Bryant’s much-publicized arrest for alleged public intoxication—in which his mugshot went viral online—did not serve to limit the Browns’ interest.

“We looked at everything that we could,” Banner said. “We evaluated his situation, looked at his history and felt very comfortable that he fit the profile of what we were looking for here.”

“I obviously made a mistake,” Bryant added. “I apologize for everything that happened. I feel like I have learned from it and I have moved on from that. I think I have done enough over the years I have been in the league to exhibit that that’s really not the kind of person that I am.”

Chudzinski agreed, saying that the arrest did not reflect Bryant’s true personality.

“Once you get to know Des a little bit, [it becomes clear that] he has a chip on his shoulder,” the coach said. “What he has done with his career is a testament to his hard work. He is a self-made man in that way. Those are the types of guys that we want to have here, that have that type of attitude, that chip on their shoulder to be a great player and to be the best.”

Murphy believes that for newly-affluent defensive lineman, that best is yet to come.

“[Bryant] has improved steadily since he signed a free agent NFL contract,” Murphy wrote. “The bottom line is that he is just reaching his full potential now and in that sense he’s a late bloomer who has yet to plateau.”

--Staff writer Scott A. Sherman can be reached at ssherman13@college.harvard.edu. Follow him on Twitter @Scottasherm.