens could have had as many as 8 players with dreads on the field to defend them.
Best of the bunch is C.J. Mosley (photo on left). Although just barely, Mosley's dreads are now visible when he has his helmet on, which they weren't in the first two seasons after he started growing them in 2015. And they're more colorful now, as he went with red tips for the first time. C.J. is the easy choice for the best player with dreads in this division. Picked for the Pro Bowl for the 3rd time in the last 4 years and playing nearly every snap on defense, he led the team with 132 tackles, average of 8.2 per game. Among his other numbers were 11 TFL and 2 INT, one of which he returned to the house. Playing alongside Mosley at inside LB in the Ravens' 3-4 defense was Patrick Onwuasor (on right in photo above on right) in his 1st season with dreads. Taking over after the premature retirement (due to injury) of Zachary Orr, Onwuasor had 90 tackles, including 3 TFL and 1 sack, in 16 games (13 starts).
The Ravens often had players with dreads manning both outside LB spots as well. A star in the making, Matthew Judon made nearly a third of his tackles (17 of 60) behind the line of scrimmage in his 2nd season on the team and his 3rd with dreads. You still could only see those dreads with his helmet off, including when he was (literally) howling mad (photo on left above) after the Ravens' D gave up that late TD to the Bengals on 4th down in Week 17; but they should be visible by next season. Za'Darius Smith (photo on right, celebrating after a play during the 40-0 win over the Dolphins in Week 8), whose dreads have been visible for several seasons, started only 4 times but played an average of 38 snaps per game, finishing with 3.5 sacks in 14 games.
Unfortunately Tim Williams had a very disappointing rookie season. He missed 4 games with a thigh injury in the middle of the season and didn't play well either before or after he got hurt. Picked in the 3rd round of the draft, he finished with 0 sacks (although he almost got one in Week 2 in photo on left above) in 8 games.The Ravens' defensive players with dreads didn't get nearly as many interceptions as CB2 predicted; but they did get 6, which tied them with three other teams for the most in the league. With his 4 INT, Brandon Carr (photo on left below), signed as a FA in the offseason, had the most picks any CB with dreads in the league this season. He also extended his streak of perfect attendance, playing all 16 games for the 10th straight season, in the last 5 of which he has had dreads. Unfortunately they were reduced dreads this year.
The opposite of Carr, Maurice Canady never had his dreads reduced; and for that reason he gets my vote for the best dreads in the AFC North, even though a couple of his teammates have dreads longer than his. Canady (photo on right above, trying to keep a punt from going into the end zone in Week 11, and also in photo at bottom along with Mosley and Judon) spent the first half of the season on IR after injuring his knee early in TC. After being activated in Week 9, he didn't play as well as he had hoped, finishing with 27 tackles, 1 PBU, and 1 FR in 40 defensive snaps per game.
Both in their 2nd season both with the Ravens and with dreads, Michael Pierce and Willie Henry played nearly 600 snaps each on the D-line. Pierce (photo on left below) had 49 tackles, 1 sack, and 2 FR in 16 games (13 starts). Henry (photo on right below) displayed a talent for batting down passes, finishing with 5 PBU as well as 3.5 sacks and 2 FR in 14 games (3 starts).
The Ravens also got contributions from players with dreads on offense - serious contributions. After being let go by the Seahawks (who had a glut of good RBs), Alex Collins was signed to the PS in Week 1, was on the active roster by Week 2 and in the starting lineup by Week 5. He ended up 11th in the league with 973 yards rushing on an impressive average of 4.6 per carry. It took a while for him to score; but once he did (in Week 11), the touchdowns started flowing like a fountain, as he scored 6 times in the final 7 games. If Alex hadn't had his dreads reduced (photo on left below) for every game, I would have voted for him for the best dreads in the division. But his dreads are so long, and no doubt he wouldn't appreciate it if they got grabbed on every play, which probably would happen if he had them going at full blast.
On a team desperately looking for a WR - any WR - to step up and be reliable, Chris Moore for the 2nd straight season unfortunately showed he isn't ready yet for that role. He played much more on offense this year than in his 2016 rookie season but still was on the field for only 376 offensive snaps in 13 games. He had 18 catches for 248 yards and 3 TD; but twice he bobbled passes that turned into pick sixes, and those were huge in home losses to the Bears and Bengals that ended up costing the team a playoff spot. When they're not reduced, Moore's dreads are long enough (photo on right above) for consideration for the best in the division.
Cut at the end of TC, undrafted rookie Quincy Adeboyejo (photo on left below, from the preseason) spent all season on the PS until injuries to other WRs forced him into action for 38 plays in the Week 17 loss to Cincinnati. Undrafted rookie Jaylen Hill (photo on right below), just getting the 2nd edition of his dreads started, showed enough promise in TC to make the team but didn't play much and then (sadly) tore his ACL in Week 16.
I think that undrafted rookie WR Tim White has dreads. At least in a photo I saw from last summer it looked like his hair was on its way to turning into dreads. Hopefully I'll be able to welcome him to the house next season. He was on his way to making the team this season until injuring his thumb in the first preseason game and going on IR. I also think that Steven Johnson has dreads - enough to welcome him to the house even though I'm not 100% sure. Hopefully I won't have to issue a retraction later. After being released by the Steelers after Week 2, Johnson signed with the Ravens in mid-October and played in 10 games, with all 234 of his snaps coming on special teams.
There was no 8th NFL season for S Kendrick Lewis and his sick dreads. He was released just before the start of the FA signing period in March, and nobody signed him. FA S Marqueston Huff also was not re-signed. DT Tim Jernigan was traded to the Eagles during the offseason and then cut off his dreads. Signed late in TC, LB Lamar Louis lasted a week before he was let go.
ROSTER
CB MAURICE CANADY
CB BRANDON CARR
RB ALEX COLLINS
DT WILLIE HENRY
CB Jaylen Hill (IR)
LB Steven Johnson
LB Matthew Judon
WR CHRIS MOORE
LB C.J. MOSLEY
LB Patrick Onwuasor
DT Michael Pierce
LB ZA'DARIUS SMITH
LB TIM WILLIAMS
GRADE: A- (Collins' reduced dreads the only thing keeping this from being an A)
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CINCINNATI BENGALS
2017 was the 4th straight year that nobody with dreads touched the ball on offense for the Bengals - a streak that started when BenJarvus Green-Ellis was cut near the end of TC in 2014 despite leading the team with 756 yards rushing in 2013. If not for Trey Hopkins (photo on left below) getting his dreads started this season, there would have been no offensive players with dreads on the team at all. Hopkins missed 3 games early in the season with a knee injury but was a starter on the O-line for 11 of the last 12 games once he got healthy. His dreads are already almost easily visible already because he let his hair grow very long before converting it to dreads.
Despite the lack of dreads on offense, the Bengals had a golden opportunity to have a touchdown scored by a player with dreads; but Dre Kirkpatrick, 10 yards away from a 101-yard pick six at Denver in Week 11, ran out of gas and - comically - fumbled the ball without being touched. At least he was able to recover his own fumble, but it was a yard short of the end zone: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=855KmiK4vsQ .... Argh! Kirkpatrick is now the not-so-proud owner of the record for the longest INT return (100 yards) not for a TD in league history. Even more comically, when he arrived at his seat on the team plane for the flight back to Cincinnati after the game, there was an oxygen bottle already there in it waiting for him. Kirkpatrick missed 2 games after suffering a concussion in Week 13; otherwise he started every game, finishing with 55 tackles, 1 sack, 13 PBU, and just the 1 INT.
Now 34 years old, Adam Jones (photo on left) started 9 games but missed the other 7 due to three different injuries, including a pulled groin that forced him onto IR for the final 4 games. He had 23 tackles, 3 PBU, and 1 INT. These are the 2nd edition of Adam's dreads. He'd probably have the longest dreads in the league by now if he hadn't cut off his 1st edition back in 2007 after getting into trouble off the field.
Also with long dreads, Josh Shaw (photo on left below) did heavy duty on both defense and special teams. He played all 16 games and had 36 tackles and 3 PBU but 0 INT.
Now in his 10th NFL season, Pat Sims (photo on right) should have dreads longer than nearly everybody but for some reason has stopped them from getting that long. He played 14 games (8 starts) and had 25 tackles, 3 TFL, and a half sack.
