3 Cowboys Who Aren't Safe After First Week of Free Agency

2. WR Martavis Bryant

It's easy to forget how promising Martavis Bryant looked early on during his NFL career. The former 2014 fourth-rounder racked up 1,314 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns in his first two seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers before serving a year-long suspension for violating the league's substance abuse policy in 2016.

Unfortunately, Bryant became his worst enemy as the former Clemson Tiger violated the substance policy for a second time in 2018. The South Carolinian was subsequently kicked out of the league, resulting in his playing in the CFL, FCF, NAL, and XFL until he was reinstated by the league in November 2023 before signing with Dallas' practice squad one day later.

But even though the Cowboys brought Bryant back on a future contract this offseason, his spot on the roster is far from safe.

After all, Bryant just turned 32 in December and hasn't played an actual NFL game since 2018 — a year where he averaged a career-low 33.3 receiving yards per game with the then-Oakland Raiders. Even if you look at his 2023 XFL stats for hope, 154 yards without a touchdown on 14 catches across eight games isn't anything to get excited about.

The Cowboys' WR depth isn't anything exciting beyond CeeDee Lamb and Brandin Cooks, and I don't see Bryant being the solution to that issue. Dallas will likely draft a wideout at some point next month and it likely won't take much for the rookie to outperform Bryant in training camp, leaving the veteran pass-catcher needing to look elsewhere to continue his career.