In the 1990's, pro football schemes are too complicated and sophisticated and the responsibilites too great for a player lacking intelligence. And there Bruce was, the Falcons say, running right when he was supposed to run left, blitzing when he was supposed to drop back into pass coverage. Making tremendous plays, on occasion, in areas of the field where he was not assigned and hurting the defense too much in those instances when he was out of place and did not make the tackle or sack.
The Falcons overlooked a lot with Bruce, but they could not turn the other way when it came to what they viewed as Bruce's lack of understanding of football.
He is 6 feet 5 1/2 inches tall and weighs 255 pounds, and he runs the same 4.53 seconds for the 40-yard sprint that he did as a rookie. One look at Bruce and, no question, he looks like a football player, and a dominant one, too. But this may be all you need to know about how the Falcons viewed Bruce.
From the former Falcon linebacker coach, Chuck Clausen, last November: "He's like a perpetual 5-year-old. You tell him he's not going to be a football player all of his life. He's the kind of guy that nods his head yes and a few days later it's kind of vanished."