When word surfaced that Miami Dolphins offensive lineman Jonathan Martin was allegedly forced to pay $15,000 for a team trip to Las Vegas, one person who likely felt no sympathy for the former Stanford star is Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant. During his rookie season, Bryant supposedly had to treat his veteran teammates to a $54,896 dinner.
Bryant was stuck with the massive tab after he refused to carry a veteran teammate’s shoulder pads, so the circumstances were a bit different. However, team owner Jerry Jones indicated earlier this week that Bryant may not have even had to pay it.
“I’ve had to ask a couple of times, a couple of places out here to rethink, let’s say a liquor bill,” Jones said on KRLD-FM on Tuesday morning, via ESPNDallas.com. “They’ve taken a rookie out and hung him with a huge liquor bill.
“I might tell you one of the finest businesses in this town who may have charged one of our rookies too much — well, a lot of money, they just absolutely took it off the bill and gave it to him. When he had an enormous, for any of our standards, charge, that business gave it to him. It was Pappa Steakhouse, to give you an idea. That’s having compassion. It was overdone, and they just decided we’ll make our contribution to the do-right rule here.”
Jones did not mention Bryant by name, but Dez’s supposed hazing took place at the Pappa Bros. Steakhouse. When Jones said he asked a couple of places to “rethink” a liquor bill, he could mean he paid the bill himself or offered some sort of free advertising in exchange. An anonymous Cowboy told ESPNDallas.com’s Calvin Watkins that he heard “Jerry picked it up.”
In reality, this type of stuff happens year in and year out. I don’t think many people are as floored by the Vegas trip Martin supposedly had to pay for as they are by the voicemail Richie Incognito left him.
