Larry Brown Sports

Jason Garrett is changing policy with the Dallas Cowboys when it comes to hazing rookies. “The young guys are part of our team,” Garrett said Sunday, “and they certainly need to get themselves acclimated in a lot of different ways, and our veteran players are in charge of welcoming them to the NFL in a very positive way.”

“There’s not going to be anything demeaning in any way that a rookie has to do. We don’t believe in that.”

Garrett said this was not a response to the Dez Bryant pad-carrying incident that received so much attention last season. He said this is what the staff believes in.

Garrett’s decision is a clear departure from the previous regime. Even though he was the offensive coordinator for the Cowboys since 2007, it was not up to him to issue team-wide policies — that was Wade Phillips’ job. Phillips was known as a players’ coach so it’s no surprise he let them do their thing when it came to hazing.

Even though we enjoy posting goofy haircuts rookies receive from hazing, I respect Jason Garrett’s policy. Rookies are part of the team and the veterans should do their best to make them feel that way.

Hooray! Wide receiver Roy Williams needed something to go right in his life.  Although his post-Lions career has not been much of a success, Williams remains a proud man.  He was never able to develop strong chemistry with Tony Romo in Dallas and now hopes he can produce with Jay Cutler in Chicago.  While in Dallas, he even had trouble finding a rookie to carry his shoulder pads for him.  Fortunately for Roy, that has changed.

According to ESPNChicago.com via Pro Football Talk, Bears rookie Jimmy Young did not hesitate to carry Williams’ shoulders pads when the veteran ordered him to.  Young, an undrafted free agent, said he had a free hand and it “wasn’t a big deal.”  Perhaps the smartest thing Williams did differently this year was prey on an undrafted rookie rather than a first-round pick.

“Oh man, it was lovely,” Williams said. “Hey 19, take my pads. ‘Yes sir.’ There was no, ‘I ain’t got to do this’ — none of that, so it was good.”

I think I speak for everyone when I say congratulations, Roy Williams.  You found a rookie that respects you.  Merely a month after he sued his ex girlfriend to get his engagement ring back, Williams probably needed a boost.  As for Young, he should consider himself lucky he didn’t end up like these poor rookies in Oakland.

NFL rookie hazing, it’s a time honored tradition. Whether it’s carrying pads or getting funky haircuts, rookies being hazed is part of the fabric of football camps everywhere. Except in Jacksonville, where Jack Del Rio banned hazing after rookies received these disturbing haircuts last year. Anyway, the Raiders are the first team to initiate the process with their rookies, at least as far as we know. Check out some of the haircuts they gave their rookies:

Mason Brodine seemed to get it the worst while Joseph Barksdale (far right) seemed to get it the easiest. And so far nobody has received the Friar Tuck look that made Tim Tebow famous. Nice.

Pictures via CSN Bay Area, News 10

With the new media age we live in, items that used to be private business within teams spills out to the public most often via players’ twitter accounts. As a result, we’ve seen the funny haircuts the Patriots, Jaguars, and Broncos all gave to their rookies, not to mention the Cowboys. The worst cut probably was Tim Tebow’s haircut but nothing compares to the evil nonsense the Jags were up to.

The latest team to join the fray is the Oakland Raiders. Safety Tyvon Branch posted some pictures of the haircuts the veterans gave the rookies on his twitter page. With so many teams participating in the practice, it’s hard to find anything too original these days. Regardless, the Raiders found a way to make it happen. The two face look in particular was priceless. Here are some of the others, including first-round pick Rolando McClain:

It would seem that horrible haircuts have emerged as the favorite form of rookie hazing across the NFL over the past couple of weeks.  The first team to grab our attention by butchering rookies was the New England Patriots, but we’ve since stopped feeling bad for the Pats newbies after seeing what the Jaguars veterans have done to their rookies.  Then there was Tim Tebow’s Friar Tuck look, which was original and hilarious in my opinion.

The Broncos weren’t only targeting Tebow, however.  Their other newcomers also got the clippers.  I’m going to say the Patriots rookies got off easy, so let’s take a look at the Jaguars and Broncos to determine who has gotten the worst rookie hazing haircuts so far during training camp.  Granted, the Broncos’ rookies don’t have to deal with haircuts that are in the shapes of male genitalia, but the veterans still managed to do a number on their scalps.  Here are some photos of the Broncos and Jaguars rookie haircuts, courtesy of Busted Coverage:

Who am I kidding? The Jaguars got it way worse.

Source:
Photos: Other Great Denver Broncos Rookie Haircuts Other Than The ‘Tebow Monk’ [Busted Coverage]

We’ve already established that Tim Tebow was a certified pad carrier when it came to NFL rookie hazing, but now we know he also takes whatever they do to him like a champ. Giving rookies jacked up haircuts has become quite the trend amongst hazing rituals, and nothing compares to what the Jaguars did to their rookies. But as we found out via Sports by Brooks through LenDale White’s twitter account, messed up haircuts are the best when they’re administered to star players. Check out a picture of Tim Tebow’s new haircut from the rookie hazing:

Well, if there was one benefit from the Broncos signing LenDale White, this was it. He just earned his pay.

Sources:
Friar Tebow: Denver Rookie Gets Haircut Hazing [Sports by Brooks]
LenDale White on Twitter

Earlier this week, we told you about the Patriots veterans giving rookies bad haircuts as one of their preferred methods of rookie hazing during training camp.  After seeing that, we couldn’t understand what Dez Bryant was so upset about.  Bryant wasn’t asked to carry several sets of pads like Travis Ivey and Tim Tebow, and he got to keep all of his hair.  After seeing the images above, I’ve decided the last place I’d want to be in America over the past week is the Jacksonville Jaguars training camp.

The Jags veterans have taken to shaving shapes of male private parts in the heads of their rookies, among other ridiculous designs.  Here are some pictures of the Jaguars rookies’ shaved heads, courtesy of Busted Coverage via Uche Nwaneri’s Twitter:

Sources:
NFL D*** Haircut Rookie Hazing Photos: Jacksonville Jaguars Vet Uche Nwaneri Can Handle The Shears! [Busted Coverage]
Photo Credit: Uche Nwaneri on Twitter