After being cut by both the Saints and Jets during TC, Robenson Therezie was with the Bengals on the PS for the final 3 weeks of the season. Signed after the Cowboys let him go in February, WR Chris Brown was cut at the end of TC, along with DE Will Clarke.
ROSTER
G Trey Hopkins
CB ADAM JONES (IR)
CB DRE KIRKPATRICK
CB JOSH SHAW
DT PAT SIMS
S Robenson Therezie (PS)
GRADE: D+
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CLEVELAND BROWNS
Isaiah Crowell used to play on winning teams - before he got to the Browns. In college Crowell went 10-4 in his only season at Georgia in 2011 then went 7-4 and 8-4 in his two seasons at Alabama State. But since signing with the Browns as an undrafted rookie in 2014 he has gone from 7 wins to 3 to 1 to none - an aggregate 11-53. Thankfully (I guess) both he and the Browns have decided to go in a different direction at RB for 2018. Isaiah hasn't played badly, leading the team in rushing the last 3 seasons and starting every game the last two. But with the team not winning, he couldn't enjoy any of his personal success. Despite finishing 2017 with 100 fewer yards rushing and 5 fewer TD (on 8 more carries) than in 2016, he still averaged a respectable 4.1 yards per carry; and despite playing only 33 snaps per game this season, he still had over 1,000 total yards (853 rushing, 182 receiving). Sadly, like a lot of other players, he had his dreads reduced for every game (including Week 10, photo above). And not just reduced, seriously reduced - all the way down to less than 20 locks. It's hard to watch now after seeing how great they looked when he was in college.
In his 1st season with dreads Christian Kirksey (photo on left above) played all 1,068 snaps that the Browns defense was on the field (he deserves some sort of medal for that, doesn't he?) and ended up with 138 tackles (the most by any player with dreads in the league), 8 TFL, 3.5 sacks, 5 PBU, 2 FF, and 1 FR. In his 1st season with dreads, 3rd round rookie Larry Ogunjobi (photo on right above, at the end of the overtime loss to the Titans in Week 7) had 32 tackles, 5 TFL, and 1 sack in 14 games as a reserve D-lineman. Lavar Edwards (#92 in photo on left below) has now been with 8 different teams (and played for 6) in his 5 NFL seasons after signing with the Browns in mid-December and playing as a reserve in the final 3 games). Jamie Collins untwisted the dreads he got started at the end of the 2015 season, when he was with the Patriots; so I had to kick him out of the house last year, during which the Patriots' unwillingness to pay him him resulted in him being traded to the Browns. Collins brought the dreads back this year (photo on right below, from Week 7), and hopefully he's going to let them grow long this time. It was an even more miserable season for Jamie than most of his teammates because he had to deal with injuries in addition to the L's. He played in only 6 games, missing 3 early in the season with a concussion and then the last 6 of the season after tearing the MCL in his knee at Detroit in Week 11 on the same play he got the team's only INT by a player with dreads.
Unable to keep his job with the Steelers, who have a bunch of talented WRs, Sammie Coates (photo at bottom) was traded to the Browns at the end of the preseason, and it was just a totally wasted season for him. In 12 games he played only 92 snaps on offense and had only 6 catches for 70 yards. At least he contributed on special teams (5 tackles), so he wasn't completely useless.
What about the three rookie DBs the Browns had during summer practice? Howard Wilson, the team's 4th round draft choice, cut his dreads off (and missed the whole season too due to injury), while undrafted Channing Stribling and J.D. Harmon both were let go at the end of TC. Stribling was signed to the PS but was cut from that too after 2 weeks). RB Terrence Magee was on the PS for two months until being signed by the Falcons in mid-November. After being acquired in a trade in June, former Jets 1st round draft choice Calvin Pryor was released after getting into a fight with a teammate in practice a couple of days before the season opener. Before he spent 2017 with three other teams, S Trae Elston was cut by the Browns in April just before the draft. With the Browns unwilling to pay him, CB Tramon Williams was cut in early February (but landed on his feet nicely in Arizona). FA CB B.W. Webb was signed a week before Christmas then cut 9 days later.
ROSTER
WR SAMMIE COATES
LB Jamie Collins (IR)
RB ISAIAH CROWELL
DE LAVAR EDWARDS
LB Christian Kirksey
DT Larry Ogunjobi
GRADE: D
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PITTSBURGH STEELERS
Of the 5 players with dreads on this year's roster only Bud Dupree was with the team last year. After missing the season opener with a shoulder injury, Dupree (photo on left) started every game for the rest of the year, finishing with 40 tackles, 12 TFL, and a career high 6 sacks. But after the Steelers spent a 1st round draft pick on him in 2015, I'm sure that they were expecting his career high to be much higher than 6 sacks by the time he finished his 3rd season.
Martavis Bryant (both photos below) has decided to go with his dreads permanently reduced; but I'll take it. It's much better than the alternative. When it was announced during the 2016 offseason that Bryant would be suspended for the entire 2016 season, I was afraid that we had seen the last of him. But give him credit. Realizing he was about to blow his chance to make millions of dollars, he has passed all of his drug tests (so far) since being suspended and was reinstated to the league (and team) this season. And although 2017 certainly was no smooth ride, he at least made it all the way through the season.
Most of his problems this season happened because he acted like a baby when rookie WR JuJu Smith-Schuster played better than him and replaced him in the starting lineup. But after the Steelers suspended him for the Week 8 game at Detroit, his attitude finally improved. Martavis ended up catching 50 passes for 603 yards and 3 TD. His 12.1 average per catch was a career low, but I expect him to return to form and once again become a deep threat in the final year of his contract next season.
I felt a bit sorry for Sean Spence. After being released by the Colts after Week 4, he was without a job until the Steelers came calling in December following the serious injury suffered by LB Ryan Shazier (thankfully Shazier isn't totally paralyzed and might be able to walk again). Spence (photo on left below and in middle in photo at bottom, praying between Bryant and Smith-Schuster before the Week 15 game vs. New England), as you may recall, was drafted by the Steelers in 2012 and was with them for the first 4 years of his career; so he was already familiar with the team's defensive system. Unfortunately though, he was unable to come close to filling the very large shoes left behind by Shazier, the team's best defensive player. I'm sure it wasn't all Sean's fault, but the Steelers' defense simply didn't get the job done in the 5 games (including the playoff loss to Jacksonville) he started.
About to be cut by the Buccaneers at the end of TC, J.J. Wilcox instead got traded to the Steelers and played 12 games as a reserve (most, if not all, of them with his dreads reduced) and had the team's only INT by a player with dreads (photo on right below) in the Week 3 loss at Chicago. Injured early in TC, 7th round draft choice Keion Adams had surgery on his shoulder and spent all of his rookie season on IR.
WR Markus Wheaton, RB DeAngelo Williams, DT Ricardo Mathews, and LB Jarvis Jones (the team's 1st round draft pick in 2013) all were FA that were not re-signed. At the end of TC 7 more players with dreads were let go: WR Cobi Hamilton, DE Johnny Maxey, CB Brandon Dixon, TE David Johnson, DT Roy Philon, rookie DT Christian Brown, and rookie TE Phazahn Odom. Hamilton, Maxey and Dixon found jobs elsewhere in the league. Then WR Sammie Coates was gone too, banished to Cleveland in a trade just before the season began.
ROSTER
LB KEION ADAMS (IR)
WR MARTAVIS BRYANT
LB BUD DUPREE
LB SEAN SPENCE
S J.J. WILCOX
GRADE: D+
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AFC SOUTH
Best player with dreads: DeAndre Hopkins
Player with best dreads: Erik Walden
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HOUSTON TEXANS
In my preview of the 2017 season CB2 predicted the AFC West would run away with the crown for the most touchdowns scored by players with dreads. Eventually that is what happened; but if not for several injuries suffered by the Texans, the AFC South just might have pulled off the upset. Surely the Texans would have won the team crown, and maybe the AFC South would have taken team honors had not star rookie QB Deshaun Watson not gotten hurt. In the season's first 7 games the Texans scored 26 TD, and 15 of them were by players with dreads coming on passes from Watson. But once he went down with a torn ACL in practice after Week 8, the fun ended immediately, and the Texans scored only 14 more TD in the final 9 games. The team's three WRs with dreads and one rookie RB with dreads also missed time due to injury, with the result being the Texans finishing second to the Rams in TD by players with dreads (27-25).
