Ex-Raiders WR’s Comeback From 5-Year Suspension Cut Short

Getty Martavis Bryant, ex-Raiders wide receiver

In trying to come back to the NFL after five years away because of a league suspension, ex-Las Vegas Raiders receiver Martavis Bryant had some hope that he could flash his old potential, if given a chance. He got, at least, a look this fall, though not from the Raiders–instead from the Cowboys, who added him to the team’s practice squad. But he could not get back onto the field, and on Thursday, Dallas cut the former fourth-round pick amid a flurry of roster moves.

Bryant had some hope of redemption after his troubled tenure with the Raiders in 2018. The Raiders traded for him from the Steelers in April 2018, but he was released on September 1 that year when he was initially suspended. The Raiders re-signed him on September 12 after the league allowed him to play during his appeal. Bryant made his Raiders debut that week with four catches for 30 yards.

He played eight games and caught 19 passes for 266 yards for the Raiders before his substance-abuse issues finally pushed the league to suspend him indefinitely. That suspension was lifted in October, and Bryant signed with the Cowboys in November.

Raiders Coach Jon Gruden: ‘White Tiger Came Out Today’

During his short time with the Raiders, Bryant appeared to be the kind of case that the franchise had become known for—taking misbehaving outcasts from other organizations and turning them into productive players who managed to dodge outside punishment.

Jon Gruden, the Raiders coach at the time, spoke about Martavis Bryant as a type of rare beast, who was magnificent when he showed up but could not be counted on to show up consistently.

“You go 12 times or 13 times (to the zoo), the white tiger was always in his cage. But the white tiger came out today,” Gruden said after a good practice from the enigmatic Raiders receiver. “Martavis Bryant came out. I don’t know if you get that analogy but sometimes he comes out to play and sometimes he doesn’t. It’s good to see him because he’s really special, like the white tiger.”

And he might have come out a bit in his return to the NFL, if he’d been given a shot. But Dallas has CeeDee Lamb, Michael Gallup and Brandin Cooks at receiver, with young Jalen Tolbert behind them. The Cowboys stayed healthy in the receiver corps, and Bryant never got a chance to take the field.

Martavis Bryant Went to ‘Really Dark Places’

Still, it is easy to root for Martavis Bryant, as an ex-Raiders player and as a human being, to get another chance. He is 31 now, and though he says he has not lost a step, his chances of playing again have almost run up. He acknowledged the mistakes of his past and worked hard to get sober and get back to football.

Bryant said that his time away from the NFL was difficult. He struggled with his mental health.

“(I went) to places you can’t even imagine, man, some really dark places and times. I really would not like to talk about it, you know, because I worked so hard to get through those moments. But it was a dark time for me.”

Bryant played in the Arena League and in the XFL to get himself ready for a return to the league. He also had to convince Roger Goodell’s office that he was ready to be in the NFL again.

“First off, it started with the NFL, I had to go through six months of testing, you know, counselors, doing a lot of things they asked me to do,” Bryant said. “My agent reached out to a lot of teams, let them know I was gonna be reinstated soon. And Dallas was interested.”

They were, at least. Until Thursday.