LeBron James is one of the most well-rounded athletes to every play in the NBA. He is one of the greatest players of all time, but he also happens to be built more like Calvin Johnson than Michael Jordan. Because of his physical makeup (6-foot-8, 250 pounds), people love to speculate about whether LeBron could play in the NFL. Dallas Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant thinks there is no question about it.
“That dude is just that talented,” Bryant told ESPNDallas.com on Friday. “I think it would take him probably about a good two weeks to get very acquainted with football, knowing what he’s supposed to do. I think that’s all he’d need with his physical ability.
“I’ve seen a little bit of his highlights from high school. He’s got the hands, he can run the routes, he’s fast enough. He could play in this league if he put it all together.”
LeBron may have been able to run the routes in high school, but making the jump from high school football to the NFL is much more difficult than jumping from high school basketball to the NBA. From a physical standpoint, I don’t doubt he could compete in the NFL with a lot of practice. Learning the plays and being able to separate from NFL cornerbacks would be the issue.
“All he’d need to do is probably work on a little technique,” Bryant said. “It’s not like he’s never played football before. He has played football. I think he’d be a beast in the red zone. I think he could do it. I think he could do it, seriously.”
I’ll agree with that. It would be almost impossible to defend LeBron on a jump ball to the corner of the end zone — no matter who was covering him. Having said that, Warren Sapp thinks he’s too much of a pretty boy to ever play in the NFL. LeBron may be able to run a faster 40-yard dash than this rookie linebacker, but it takes more than just height and strength to succeed in professional football. Plus, it’s never going to happen.