Will Fuller's dreads (photo on right below), on the other hand, just don't look very good when they're reduced. But apparently that's the way he's going to keep them. Much more than Hopkins, Fuller was hurt by Watson's absence. Upon returning to the lineup after missing the first 3 games with a shoulder injury Fuller had 7 TD catches in the next 4 games (!); but after Watson went down, he scored no touchdowns in the final 9 games of the season, three of which he missed due to a rib injury. In 10 games played he totaled 28 catches (21 of them went for 1st downs) for 423 yards.
Mostly quiet for the first 10 games, rookie D'Onta Foreman was in the process of breaking out in Week 11 against Arizona. But sadly, on the play on which he scored his 2nd TD of the day (and the season) he tore his Achilles tendon and went on IR for the rest of the season. There's no telling how many more TD he would have scored had he stayed healthy. Foreman (photo on left below) ended up with 327 yards rushing (4.2 per carry), including 65 on 10 carries before he got hurt vs. the Cardinals. If he recovers fully, he could yet have an outstanding career. Even though he averaged 8 carries per game, he definitely showed he can play in this league.
Also showing he can play - given the opportunity - was Bruce Ellington (photo on right above). Signed by the Texans after TC was already underway, Ellington - used mostly as a kick returner in the two seasons he played for the 49ers, moved into a role as a slot receiver for the Texans and had 29 catches for 330 yards and 2 TD in 11 games in his first season with dreads. Unfortunately he injured his hamstring in Week 13 and spent the rest of the season on IR - a re-injury of the same hamstring that caused him to miss all of the 2016 season. What was especially disappointing about the timing of the injury was that it deprived him of the chance to face his former team, as the Texans hosted the 49ers in Week 14. And it also prevented him from playing alongside his cousin .....
Andre Ellington (photo on left above), after being released by the Cardinals just before Thanksgiving, was signed by the Texans, and his first game for them was the same game at Tennessee in Week 13 that Bruce got injured in the 1st quarter. A RB who is more of a threat catching the ball than running it, Andre had 6 catches for 72 yards in his 4 games with the Texans but wasn't able to add to the team's total of TD by players with dreads.
Once again this year Cobi Hamilton excelled for the Steelers in the preseason only to be told he didn't make the team. He now has been cut at the end of TC 5 years in a row. He was signed to the Texans' PS in mid-September and activated at the same time that Foreman went on IR. In 3 games (53 offensive snaps) he had 1 catch for 8 yards. Cobi's dreads (photo above on right) are long enough for consideration for the best in the division. But he had them reduced in his brief appearances this season, so they didn't look as impressive as they could have.
After being released by the Jets in early October, Marcus Williams (photo on left) came back to the Texans (where he began his career in 2014) and played 10 games, finishing with 13 tackles, 3 PBU, and the team's only INT by a player with dreads. Rookie Treston Decoud (photo above on right), the team's 5th round draft pick, played mostly on special teams in the 10 games in which he appeared. Rookie Dee Virgin didn't make the team but was on the PS all season. Derek Newton, injured horrifically on Monday night in Week 7 of the 2016 season (injuring both knees on the same play), was on PUP all season; but he is recovering and hopefully will be able to continue his career next season, as well as continue to be in the running for the O-lineman with the best dreads in the league.
The Texans finally gave up on oft-injured, hard-luck S Lonnie Ballentine. He was let go at the end of TC after missing all of it with knee issues. Rookie LB Dayon Pratt and CB Denzel Rice also had injuries in the preseason torpedo their chances of making the team. It was especially disappointing that Rice didn't make it. His dreads (photo below, from preseason Week 2) are among the best in the league. RB Akeem Hunt was released at the end of TC too and played his 1st season with dreads for the Chiefs instead. FA RB Jonathan Grimes was not re-signed. Undrafted rookie RB Dare Ogunbowale was let go after spending the first 4 weeks of the season on the PS.
DE JADEVEON CLOWNEY
CB TRESTON DECOUD
RB ANDRE ELLINGTON
WR Bruce Ellington (IR)
RB D'ONTA FOREMAN
WR WILL FULLER
WR COBI HAMILTON
WR DeANDRE HOPKINS
OT DEREK NEWTON (PUP)
CB DEE VIRGIN
CB MARCUS WILLIAMS
GRADE: B
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INDIANAPOLIS COLTS
The Colts finished tied with the Texans in the standings (for last place, with a dismal 4-12 record), but they're one up on the Texans when it comes to the number of players with dreads who appeared in at least one game. 10 players with dreads played for the Colts this season, and that includes three of the team's top four tacklers. And that includes Antonio Morrison (photo on left below), whom I welcomed back to the house for the first time since he cut off the first edition of his dreads following his sophomore season in college (Florida) in 2014. That first edition wasn't even long enough to be seen outside of his helmet, so hopefully he'll be serious about growing them long this time. He better be, or else. In his first season as a starter Morrison led the Colts with 108 tackles, although only 3 of those were TFL and none were sacks.
It goes to show just how feeble the Colts' pass rush was that the 5.5 sacks that Jabaal Sheard had were the most on the team. No doubt the Colts thought they would be getting many more than 5.5 sacks when they signed him as a FA in the offseason. Often on the field with his long dreads reduced (but not in the Week 4 game at Seattle, photo above on right), Sheard started all 16 games and played 56 snaps per game, finishing with 52 tackles, 8 TFL, 3 PBU, and 2 FF.
In his 2016 rookie season Matthias Farley played all 16 games with 0 starts. This year he again played all 16 games but started in all but one of them. Playing 58 snaps a game, and with the longest dreads on the Colts D, Farley (photo on left below) had 98 tackles, 3 TFL, 5 PBU, 2 INT, 1 FF, and 1 FR. This from a player who wasn't picked at all in the 2016 Draft.
Teaming up with Farley in the secondary during the first half of the season was someone who most definitely was drafted - Malik Hooker, the Colts' 1st round pick this season. Advertised as a player who would help the team get more interceptions (as a team the Colts had only 8 all season in 2016), Hooker (photo above on right, after the Colts blew a 13-3 lead in the 4th quarter vs. the Cardinals in Week 2, and communicating with Farley earlier in that game in photo at bottom) was doing exactly that. In fact, he was on his way to leading the league, getting 3 INT in the first 4 games. But he got no more after that, mostly because he tore his ACL in the Week 7 loss to the Jaguars and was on IR for the last 9 games of the season.
The Colts' other two rookies with dreads - both undrafted and both natives of Indianapolis - also ended up on IR. With the team's first and second choice at C both injured during the preseason, Deyshawn Bond (photo on left below) found himself in the starting lineup on opening day. Bond snapped the ball on all 187 offensive plays in the first 3 games; but on the 2nd play of the Sunday night game at Seattle in Week 4, he tore a quad muscle and had to undergo surgery.
After being cut by the Cardinals at the end of TC, Krishawn Hogan (photo on right) gladly signed with the Colts' PS; and after 3 weeks he was signed to the 53-man roster. Hogan, who might actually just edge Farley for the second longest dreads on the team, tore his ACL after playing a total of only 24 snaps in Weeks 4 and 5.
Although he made it only as a replacement player this year, T.Y. Hilton played in the Pro Bowl again at the end of the season - for the 4th season in a row. After a huge, 1,448-yard 2016 season, Hilton was held to "only" 966 yards receiving this year and 4 TD on 57 catches. But that's more the fault of the Colts' QB and O-line. Make no mistake T.Y. is and remains one of the best WRs in the league. I didn't really notice it until the Pro Bowl (I hardly ever watch the Colts), but Hilton's dreads have gotten really long (photo on left below). I guess I shouldn't be surprised. They should be really long after 6 years.
And speaking of really long dreads, Matt Jones wins the award for the longest on the team. After he was let go by the Redskins at the end of TC and picked up by the Colts, I was hoping Jones would join Hilton in contributing to the team's number of TD scored by players with dreads. But with the really good RBs ahead of him on the depth chart staying healthy all season, he appeared in only 5 games and most of his snaps were on special teams. He played only 9 snaps on offense, carrying 5 times (one of them in photo on right above) for 14 yards.
After missing the first 10 games while on PUP, Clayton Geathers (photo on left below) returned to the field fully healthy and played 142 snaps over the final 5 games. Geathers injured his neck in Week 11 of the 2016 season; and when it wasn't healing, he decided to have surgery last March for a bulging disc. After a long recovery he was back in uniform for an abbreviated 3rd season with the Colts.
