As far as storylines go, they don’t get much better than Dez Bryant squaring off against the Dallas Cowboys for the first time since his unexpected release back in April 2018. It’s been a long time coming for him and you can bet your bottom dollar he’s anxiously awaiting to take the field Tuesday night against some of his former teammates.
During his eight-year span in Dallas Dez Bryant continuously showed off his first-round talent for the Dallas Cowboys. In 113 games he hauled in 531 passes for 7,459 yards and a franchise-record 73 touchdowns before his release after the 2017 season. He was as dominant as a WR as there was in the league during that time, but that was then and this is now.
After nearly 3 years away from the game the Baltimore Ravens decided to give Dez Bryant a shot at redemption in the hopes the one-time superstar had something left in the tank. The jury still out after just three games on the active roster, but if a breakout game were coming I can almost guarantee he’d love for it to be against Dallas. It’s easy to forget just how good he once was.
Bryant’s four catches for 28 yards in three games with the Baltimore Ravens would seem to suggest he’s just a shadow of his former self. But taking into consideration last week he was playing without starting QB Lamar Jackson and the time it takes to get re-acclimated to the game, I wouldn’t bet against him showing the world he can still be “that guy” against the Cowboys Tuesday night.
Considering he’s 32 years old and so long removed from the game him having a huge game against the Cowboys seems a bit too much to expect. And let’s not forget Baltimore is known as a heavy run oriented offense. That doesn’t exactly scream a lot of opportunities for Dez in the passing game, however, stranger things have happened.
The Cowboys haven’t exactly been shutting down opposing teams in either the running or passing game this year on defense. We’ve seen more than our fair share of players come out of nowhere to have huge games against them and Dez Bryant could very well be the next one. If he gets the opportunity he could be a problem.
The jury is still out as to whether or not Dez Bryant can take flight against the Cowboys or if he’ll have his Ravens wings clipped. One thing is for sure though, it’s going to be really good to see him back in the field regardless of how productive, or not, he is. I don’t know about you, but I’ll be keeping a close eye on the No. 88 in purple all night.
