Former Cowboys star, Dez Bryant, has returned to the NFL, but this time in a black and gold uniform! Bryant has agreed to a one-year contract with the New Orleans Saints with a salary that has not yet been revealed. Despite leading the NFC South with a strong seven-game win streak, the number of Saints receivers who are consistently producing is underwhelming. Ted Ginn Jr, was placed on injured reserve due to his knee injury and Cameron Meredith hasn’t been reaching expectations from when he was signed to the team as a restricted free agent this past offseason. This excludes Michael Thomas as he is the only Saints Receiver with more than 12 catches this year. Dez Bryant has been on the market since he was released from the Dallas Cowboys last spring when he was due to receive $12.5 million.
In his prime, Bryant was known as one of the biggest offensive threats in the league. Standing at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, He recorded at least 1,200 yards for three seasons straight along with 12 touch downs from 2012 to 2014. Not to mention he has earned Pro Bowl Invites from 2013 to 2016. Unfortunately, his performance as of recent began to decrease due to his previous battles with injuries of his knee and foot. During the 2017 season, he had 69 catches for a total of 838 yards and 6 touchdowns in the 16 games he played. Shortly after Bryant’s release from the Cowboys, comments were made in an interview with Sirius XM Radio from Cowboys’ vice president, Stephen Jones, stating that there was added pressure to the Cowboys quarterback, Dak Prescott, with Bryant and tight end Jason Witten being “in his ear.” Bryant then took to Twitter calling Jerry Jones “clueless” in tweets that were later deleted. Not long after his brief tirade on Twitter, he tweeted that he holds no bitterness or anger towards the Cowboys. Nevertheless, it will be fascinating to see the Saints face the Cowboys at Dallas in week 13 this season.
Bryant will likely be a number two or number three receiver along with rookie Tre’Quan Smith who has 11 catches for 196 yards and 3 touchdowns over the past four games since Ted Ginn Jr was injured. It is uncertain that Bryant will fill the needed role for a slot receiver. He has spent most of his career in Dallas playing on the outside, but he has been playing in the slot in more plays than usual last year.