After signing as a FA in the offseason but not earning a starting job, Sean Spence was cut at the end of TC then re-signed in Week 2 and played exclusively on special teams for 3 games before before being cut again for good.
As you probably already heard, tragedy struck the Colts recently when promising, 3rd-year LB Edwin Jackson was killed in an automobile accident. Jackson (photo on right above, from preseason Week 1) might have been in the starting lineup this season had he not spent the entire year on IR (with an undisclosed injury). Sadly we'll never find out how good of a player he might have become. If you're interested, there's a good article about Jackson on the Colts website. To view it click on this link and then click on the link (in blue) that says 'View the full article': http://forums.colts.com/topic/56127-edwin-jackson's-impact-was-felt-on-and-off-the-field-for-colts/
After getting injured during TC and being released, Mo Alie-Cox was brought back to the PS when he got healthy early in October. Once he got healthy (after being released by the Texans) Denzel Rice was signed to the Colts PS and was on it for the the final 2 months of the season. The Colts finished the season with 4 players with dreads on their PS after Kolby Listenbee and Johnathan Calvin were signed to it in December. FA LB Erik Walden and FA DE Zach Kerr were not re-signed. CB Larry Scott and LB Curt Maggitt were cut in May before the start of OTA practices. After being signed as FAs, DE Lavar Edwards, OT Fahn Cooper, DT Josh Boyd, and RB Daryl Richardson all were cut at the end of TC. WR Chris Briggs and his long dreads were cut early in TC after he suffered an undisclosed injury.
ROSTER
TE MO ALIE-COX (PS)
LB Johnathan Calvin (PS)
S MATTHIAS FARLEY
S CLAYTON GEATHERS
WR T.Y. HILTON
WR KRISHAWN HOGAN (IR)
S MALIK HOOKER (IR)
LB EDWIN JACKSON (IR) - RIP
RB MATT JONES
WR KOLBY LISTENBEE (PS)
LB Antonio Morrison
CB DENZEL RICE (PS)
LB JABAAL SHEARD
GRADE: B
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JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS
Of those four A.J. Cann was the only starter. A triceps injury (suffered in practice) caused him to miss the Week 9 game vs. the Bengals, ending his streak of 36 consecutive starts on the O-line. After that he put a brace on his arm (photo on left) and missed no further action. It's unlikely that Cann will ever play in a Pro Bowl, but his play this year was an improvement over last year; and if that improvement continues, maybe the Jaguars won't need to replace him anytime soon.
Chris Ivory's 8th season in the league was a forgettable one; but he probably saw it coming. The moment that Jaguars took Leonard Fournette with the 4th pick of the 2017 Draft, all the other RBs on the roster knew their playing time was going to decrease significantly. But actually, with Fournette missing 3 games, Ivory started 3 times and had only 5 fewer carries than in 2016, finishing with 382 yards rushing (his fewest since 2012) on 112 carries, 21 catches for 175 yards, and 2 TD. On the negative side, his 3.4 average per carry was the worst of his career.
Jarrod Wilson, unfortunately, also decided to keep his dreads reduced for every game this season. Wilson (photo on left below) saw almost all of his action on special teams, finishing with 11 tackles and 1 FR in 15 games. Jalen Myrick's blazing speed helped him get drafted (in the 7th round) but it didn't help him get on the field very much. Myrick (photo on right below, giving his dreads a shake on the sideline during the AFC Championship game on Jan. 21) played in only 5 games, and his only stats were 1 kickoff return for 18 yards and 1 blocked extra point in 89 total snaps.
Three other players with dreads - very long dreads - saw action for the Jaguars before being let go. 2nd year DT Sheldon Day was released (I have no idea why) after appearing in 6 of the first 9 games and totaling 3 tackles, 1 sack, and 1 PBU in 21 snaps per game. After being cut by the Dolphins at the end of TC, CB Lafayette Pitts was picked up by the Jaguars but was let go after Week 7 after playing 6 games almost exclusively on special teams. Day and Pitts found employment with other teams .....
Hopefully by next year I'll be able to welcome DE Dawuane Smoot, whom the Jaguars drafted in the 3rd round this season, to the house. During the season it seemed like he was trying to let his hair turn into dreads by itself; and by the end of the season it looked like it had (photo on bottom). We'll see what he looks like when next season begins; but right now I'd say there's a good chance I'll be welcoming him.
After being cut at the end of Packers TC, rookie WR Montay Crockett was signed to the Jaguars' PS at the end of October and was signed to the 53-man roster for Weeks 17 and 18, although he didn't play in either game. He was released just before the Week 19 playoff game at Pittsburgh. CB Josh Johnson went on IR after suffering a sports hernia injury during TC then was released in October after he got healthy.
A dozen other players with dreads were on either the offseason or preseason roster. DE Jared Odrick and CB Davon House was released just before the FA signing period began in March. FA S Johnathan Cyprien, FA DT Sen'Derrick Marks, and FA RB Denard Robinson were not re-signed. TE E.J. Bibbs and RB Daryl Richardson were cut in May, before OTA practices began. Looking for some RB depth, Jonathan Grimes and DuJuan Harris were signed after TC was already underway, but both were cut at the end of it. Also let go at the end of TC were C Demetrius Rhaney, CB Brian Dixon, WR Jamal Robinson, and rookie DT Kevin Maurice.
ROSTER
G A.J. CANN
RB CHRIS IVORY
CB JALEN MYRICK
S JARROD WILSON
GRADE: D
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TENNESSEE TITANS
Having played against him twice a year in his first 4 years in the league, the Titans already knew what they were getting when they signed for Jaguar Johnathan Cyprien (photo on left) as a FA. And he played as advertised: a safety more proficient at stopping the run than covering the pass. Cyprien's hamstring injury in the season opener cost him 6 games. He started the other 10 and had 57 tackles, 2 TFL, 1 sack, and 1 PBU.
After hardly playing at all in his first 2 seasons, former Seahawks draft choice Tye Smith finally got on the field in his first season in a Titans uniform. And despite breaking his hand in the season opener, he played in 15 games. Most of his action was on special teams, but he also got one of the team's 2 interceptions by players with dreads (he returns that INT in photo on left below, in Week 5 at Miami).
Daren Bates saw all of his action (378 snaps) on special teams, as expected. Special teams is pretty much all his he has done since beginning his career with the Rams in 2013. I had to kick him out of the house last year, when he cut off his dreads just before the start of his only season with the Raiders. But he immediately began to re-grow his hair, and he had the dreads back in time for his first season with the Titans (photo on right above, congratulating K Ryan Succop during Week 10).
And at last that brings us to Derrick Henry, who this year took home the dishonor of having the most disappointing dreads in the league. Most of the players with dreads who played their college ball for Alabama, where you are forced to stifle your dreads, are more than ready to unleash their dreads by the time they get to the NFL. But after being drafted by the Titans (in the 2nd round) last season, Henry kept his dreads the same way he had them at Alabama - kind of folded into a bun (photo on left below). I was disappointed then, but at least I could live with it. But it's hard to live with the way he had his dreads this year. It almost brings tears to my eyes to see his dreads like this, with all his locks braided and clumped together into one (photo on right below). I mean, I don't even know if you can call these dreads. I realize the need for RBs with long dreads to reduce them; but come on, Derrick, it doesn't have to be this much. If he's going to play with his dreads like this from now on, he might as well just cut them off.
On the field the only complaint I have about Henry is that he hasn't played enough. He's on the brink of becoming a star. Just like at Alabama, he has been a reserve during his first two seasons with the Titans and not gotten nearly enough carries (7 per game last year, 11 this year). Playing about 40% of the Titans' offensive snaps in 2017), he turned his 176 carries into a team-leading 744 yards rushing; and he scored the team's only 6 TD by players with dreads .....
Ditto for CB Curtis Riley, who didn't have dreads during his 2016 rookie season and who I didn't know had starting growing dreads this season until I just recently saw this photo (at bottom) of the Titans' DBs together before the Week 5 game vs. the Dolphins. Riley is in the middle of the picture, #35 with the beginner dreads.
After being cut at the end of TC, Denzel Johnson spent the entire season on the PS. Near the end of the season he was joined on the PS by former Steeler Johnny Maxey. However, rookie DT DeAngelo Brown was not signed to the PS after being cut at the end of TC. Tired of his off-the-field nonsense, the Titans released G Sebastian Tretola, whom they just drafted in 2016) just before the start of TC. FAs Daimion Stafford, Valentino Blake, and Sean Spence all were not re-signed. They all signed elsewhere, but both Blake and Stafford strangely decided to call it quits before the regular season began.
