Desmond Bryant or popularly known as Dez Bryant, is an American footballer. He is the wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys that plays in the National Football League or NFL. Dez Bryant is born in Galveston County, Texas. He went to Lufkin High School, and it is where he started playing for the Panthers football team. That kicked off his love for American football. That is why Bryant decided that he will play college football at Oklahoma State University. Bryant gave his best while he was on the team performed well. His talents eventually got noticed, and the Dallas Cowboys drafted him in the first round during the NFL Draft in 2010.

Bryant, later on, signed a contract with the team worth about $10 million. He has been playing for the Dallas Cowboys ever since. Throughout the years, Bryant proved that he is one of the most efficient players in the team. In this article, we are going to know more about the NFL career of Dez Bryant.

Early Life

Dez Bryant was born on November 4, 1988 and he had a rough childhood because he grew up without a father. At some point during his childhood, he moved to Lufkin, Texas, and entered Lufkin High School, where he established an interest in football.

As a junior, Bryant managed to catch 48 passes for 1025 yards as well as 16 touchdowns. Aside from playing football, Bryant also used to compete in track and field; in fact, he became one of the state’s top competitors in the triple jump. And he was also known as a fantastic hurdler.

College Career

When he finished high school, Dez Bryant decided to attend Oklahoma State University. During this time, he signed up to be a member of the Oklahoma State Cowboys football team. Bryant proved that he is a very efficient player. He managed to set a school record for receiving yards in a game when he was still a freshman. Bryant continued to give his best and perform well throughout his years at the university. He managed to finish the 2008 season with 87 receptions for 1,480 yards as well as 19 touchdowns. But, during the 2009 season, Bryant was banned from playing for the rest of the season because he violated an NCAA bylaw.

Professional Career

Dez Bryant garnered a lot of attention because of his legendary playing skills during his collegiate career. That is why he got noticed by the Dallas Cowboys and was immediately signed by the team during the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft. Bryant signed a five-year contract with the team that costs around a whopping $10 million.

Dez Bryant played his first NFL game with a match against the Washington Redskins. During the game, he got eight receptions for 56 yards. He continued to give out his best, and it showed when the team played a game against the New York Giants in October that same year, were caught a total of four passes for 54 yards, and the two of them for touchdowns. Bryant finished his first season with the Dallas Cowboys with 45 receptions for 56 yards as well as six receiving touchdowns. During the first game of the 2011 season, the Dallas Cowboys managed to win against the New York Jets. During that game, Dez Bryant managed to earn three receptions with one touchdown. But, the Dallas Cowboys lost the match with a 27-24 score against the Washington Redskins.

Even if his performance improved significantly during the 2012 season, Bryant suffered from an injury during the second half of the season. That is why at the end of the season, Bryant still managed to score 92 receptions with 1382 yards as well as 12 touchdowns.

During the 2014 season, which happens to be the final year of his contract, Dez Bryant showed everyone that he could play remarkably well. Critics say that the 2014 season was the most productive year of Dez Bryant so far. During this season, he managed to catch 88 passes in 1320 yards with 16 touchdowns. His excellent performance during that season enabled him to be selected for his second Pro-Bowl appearance.

In March 2015, Dez Bryant decided to renew and sign a second contract with the Cowboys, which was worth a whopping $70 million. Bryant suffered from several injuries during that season and only played in nine games during the season. Despite this, Bryant still finished the season with 401 receiving yards as well as three touchdowns.

He continued to give his fantastic football playing skills throughout the 2016 and 2017 seasons, where he finished the 2017 season with 838 yards, 69 receptions, and six touchdowns.