Until yesterday Desmond Bryant was a name known only by Raider Nation, football aficionados and talent evaluators around the NFL. Even after the Raiders defensive tackle was arrested in Miami for criminal mischief he was immediately confused with Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant.

Unfortunately Oakland’s Bryant has now made a name for himself in one of the more infamous ways a pro athlete can these days.

As the details of his arrest slowly trickle out (he’s rumored to have arrived at the house of an acquaintance highly intoxicated) the unintentional (or perhaps completely intentional) comedy of his mug shot is now on full display.

Wasting no time in capitalizing on Bryant’s inebriated photo Deadspin has opened the flood gates by declaring open season on the snapshot sure to earn him a spot in the mug shot hall of fame. Already the Photoshop efforts are pouring in as countless interpretations on Bryant’s embarrassing moment are spreading across the net.

Of course this is sadly nothing new for the Raiders as Rolando McClain was also a target of the same Deadspin onslaught when he smiled for the cameras during his arrest. But in the end this is what happens when you get busted and your private moment becomes public property.

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The Miami-Dade Corrections website lists one Desmond Bryant as an in custody inmate. That Bryant has been confirmed as the same Bryant who was an undrafted free agent out of Harvard that has played for the Raiders the last four years and is slated to become a free agent.

No official word on what has occurred but Bryant was arrested for “criminal mischief” whatever that exactly means.

Bryant has become a valued member of the Raiders defensive line filling in for Richard Seymour in 2012 as the future Hall of Fame lineman missed most of the season due to injury. In previous years Bryant has been a key contributor in the line’s rotation while making the occasional start when needed.

Currently he’s slated to hit the free agent market and will no doubt get plenty of offers. Retaining Bryant has got to be among Reggie McKenzie’s top priorities as the Raiders are likely to overhaul most of their D-line this offseason.

Without knowing anything of this situation it is unfair to speculate. That said the league is sure to take action if more comes of this arrest and that could impact Bryant’s value on the open market. NFL general managers will have to weigh the positives and negatives of signing a player that could possibly face suspension to begin the next season.

Despite still being far ahead of how long it used to take teams to get their rookies under contract, the Raiders are among the last teams to get down to business. Today they took their first steps towards getting their new class officially on the roster by signing 5^th round pick Jack Crawford, 6^th rounder Christo Bilukidi and 7^th round pick Nathan Stupar.

For the record Oakland’s entire draft class has been participating in OTAs. So too have men like Desmond Bryant who didn’t officially sign his offer sheet until yesterday. That speaks well of the team mentality Dennis Allen and McKenzie are building.

No matter the time taken in getting around to handling this order of business it’s still much better than in the past. Usually the Raiders were among the best at getting their draftees signed in time for camp (#2 notwithstanding) even though that often meant having rookies sign the same day they reported to training camp.