Toucher & Rich: NBC Dallas' Richie Whitt Not Convinced Dez Bryant Video Exists
BOSTON (CBS) - Internet whispers have turned into a full on roar, but so far nothing substantive has come of it.
A video of Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant that is "five times worse than Ray Rice" is supposedly real and being shopped around.
"There hasn't been this much buzz and mystery around a video in this area since Abraham Zapruder turned his camera toward a certain president from that grassy knoll back in '63," NBC Dallas' Richie Whitt told 98.5 The Sports Hub's Toucher & Rich on Friday.
Everyone is talking about this video, from gossip sites to reputable NFL insiders, so why hasn't it surfaced yet?
Does it even exist? Whitt isn't so sure.
"This is nuts. Is there a video? Who's on it? Who filmed it? You know what? As of right now, with the facts and the evidence that we have, there's not a video. I haven't seen it. I haven't talked to anybody who has seen it. The Lancaster police, who investigated the incident, they didn't even think it was worth looking at," Whitt said with skepticism. "So as of right now we're all chasing video ghosts."
Whitt called into question the journalistic integrity of this story, and doesn't understand why it's still making news. ESPN's Adam Schefter has been working on this story since September. It's almost March. And even Schefter hasn't gotten the scoop.
"Adam Schefter is an award-winning journalist. He's very respected. But isn't this a little embarrassing? I think the local media [in Dallas] has really sunk its teeth into this story for 10 days to two weeks, and it's run its course. We now know where it happened, we know the incident, we know the police came out and we know there's a dead end without the video. Schefter's been working on this since September?" Whitt asked incredulously.
"Unless he's got the video, and an exclusive sit down interview with everybody involved, his reporting is going to take a little dent in his reputation."
Bryant is an unrestricted free agent, and this video -- whether real or imagined -- has given the Dallas Cowboys some pause in issuing him a long-term contract, according to Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio.
But Whitt believes that's a tad overblown. Bryant was offered a sizable contract by the Cowboys in the fall, one he turned down that would've made him a Cowboy for life. In theory, Dallas would've known about this video when offering Bryant this lifetime deal, so add it all up and none of it makes any sense.
Whitt predicts Dallas will use the franchise tag on Dez Bryant on Monday, a deal that will pay him $13 million for one year guaranteed. The rest of us will be waiting for the smoking gun.
Listen below for Whitt's full appearance on Toucher & Rich:
