Tight end Dae'Quan Wright stirred up some controversy last week when he went from NFL training camp to NCAA's transfer portal, becoming the first active player to do so. The former Ole Miss player went undrafted, signed with the Philadelphia Eagles first and was a member of the Cleveland Browns practice squad, participating in training camp and dressing for a preseason game, although sidelined due to an apparent injury.
Wright was then waived by Cleveland on Aug. 24. The NFL rookie already has his next spot, with an agreement in place at LSU if he clears waivers. It's believed he would be the first ex-NFL player to go back to play college football.
The move is one not everyone agrees with.
Former NFL running back and two-time CFB national champion Damien Harris had strong words about the situation, calling it "embarrassing" and "elementary."
"This isn't the type of history that you want to be making. And to be honest, I'm going to be very candid, I think this is embarrassing," the former Alabama running back said to CBS Sports. "To go through an NFL training camp, go through the process of being selected or being signed as an undrafted free agent, going through the preseason, playing preseason football, playing NFL football and then returning to college and taking up a roster spot from somebody who is deserving of their time there, I think that this is very elementary."
The 22-year-old will likely not be the only one to attempt to go back to college after time in the NFL. A new NCAA rule gives most Division I athletes five years of eligibility over five years, but the two-month-old rule didn't include Wright and doesn't take effect until next season. Wright, along with a group of other athletes, filed a lawsuit in Louisiana and were granted a temporary restraining order to return to college for one more year.
"I know that there … are a lot of different things going on in college football to where the players have the control and they're doing exactly what they want with it and this is an exact example of that," Harris said.
The former New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills back continued to say if he was in a front office, the move would impact how he made decisions regarding the player in the future.
"If I'm an NFL GM and I'm looking at guys like this who could potentially be coming out next year, these aren't guys I want to draft, because I don't know how competitive they are. I don't know how much they love football. I don't know how hard they're willing to work in order to prove themselves on a football team and earn their spot. I can't guarantee that a guy like this is a guy I'd build a program around," Harris said.
Overall, Harris called it "bush league," noting that this is what he feels the college football and NCAA "landscape has become" over the last few years.
"... Athletes are trying to finesse the system of both college and NFL I think it's very elementary," Harris added.
Browns head coach Todd Monken seemingly felt similarly, saying, "Man, isn't this shit crazy? I don't even know what to say," when asked about Wright.
"I wondered why Lane Kiffin reached out to me a week ago; now I know. I didn't call him back. I guess I should have," Monken added.
Wright had 113 passes for 1,603 yards in his time with Virginia Tech and Ole Miss.
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