NFL Teams: Still Asking Prospects Bizarre and Offensive Questions

We’ve all heard the wacky stories about teams in the NBA, NFL and other leagues asking potential draftees strange questions. Maybe asking them about girlfriends -- and then girlfriends their real girlfriends don’t know about. You know, stuff that’s uncomfortable and a little strange. I believe a new bar was set by some NFL team in the line of questioning to former Oklahoma State wide receiver Dez Bryant. Yahoo Sports has the story:↵↵⇥“They asked me if my mom’s a prostitute,” Bryant says, an account that was confirmed by [Bryant’s advisor David] Wells, who attended the meeting. “No, my mom is not a prostitute. I got mad – really mad – but I didn’t show it. I got a lot of questions like that: Does she still do drugs? I sat and answered all of them.”↵⇥↵⇥Bryant’s mother, Angela, had him when she was 15 and conceived his younger sister and brother within the next three years. She reportedly sold drugs, and she served a prison term during Dez’s childhood; at various times he lived with relatives and family friends. Dez and Angela are very close, and she will be with him at Wells’ house for a festive draft party Thursday evening.↵⇥

↵↵Asking most guys if their mom is a prostitute is usually how a butt-kicking story begins, so in some regards I’m impressed by Bryant’s restraint. Bryant also vented to Yahoo’s Michael Silver about his general frustration with the draft process and how he has been consistently dogged -- and in his opinion -- mischaracterized. He won’t be in New York, but he’s definitely one of the most compelling personalities of tonight’s first round.↵