ROSTER
LB Daren Bates
S JOHNATHAN CYPRIEN
RB DERRICK HENRY
S DENZEL JOHNSON (PS)
DE JOHNNY MAXEY (PS)
S DA'NORRIS SEARCY
CB TYE SMITH
LB ERIK WALDEN
GRADE: C
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NFC SOUTH
Best player with dreads: Alvin Kamara
Player with best dreads: Dezmen Southward
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ATLANTA FALCONS
The results on the field weren't the only disappointing thing about the Falcons this season (and isn't is great that the Falcons have become so strong a team that a 10-6 record and getting to the 2nd round of the playoffs is considered disappointing). That's right, the dreads too. I should be thrilled that a team I like so much had 9 players with dreads either starting or making key contributions. But seeing most of those nine on the field with their dreads reduced for nearly every game sure took some of the fun out of watching them.
As if Adrian Clayborn's dreads - reduced down to fewer than 10 locks - weren't disappointing enough, DeVondre Campbell joined him this year in the top 5 on the list of the league's most disappointing dreads. Notice how Campbell's dreads looked in Super Bowl 51 at the end of the 2016 season (photo on left above) compared to how he had them this year (photo on right above), looking almost exactly like Clayborn's. Again, it almost makes me want to cry. Campbell was on the field with his dreads like this for all 16 games, recording 92 tackles, 2 sacks, and 4 PBU.
For the second straight season Clayborn took a FR to the house - in Week 11 at Seattle. That came just 8 days after he enjoyed the best game of his career, a glorious late afternoon in which he racked up 6 sacks (one of them in photo on left below), 2 FF, and 1 FR against couple of the Cowboys' reserve O-linemen. That performance allowed him to finish the season with a career high 9.5 sacks, which accounted for nearly half of his 21 total tackles.
Takkarist McKinley, the team's 1st round draft choice, also did a lot of work in the opponents' backfield, finishing with 20 tackles, 9 TFL, 6 sacks, 1 PBU, 2 FF, and 1 FR in 16 games in a strong rookie season. And (thankfully) for the most part he usually didn't have his dreads reduced. Indeed Takk's dreads made quite a showing, beginning the season with brown tips and then changing to teal tips (photo on right above, as he sacks Vikings QB Case Keenum in Week 13). You might have already heard, but he lost one of the brown dreads in the Week 3 game at Detroit. A member of the grounds crew found it on the field while cleaning up after the game, and (as often happens these days) a few days later that lock was getting bids on eBay: https://bloggingdirty.com/2017/09/30/takkarist-mckinley-dread-removed-ebay/ ..... Unfortunately McKinley's dreads changed one more time at the very end of the season, with the result of the "surgery" being that the teal is gone and he now has fewer and slightly shorter locks than before.
Other than Campbell, Dontari Poe (photo on left above) was the only player with dreads to start all 16 games. Sometimes with reduced dreads, sometimes not, Poe had 39 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and 2 PBU in his first (and what turned out to be his only) season with the Falcons after spending 5 seasons with the Chiefs.
Making the position switch from S to LB, Kemal Ishmael (photo on right above) played all 16 games but started only once. He logged heavy duty on special teams, with 7 of his 29 tackles coming on special teams plays.
With his sack at New Orleans in Week 16, Courtney Upshaw became the 7th player with dreads on the Falcons defense to record a sack. Upshaw (celebrating that sack in photo on left below, and in between Poe and McKinley (with brown tips) in photo at bottom, as the Falcons celebrate a sack on 4th down that clinched their Week 1 win at Chicago) missed 3 games early in the season with an ankle injury but played the other 13, averaging about 15 snaps per game.
Desmond Trufant's numbers were OK - 41 tackles, 1 sack, 10 PBU, 2 INT, and 2 FR, including one of which he returned to the house - but he didn't play as well as he had in the past. Too many times he was beaten, and there were too many penalties. I mean, that holding penalty away from the play on 2nd and 30 on the Lions' final drive in Week 3 was absolutely brutal, and it nearly cost the Falcons the game. Trufant this year was coming back from the first serious injury of his career, a torn pectoral that cost him the second half of the 2016 season; so maybe he wasn't back to full strength yet this season and he'll be stronger (and play better) in 2018. I hope so, It'd be a shame if his career is already starting to decline.
The February photo for the 2018 Falcons team calendar is a shot of Desmond from 2016. It was nice to look at, seeing him with his dreads right after having to watch him play with his dreads reduced (including in Week 11 in photo above on right, as he returns an INT) every game this year.
I can't complain about Devonta Freeman's dreads. They were actually flowing at full blast more often than in previous seasons, for about half of his 14 games (including Week 15 at New Orleans in photo on right above). But I am going to complain about the 4 fumbles he had, the last three of which came at crucial points of the games in Weeks 14, 15, and 16, including two just short of the goal (one of them in photo on left above, from Week 15). When he wasn't fumbling, Devonta was having another excellent year, finishing with 865 yards rushing (4.4 per carry), 36 catches for 317 yards, and 8 TD despite missing nearly 3 full games due to a concussion.
After signing as a FA in the offseason, Andre Roberts returned the season's opening kickoff 63 yards - only to have it nullified by a penalty. Unfortunately that's not the only time that would happen. In fact, it seemed like every time Roberts (photo on left) had a great kickoff or punt return, it didn't count because of a penalty; and that includes a punt return he took 80 yards to the house against the Jets in Week 8. If he had known his teammates were going to treat him like this, he probably would have signed with someone else. He ended up averaging a mediocre 22.6 on kickoff returns and 7.4 on punt returns.
Out of work since suffering an Achilles injury in Week 4 of 2016, LB Sean Weatherspoon was re-signed by the Falcons midway through the season but played in only 2 games for a total of 27 snaps. Signed from the Browns PS in mid-November, Terrence Magee (#25 in photo on right above, blocking on a return by Roberts in Week 12) also appeared in 2 games, playing just 15 snaps, all on special teams.
After playing with the Falcons for 12 years, in the last 7 of which he had dreads, FA DT Jonathan Babineaux was not re-signed. Also not re-signed, sadly, was LB Philip Wheeler, who during his 9 NFL seasons always had his super long dreads flowing at full blast. I can't help but think that if the Falcons had brought him back that this proliferation of reduced dreads wouldn't have happened. Wheeler wouldn't have allowed it.
The Falcons also lost the very long dreads of CB Jalen Collins. In 2016 the Falcons welcomed Collins back after his 4-game (PED) suspension, and he played well, helping lessen the lost of Trufant. But after getting busted for a PED violation again this year, the Falcons released him immediately after his 10-game suspension ended. It'll be interesting to see if anybody else signs him for next season. Nobody did this year.
I had thought that Vic Beasley had his hair in beginner dreads when he entered the NFL in 2015 and that as they grew longer they looked liked braids only because he always had them reduced. But sometime between then and now he changed, because clearly his hair is just in braids now; and needless to say he's not welcome in the house anymore. Neither is Julio Jones, of course, who had his hair in dreads for a handful of games, as usual.
Cut at the end of TC, TE Joshua Perkins was signed to the PS; but after a month he got injured and was moved to PS IR, where he stayed until being released in January. G Marquis Lucas, signed as a FA after summer minicamp, was let go midway through the preseason. Undrafted rookies Jack Lynn and Jordan Moore were cut at the end of TC.
ROSTER
DE ADRIAN CLAYBORN
RB DEVONTA FREEMAN
DE MARTIN IFEDI (IR)
LB KEMAL ISHMAEL
RB TERRENCE MAGEE
CB Leon McFadden
DE TAKKARIST McKINLEY
DT DONTARI POE
WR ANDRE ROBERTS
CB DESMOND TRUFANT
DE COURTNEY UPSHAW
LB Sean Weatherspoon
GRADE: B+ ..... (This should have been an easy A; but with so many dreads reduced, I can't bring myself to award an A.)
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CAROLINA PANTHERS
When Shaq Thompson's dreads disappeared from sight sometime between the end of last season and the start of this season, at first I thought he had cut them off. But it turns out he made the nearly-as-bad choice to keep them reduced permanently. That made them short enough to just barely be visible outside of his helmet (photo on right below, from Week 7 this season), whereas they used to be easily visible (photo on left below, from Week 17 of 2016). On the field Thompson started 14 games (missing two with a foot injury) and totaled 61 tackles (41-20), 6 TFL, 2 sacks, 1 PBU and 2 FF.
