Cowboys Receiver Offers Unique Apologia (for an NFL player) After Walking Off Field Early

Although my upkeep of Club Apologia has been shameful in recent months, as a Packers fan, I just had to take a break from end-of-the-semester tasks to welcome Dallas Cowboys star receiver Dez Bryant to the club. After the Pack rallied from a 26-3 halftime deficit and were 1:21 away from defeating Dallas 37-36 to keep alive their division crown hopes, Bryant walked off the field and to the locker room in AT&T Stadium. As most sports fans know, that's just not done--you stay with your team on the field until the game is over, for a variety of reasons.

Yesterday, Bryant addressed the criticism in the linked video, admitting he was "wrong" but explaining: "I was very emotional. I cried when I got into the locker room. I didn't want to show that stuff on the sideline." While that type of behavior no doubt would have gotten him booted from the Rockford Peaches, I had hoped that we had come farther on the issue of emotion in professional football. Surely, Merlin Olson and Brett Favre had shattered those "no tears" gridiron stereotypes long ago. So come on, Dez, it's 2013--just let it out, man.

Game highlights, including Bryant's walk-off, can be found here. Go Pack!