Kansas City Chiefs Fans Need To Let Dwayne Bowe Brag

Back in April 2007 we were all sitting in front of the tube on draft day waiting to see who would be the newest Kansas City Chief.  For those of you that had been reading AP back then, Chris' brilliant Mock Draft Tracker overwhelmingly chose Dwayne Bowe as the next Kansas City Chief.

I wasn't particularly excited about the pick.  I saw a 6'2", 220 lb blocking wide receiver.  Ugh, 'How boring is that?', I thought.  History says drafting a wide receiver in the first round, particularly if you're not already a playoff caliber team, is just not a good idea.

Well, to say the least I was wrong.  Bowe went on to have one of the most impressive rookie campaigns.  He gained more yards than all but four of the previous year's top 25 wide receivers in their first year.

Not only was I wrong about Bowe's play on the field but I was also wrong when I called it a boring pick.  He's proven to be anything but boring, which is something I should have known from the start.

Wide receivers, as we've all come to realize, are the divas of the NFL.  Chad Johnson, Terrell Owens and Anquan Boldin are entertaining on the field but also in the media as well.

What makes a wide receiver tend to behave this way?

There have been theories, personality studies and anecdotal evidence that characterize receivers this way. The gist of the modern receiver began to unfold in the early 1980s.

Joe Montana and Bill Walsh orchestrated one of the best offenses in history which for the first time ever emphasized the pass game over the run game.  Walsh discovered that the chances of gaining four yards through the air via short, 3 and 5 step drop passes were just as good, if not better, than on the ground.

A position that normally wasn't the focal point of the offense started to gain more attention at the right time.  The rise of ESPN, lucrative endorsement deals and the overall popularity and success of the NFL are all factors that played into the evolution of a wide receiver into a diva.

But why a diva?

Joel Goldberg, psychologist for the New York Giants, said, "It’s unlike anything else in football. You’re by yourself. You’re not part of the team."

It's true.  Running backs and quarterbacks heavily rely on their offensive counterparts for statistical success.  Wide receivers, on the other hand, are out on an island on their own.  As Goldberg says, they're so far away from the ball it's as if they're not part of the team.

This loner attitude has certainly contributed to the off field circus shows of Ochocinco, Owens and Boldin.  Dwayne Bowe shares the same characteristics as these players.  He hasn't taken it to the level they have but we can see similarities.

Since last Sunday's game I've heard a plethora of comments indicating some sort of put or shut up attitude towards Bowe.  Maybe that's not a good thing, though,  Maybe as a wide receiver he needs to talk to gain motivation. 

In the future just remember that part of Bowe's allure is what we hear in the media.  If he's effectively all alone out there, why not let him gain motivation his way?