By Anthony Cardone
On Friday morning, Dez Bryant was released by the Dallas Cowboys. Spending his eight-year career so far in Dallas, Bryant was an icon to the team, but not worth his contracted $16.5 million dollars.
In the past few years, Bryant has shown signs of injuries and missed multiple games, which has caused his numbers to plummet from his previous Pro Bowl-caliber season. Only scoring 17 touchdowns in the last three seasons isn’t going to cut it after having scored 41 touchdowns in the three before that.
Bryant has been a fan favorite for the Cowboys, with his signature move of throwing up his arms to form an X whenever he scores a touchdown. Now, they’ve x’ed him out to save almost 17 million dollars in cap space, but that doesn’t rule out the chance that he could re-sign.
Over the years, Bryant has been the deemed a “Hot Head.” Whether it was altercations with referees, Head Coach Jason Garrett or even owner Jerry Jones, Bryant always seemed to be on the wrong side of things.
And even though it doesn’t fall in the same category, he is also at the center of one of the more brutal losses in Cowboys’ history. Everyone remembers the game against the Packers in 2014, where it was controversially ruled that Bryant dropped what appeared to be a crucial touchdown. Now known as “Dez caught it,” he’s almost more identifiable as a walking meme than a Pro Bowl wide receiver.
So, what’s next for Dallas? What’s next for Bryant? He reportedly said he would love to be in the same division as the Cowboys.
“It’s a sure possibility.” said Bryant. He hasn’t named any teams, but he wants to play Dallas twice a year, which would certainly be intriguing revenge games. The team that seems to be the best fit right now in that division is Washington. Washington has a new quarterback in Alex Smith, and a top receiver like Bryant could help the team make some noise in a crowded division after finishing third last year.
The Giants are dealing with their own receiver drama with Odell Beckham Jr., seemingly making them a bad fit for Bryany. Add having all that money with Bryant, Beckham and the pricey Brandon Marshall and it would be too much.
The Eagles are second then — in the NFC East at least — by default. Its intriguing to think about Bryant paired up with Alshon Jeffrey and Nelson Agholor.
On the Dallas side, the question is whether the team tries to replace Bryant immediately in the draft. They currently hold the 19th pick in the draft, and there are a number of solid options, like Calvin Ridley from Alabama. As of now, their receivers are Terrance Williams, Cole Beasley Ryan Switzer and newly-signed former Jaguar Allen Hurns.
Honestly, the Cowboys could actually use Bryant back on the team, just at a discount. But would he want to come back or start fresh and get his revenge?
