Dwayne Bowe Says He’ll Lead The NFL In Receptions, Touchdowns
The D-Bowe Show is back.
Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
As the Kansas City Chiefs enter their second day of OTA practices, WR Dwayne Bowe is already feeling confident. In fact, he’s making some pretty bold predictions.
“Jamaal Charles is going to lead the league in rushing this year,” said Bowe in comments obtained via the Kansas City Star, “and I’m going to lead the league in receptions and touchdowns.”
When former Chiefs GM, Soctt Pioli and former head coach, Todd Haley, arrived in Kansas City in 2009, their first order of business was to get Dwayne Bowe to shut up and behave himself. Haley treated Bowe as if he was an infant, demoting the the WR to the bottom of the depth chart for a portion of the preseason. The thinking, I suppose, was that by putting Bowe in his “place” that the receiver would focus and improve. When Bowe had a career year two seasons later, folks liked to credit Haley’s demotion for the receiver’s success.
Looking back, I don’t think Haley had anything to do with Bowe’s improvement. I don’t think that forcing the receiver to hide from the media and requiring that he refer to himself as “Dwayne” instead of “D-Bowe,” made a lick of difference in his play.
Bowe has always been a talented receiver that sometimes lacks focus and drops the ball. He’s explosive but inconsistent.
Bowe’s successful 2010 season had more to do with then offensive coordinator, Charlie Weis than it did Haley. Weis got the most out of the Chiefs’ offense and because a lot of passes were called in the red zone, Bowe got a lot of touchdowns. But even in 2010, Bowe had a stretch of games where he didn’t perform well. The receiver also vanished in the team’s playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens.
Daywne Bowe will likely become a more consistent player as soon as he gets more consistent play from his QB. “The Show” hasn’t had consistent QB play, not ever, in his entire career. Perhaps his newfound confidence is the result of two days catching the ball from former No. 1 overaal pick, Alex Smith.
I don’t think Andy Reid and John Dorsey care about Dwayne Bowe’s mouth. I think what they care about, is his production on the field.
I don’t care about Dwayne Bowe’s mouth either. In fact, I think it might benefit Bowe to bring back the “D-Bowe Show.” A little swagger can be a good thing for a receiver. Frankly, I want Bowe going out on the field looking to prove he’s the best receiver in the league.
Todd Haley spent the 2010 season telling his players and anyone else that would listen, that his team wasn’t any good, even as they marched steadily toward an AFC West title.
A couple of years later, another young coach by the name of Jim Harbaugh brought his family’s motto to his football team. Growing up, Harbaugh’s father used to ask the family, “who’s got it better than us,” to which his family would respond “nobody.”
From the day Harbaugh arrived in San Francisco, few teams have had it better than the 49ers. The coach arrived with a message that essentially says “you are who you are and you have what it takes.”
Perhaps the young and talented Chiefs, are ready to embrace a similar message under Andy Reid. Despite coming off a 2-14 season, Reid has not said a single negative thing about his new team or even the regime that he and his coaches are replacing. Reid has said that the team is talented and will keep working to get better.
For an offense that couldn’t move the ball at all in 2012, a little confidence might be a good thing. Sure, predictions can sometimes backfire but Bowe wants the best for himself and his teammates.
And I’m not sure there’s anything wrong with that.
Give em’ hell, Dwayne.
Check that.
Give em’ hell, “D-Bowe.”