When Julius Peppers got his dreads started at age 35 (in 2015, when he was with the Packers), I didn't think he'd still be around when they got long enough to be seen. But I was wrong. They were already just long enough this year (photo on left below). Back with the Panthers (who drafted him in the 1st round in 2002) for the first time since 2009, Peppers showed he is still good at rushing the passer. In 16 games (5 starts, 31 snaps per game) he finished tied for the team lead with 11 sacks and also had 2 FF and 2 FR. He was the only player with dreads on the team to play all 16 games.
Vernon Butler (photo on right below) appeared in 14 games in his 1st season with dreads and had 13 tackles as a reserve (21 snaps per game) D-lineman.
With the longest dreads on the team, Dezmen Southward was on the PS for practically the entire season. But he did get into the Week 5 game at Detroit for 11 snaps on special teams, and that was enough to make him eligible for me to name him as the NFC South player with the best dreads (photo on left below, from TC practice on Aug. 7).
Only 4 players with dreads played for the Panthers on defense this year, and there were even fewer on offense, as two players combined to appear in 17 games. Kelvin Benjamin didn't exactly endear himself to the coaching staff when he showed up for offseason OTA practice seriously overweight. Then after scoring only 2 TD and averaging 4 receptions per game over the first half of the regular season, the team decided to go in another direction at the WR position. Even absent for the last 8 games after being traded to the Bills, Benjamin (photo on right below, from Week 3) still finished 3rd on the team with 475 yards receiving.
A week before Benjamin exited, Kaelin Clay entered, or should I say, re-entered. Ironically Clay also was traded to the Bills, right before the regular season began. But after doing very little in Buffalo, he was let go, and the Panthers got him back on waivers. In 9 games for Carolina Kaelin continued to show that he is a dangerous threat on punt returns. His only TD of the season was on a 60-yard punt return in the 4th quarter (photo on left below) that helped the Panthers beat the Jets in Week 12. But on 176 snaps on offense he touched the ball only 7 times. He picked up 84 total yards and 5 first downs on those touches; but it wasn't until the playoff game at New Orleans that he showed that he might be able to contribute big things on offense in the seasons ahead. If you include only players who appeared in more than 1 game, Clay would take honors for longest dreads on the team.
Undrafted rookie Cole Luke (photo on right below, from TC practice on Aug. 6) made the team but then spent all season on IR after injuring his ankle either in the final preseason game or in practice the week before the regular season opener.
Cut at the end of TC, undrafted rookie Austin Duke was on the PS for 5 weeks early in the season before being let go - before being brought back to the PS just before the season ended. Cut at the end of TC because he was injured, Zack Sanchez and the 2nd edition of his dreads (photo below, from preseason Week 3) were signed to the PS in Week 7 and remained there the rest of the season.
After playing 10 NFL seasons (the final one with the Panthers in 2016) - all 10 with dreads and during which he missed a total of only 6 games and had 25 interceptions - FA S Michael Griffin was not re-signed; and neither was FA S Tre Boston. Struggling to recover from a knee injury, DE Ryan Delaire was released just before TC began. Injured early in TC, S Travell Dixon and his very long dreads were released on Aug. 10. OT Tyrus Thompson was let go two days later. G Chris Scott, another player with really long dreads, was released after Week 1 after suffering a concussion in the final preseason game. Signed to the PS after being released by the Vikings, rookie TE Bucky Hodges hung around until the end of October before the Panthers let him go too.
ROSTER
DT Vernon Butler
WR KAELIN CLAY
WR Austin Duke (PS)
CB COLE LUKE (IR)
DE JULIUS PEPPERS
CB ZACK SANCHEZ (PS)
S DEZMEN SOUTHWARD (PS)
LB Shaq Thompson
GRADE: D+
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NEW ORLEANS SAINTS
It seems the longer Cameron Jordan's dreads get, the better he gets as a player. In his 3rd season with dreads not only did he go to the Pro Bowl for the 2nd time in those three seasons (3rd time overall) he was named 1st team All-Pro for the first time. That means that the people who vote for this (people who are supposed to know) thought Jordan was one of the two best DEs in the entire league in 2017. And his stats certainly show why they did - 18 TFL, a career high 13 sacks, a career high 10 PBU, and 2 FF. He even scored a TD, the 1st of his career, intercepting a Matthew Stafford pass behind the line of scrimmage and in the end zone in the Week 6 win over the Lions. Cameron also kept alive his record of perfect attendance, playing all 16 games for the 7th season in a row.
The rest of the Saints' players with dreads followed Jordan's lead - I mean, the perfect attendance part not the 1st team All-Pro part. None of the 5 players with dreads (including Jordan) who were with the team all season missed a single game to injury. Starting every game alongside Jordan on the D-line was Tyeler Davison (photo on left above), who finished with 31 tackles, 3 TFL, 1 PBU, and 2 FF in 588 snaps (400 fewer than Jordan). DeVante Harris (photo on right above), with dreads long enough to be just barely visible outside of his helmet, appeared in the first 11 games, finishing with 18 tackles and 2 PBU. But in that 11th game he played so poorly in the loss to the Rams that he was released before the next one, and then immediately signed to the PS for the rest of the season.
Of the three RBs with dreads with the team during TC, only Travaris Cadet didn't make the team. He was cut at the end of TC but later found a home with the Bills. The two who made the team were rookies. 3rd round draft pick Alvin Kamara was stellar, and undrafted Trey Edmunds played well too (when given the chance).
As great a season as Jordan had, I couldn't give him my vote for best player with dreads in the division. That's how stellar Kamara was. Thanks to Alvin, the Saints improved from 17th place (tied) last season to 5th place this year in touchdowns by players with dreads. Kamara (celebrating his Week 8 TD vs. the Bears in photo on left above and on the bench taking oxygen alongside sidekick, Mark Ingram, in Week 17 in photo on right above) was supposed to be good, but he was even better than advertised. In earning the league's offensive rookie of the year award Alvin racked up 1,554 total yards (7.7 yards per touch), 13 TD, and 78 1st downs. He was outstanding on kickoff returns too, taking one to the house at Tampa in Week 17.
As mentioned in my Week 18 report ..... When Tony McDaniel showed up with dreads longer than anybody else's on the team after being signed as a FA in late December, his teammates probably didn't recognize him at first. That's because he didn't have dreads when he was with them in TC and later, when he played 4 games (Weeks 7-10) for the 49ers. Back then he was letting his hair grow, apparently trying to get it long enough to start some beginner dreads. After he got those started, evidently he attached some long extensions to them; and I wonder if he used the same locks he cut off 6 years ago, following the 2011 season while he was with the Dolphins. If so, he could have saved himself a lot of trouble if he had never cut those dreads off in the first place. McDaniel (photo at bottom) played 31 snaps (and had 3 tackles) in Week 17 vs. the Buccaneers but then ended up on IR after injuring his ankle the next week in the playoff win over the Panthers.
I didn't try very hard, but I couldn't find out definitively whether WR Brandon Coleman has his hair in braids or in dreads. I may welcome him to the house next season, but I want to wait and a get a better look at him before I do. After three injury-filled seasons with the Saints, LB Dannell Ellerbe was let go. This year he was already injured (foot) before TC began, and the team decided not to wait for him to get healthy, cutting him just before the end of TC. After spending all of his 2016 rookie season on NFI due to a knee injury he suffered during his pro day, OT Avery Young was not brought back, cut near the end of February. FA CB B.W. Webb was not re-signed. S Robenson Therezie, claimed from waivers near the end of 2016, was cut midway through TC. DE Darryl Tapp was cut at the end of TC then brought back after Week 2; but 3 days later the Saints decided they didn't need him after all and let him go again, this time for good.
ROSTER
DT TYELER DAVISON
RB TREY EDMUNDS
CB DeVANTE HARRIS (PS)
DE CAMERON JORDAN
RB ALVIN KAMARA
DT TONY McDANIEL (IR)
GRADE: C+
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TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS
Like the Saints, the Buccaneers have an outstanding, Pro Bowl D-lineman with dreads; but that's pretty much where the similarity ends. In fact, if Jacquizz Rodgers hadn't scored against the Bears in the season opener (in Week 2), the Bucs would have join Dallas on the list of disappointing teams to end 2017 with no touchdowns and no interceptions by players with dreads.
There were no INT by players in dreads in part because Vernon Hargreaves (photo above on left) followed his decent rookie season in 2016 with a crummy one this year. He had 42 tackles and 5 PBU in 9 games. After suffering a hamstring injury in Week 10, he missed the next 5 games before the team put him on IR for the last 2 weeks. After 3 seasons of being confined inside his helmet, Hargreaves dreads should be long enough to be seen next season.
After being cut by the Broncos at the end of TC, veteran T.J. Ward (photo on right above) signed with the Buccaneers but could not find happiness in his 2nd season with dreads. He missed 4 games due to injuries and was on the field for only 34 snaps per game in the 12 games he played, finishing with 43 tackles, 3 PBU, and 1 FR. Like Hargreaves', Ward's dreads were too short to be seen with his helmet on. Hopefully he'll still be in the league when they do get long enough; but after 8 years in the league, Ward is closing in on the finish line of his career.
The only player with dreads on the defense whose dreads you can see was Will Clarke, whom the Buccaneers picked up immediately after the Bengals let him go at the end of TC. Clarke finished with 2.5 sacks (he celebrates his Week 10 sack vs. the Jets in photo on left below) in 15 games as a reserve D-lineman while also playing a lot of snaps on special teams.
DE Darryl Tapp (photo on right below, from Week 11) was signed as a FA near the end of October and had 1 sack in 3 games before being released for the 3rd time this season.
After leading the team with 560 yards rushing (4.3 per carry) in 2016, Rodgers started just 4 times this season and got only half as many carries as last year; and his numbers dropped to 244 yards rushing (3.8 per carry), 9 catches for 74 yards, 15 1st downs, and the 1 TD in 16 games. He also averaged 23.2 on 11 kickoff returns. And for most of the season Jacquizz was a close second to Clarke for longest dreads on the team (photo on left below). Cut at the end of TC and then signed to the PS, Freddie Martino was added to the 53-man roster in November and starred on special teams during the second half of the season. Playing his 2nd season with dreads, Martino (photo on right below) had 7 tackles on the 115 special teams snaps he played in 8 games. He also had 5 catches (4 for 1st downs) for 96 yards in 64 snaps on offense. Hopefully that shows he's ready for an increased role on offense in the future. We'll see.
Recovered from the leg he injured during the preseason while he was with the Giants, Adam Gettis signed with the Buccaneers in Week 16 and instantly became the player with the longest dreads on the team. Of course, that would've been true had he signed with most of the other teams as well. But Gettis, whom I ranked at #8 in my 2015 countdown of the players with the longest dreads in the league, didn't play in the final 2 games of the season. Hopefully we'll be seeing those dreads on the field during games next year, not just in practice (photo at bottom).
The same day they signed Gettis, the Bucs added another O-lineman with dreads to the roster, signing Avery Young to the PS. Plagued by injury, Young has not played yet in his first 2 seasons in the league. But the Bucs were one of three teams that took a look at him this season, so there still is hope can could have a successful NFL career.
After the Falcons let him go, G Marquis Lucas signed with the Buccaneers but was cut at the end of TC but then immediately signed to the PS. But 3 days later he was moved to PS IR and then released a month later. Before he ended up with the Redskins, rookie RB Dare Ogunbowale was with the Bucs for about a week on the PS. Signed as a FA during the offseason, S J.J. Wilcox was traded to the Steelers at the end of TC (on the same day Ward was signed). Signed as a FA at the start of TC, S Marqueston Huff didn't make the team. He was cut at the end of TC, as were WR Derel Walker, WR Donteea Dye, and C Josh Allen.
ROSTER
DE WILL CLARKE
G ADAM GETTIS
CB Vernon Hargreaves (IR)
WR Freddie Martino
DT Gerald McCoy
RB JACQUIZZ RODGERS
S T.J. Ward
OT AVERY YOUNG (PS)
GRADE: C
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DG
1. Practice for the Pro Bowl gets underway with fun and games on Wednesday, Jan. 24, and Packers WR Davante Adams has his dreads reduced (for some reason) for the festivities. Adams participates in the Pro Bowl Skills Showdown, competing in the Best Hands event (left photo) and Dodgeball (right photo). Adams finished 2nd in the Best Hands event, making the 13 required catches in a time of 1:16.2, about 14 seconds slower than WR Michael Thomas of the Saints.
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2. After being tagged by Broncos LB Von Miller, Chiefs RB Kareem Hunt begins the final leg of the Gridiron Gauntlet relay for the AFC (left photo), another event in the Skills Showdown. Hunt finishes his 40-yard dash with a headfirst dive into the brick wall (right photo). Well, not quite. Those "bricks" were as soft as pillows. The AFC finished in a time of 1:00.6 then sat back and watched the NFC do it 10 seconds faster: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCVLMQ4hDPw
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4. If the Buccaneers ever need an emergency kicker in any of their games, I guess they won't be calling on Gerald McCoy, will they? In practice on Jan. 25 McCoy attempts a kick and puts in just a little bit outside. Thankfully Gerald is much better at his regular job as a DT. Three days later he had 3 tackles (2-1) during the game, which were the most by any NFC player with dreads.
Mostly I added these photos to show you that McCoy, as he did for most of the season, had his dreads reduced for all of Pro Bowl week. And that kind of aggravates me because, as you saw in the dreads focus section, his dreads aren't long enough yet to hinder him at all, so it's kind of pointless for him to keep them reduced.
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7. Gameday now, and DE Demarcus Lawrence of the Cowboys unfortunately has his dreads reduced for it. Lawrence evidently is so thrilled to be in the Pro Bowl for the first time that he doesn't want to miss a thing, taking a selfie as he comes onto the field during the pregame player introductions and then getting a picture of Falcons LB Deion Jones on the sideline before the game. Cardinals DE Chandler Jones also seems to be preoccupied with what's on his phone too. And folks, this is why the NFL doesn't allow phones on the sidelines during real games. Otherwise everyone would be more interested in playing with their phones than playing the game.
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8. After having them reduced earlier in the week, Davante Adams has his dreads right for his 1st Pro Bowl, as he is introduced (left) and as he meets up before the game with and old friend, Lions G T.J. Lang, who played with the Packers for the first 8 seasons of his career before signing with the Lions this season.
Adams had an uneventful 1st Pro Bowl. He finished with 0 receptions and had no chance to catch the only two passes thrown to him.
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With his dreads peeking out from under his helmet a bit, Hill decides to return the first (and only) punt of the game early in the 2nd quarter during a heavy rain shower. After not catching the ball on the fly at the AFC 40-yard line, Tyreek tries to field the ball on the bounce; but just as he is about to finally get a handle on it, he's hit by Buccaneers LB Kwon Alexander at the 28-yard line, and it flies away. The NFC recovered at the 21 and kicked a FG 4 plays later to up their lead to 10-3.
Hill was able to hold onto the ball the only other time he touched it, finishing with 1 catch for 18 yards.
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Earlier in the 2nd quarter on his 1st tackle of the game he sacked Saints QB Drew Brees, which was the only sack by a player with dreads. And his final tackle of the afternoon was a stop of Mark Ingram (no relation) in the 3rd quarter.
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15. Two plays later Melvin Ingram is a spectator as RB Alvin Kamara is wrapped up by Ravens LB Terrell Suggs at the AFC 42-yard line after catching a pass for an 8-yard gain on 1st and 10. The drive ended 6 plays later with a FG on the final play of the half as the NFC upped their lead to 20-3.
Kamara finished with 13 yards rushing on 4 carries and 4 catches for 36 yards.
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16. Colts WR T.Y. Hilton had the longest dreads of anybody in uniform, and he had the best performance by any player with dreads. After a quiet 1st half, Hilton had a very loud 2nd half, starting with the third play of the half. On 2nd and 9 T.Y. bobbles the ball but makes his 1st reception of the game, running left to right over the middle at the NFC 44-yard line .....
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Two plays later the AFC scored their 1st TD of the game to pull within 20-10.
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19. ..... As Vikings S Harrison Smith arrives too late to help, Hilton plays the ball better than Peterson and gets in front of him to make the leaping catch at the 2-yard line .....
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If you have a couple extra minutes, here is a video featuring T.Y.'s first 3 catches in the game: http://www.colts.com/videos/videos/TY-Hilton-Highlights--Pro-Bowl-2018/8cca1741-b2d4-454c-8c2a-9c5747f75dd0
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And now .....
Introducing the players I picked for the 2017 NFL All-Pro with dreads team. We'll take a look at them now in the rest of the photos in the DG section. To make the team (and I just kind of made up the rules as I went along) you (simply) had to have dreads, no matter how long or short, for the whole season and appear in at least 1 game during the regular season and (not so simply) be among the very best (top 2) players with dreads at your position (this season only). Among the eligible are players who finished the season on IR (just as long as they played at least one game before they went on IR).
I'm going to pick the team similar to, but not exactly, the way the AP picks their All-Pro team. I'll have 11 players on offense (2 OT, 2 G, 1 C, 1 TE, 2 WR, 2 RB, and 1 QB), 11 on defense (2 DE, 2 DT, 3 LB, 2 CB, 2 S), and rounding out the 24-man team will be one kickoff returner and one punt returner.
Again this year, the same as when I've done lists of all-star teams of players with dreads in the past, the defense is the strength of the 2017 team. They would be able to hold their own against any offense. But the offense, due to the small number of O-linemen with dreads and the non-existence of any quarterbacks with dreads, would struggle to score, even with all the great RBs and WRs.
This year I'm not totally in the dark about some of the choices at some of the positions. I used a series of articles from Bleacher Report, which ranked all the players in the league by position, to guide me along. But for the most part, I went with the players with the best stats.
So, without any further delay, away we go .....
25. Leading off the All-Pro with dreads teams are the two offensive tackles, both of whom wear #72 and play for teams in the AFC West. The O-line may be the second weakest link on the team, but at least we have a legitimately good player at the all-important left OT position. Donald Penn of the Raiders (right photo) would have played in the Pro Bowl for the 2nd season in a row had he not suffered a foot injury in Week 15. At right OT Joe Barksdale of the Chargers (left photo) also battled a foot injury this season. He was on the injury report for 10 of the 16 games but toughed it out and managed to start 11 games.
There are stats kept for O-linemen, but they're only available online on websites where you have to pay for them; so you won't be seeing any of them in this blog anytime soon.
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DEMETRIUS HARRIS (2017): 16 games (7 starts) - 18 receptions (35 targets) for 224 yards (12.4 yards per catch average), 11 first downs, 1 touchdown
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DeANDRE HOPKINS (2017): 15 games (all starts) - 96 receptions (174 targets) for 1,378 yards (14.4), 1 fumble, 69 FD, 13 TD
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TYREEK HILL (2017): 15 games (13 starts) - 75 receptions (105 targets) for 1,183 yards (15.8), 41 FD, 7 TD ...... also .... 17 carries for 59 yards rushing (3.5 yards per carry average) and 3 FD, and 25 punt returns for 204 yards (8.2 yards per return average), 2 fumbles and 1 TD
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TODD GURLEY (2017): 15 games (all starts) - 279 carries for 1,305 yards rushing (4.7), 66 FD, 13 TD ..... also ... 64 receptions (87 targets) for 788 yards (12.3), 32 FD, 6 TD = 2,093 total yards, 19 total TD, 5 fumbles
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KAREEM HUNT (2017): 16 games (all starts) - 272 carries for 1,327 yards (4.9), 60 FD, 8 TD ..... also ... 53 receptions (63 targets) for 455 yards (8.6), 18 FD, 3 TD = 1,782 total yards, 11 total TD, 1 fumble
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CAMERON JORDAN (2017): 16 games (all starts) - 62 tackles (48-14), 18 TFL, 13 sacks, 10 PBU, 1 INT, 2 FF, 1 TD
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JADEVEON CLOWNEY (2017): 16 games (all starts), 59 tackles (41-18), 21 TFL, 9.5 sacks, 2 PBU, 2 FF, 3 FR, 1 TD
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37. A couple of players with short dreads are the two defensive tackles on the team, and these two rush the passer nearly as well as the two DEs. Akiem Hicks of the Bears and Gerald McCoy of the Buccaneers had 14.5 sacks between them. Hicks is listed as a DE on the Bears team roster, but that's only because they play a 3-4 defense. 3-4 DEs are interior players and would be listed as DTs in a 4-3 system, especially Hicks, who weighs 332 pounds. I'll admit I should have named him as the best player with dreads in the NFC North (in my Week 20 report). The Bleacher Report articles have rated higher than any other defensive player with dreads in the league. But since his performance was mostly overlooked because it didn't help the Bears win much, he didn't get a Pro Bowl nod. McCoy didn't help the Bucs win much either. But since he had already made the Pro Bowl 5 years in a row, he was more well known than Hicks; so he did get another Pro Bowl selection.
AKIEM HICKS (2017): 16 games (all starts) - 54 tackles (39-15), 15 TFL, 8.5 sacks, 2 FR
GERALD McCOY (2017): 15 games (all starts) - 47 tackles (33-14), 13 TFL, 6 sacks, 1 PBU
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38. You can go a lot of different ways in choosing the three best linebackers with dreads in 2017. I settled on two Ravens and a rookie. The two Ravens are pictured here - C.J. Mosley, returning an INT for a TD against Miami in Week 8 (photo on left) and Matthew Judon (#99 in photo on right). Mosley is considered one of the best LBs in the league; so he should be on everybody's list of the top LBs with dreads. I picked Judon mostly because of his great stats.
MATTHEW JUDON (2017): 16 games (12 starts) - 60 tackles (50-10), 17 TFL, 8 sacks, 3 PBU, 2 FF, 1 FR
C.J. MOSLEY (2017): 16 games (all starts) - 132 tackles (96-36), 11 TFL, 1 sack, 6 PBU, 2 INT, 3 FF, 3 FR, 1 TD
REUBEN FOSTER (2017): 10 games (all starts) - 72 tackles (59-13), 7 TFL, 1 PBU
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RICHARD SHERMAN (2017): 9 games (all starts) - 35 tackles (25-10), 1 TFL, 5 PBU, 2 INT, 1 FR
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BRANDON CARR (2017): 16 games (all starts) - 56 tackles (50-6), 2 TFL, 8 PBU, 4 INT
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D.J. SWEARINGER (2017): - 16 games (all starts) - 79 tackles (62-17), 3 TFL, 1 sack, 6 PBU, 4 INT, 1 FF
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MALIK HOOKER (2017): 7 games (6 starts) - 22 tackles (16-6), 1 PBU, 3 INT
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ALVIN KAMARA (2017): - 11 KR for 347 yards (31.5) and 1 TD
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ADAM JONES (2017): 6 PR for 131 yards (21.8)
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So here once again, together are the 2017 All-Pro with dreads team
OT Joe Barksdale (LAC)
OT Donald Penn (OAK)
G Jamon Brown (LAR)
G Trey Hopkins (CIN)
C Deyshawn Bond (IND)
TE Demetrius Harris (KC)
WR Tyreeek Hill (KC)
WR DeAndre Hopkins (HOU)
RB Todd Gurley (LAR)
RB Kareem Hunt (KC)
QB MarQueis Gray (MIA)
DE Jadeveon Clowney (HOU)
DE Cameron Jordan (NO)
DT Akiem Hicks (CHI)
DT Gerald McCoy (TB)
LB Reuben Foster (SF)
LB Matthew Judon (BAL)
LB C.J. Mosley (BAL)
CB Brandon Carr (BAL)
CB Richard Sherman (SEA)
S Malik Hooker (IND)
S D.J. Swearinger (WASH)
KR Alvin Kamara (NO)
PR Adam Jones (CIN)
Next men up (the runners up at each position) .....
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| Tre Boston had 5 INT in 2017 |
DE Melvin Ingram (LAC)
DE Demarcus Lawrence (DAL)
DT Linval Joseph (MIN)
LB Bud Dupree (PIT)
LB Christian Kirksey (CLEV)
CB Janoris Jenkins (NYG)
S Tre Boston (photo on right) (LAC)
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| Larry Fitzgerald: 109 rec. for 1,156 yds., 6 TD in 2017 |
OT Brandon Shell (NYJ)
G James Carpenter (NYJ)
C Demetrius Rhaney (WASH)
WR Larry Fitzgerald (photo on right) (ARIZ)
WR T.Y. Hilton (IND)
RB Alvin Kamara (NO)
KR Cordarrelle Patterson (OAK)
PR Travis Benjamin (LAC)
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