November 11, 2018 is just a drop in the bucket when it comes to regular years in real life, unless you are an NFL receiver. Then it is almost prehistoric and a lifetime.
That is the last time Martavis Bryant stepped on an NFL field and played in a game. Bryant has made his rounds and been all over the map in just about every league since then: the Canadian Football League, the Indoor Football League, the Fan-Controlled Football League as well as the XFL, all in an attempt to reestablish himself in the league.
The 6-foot-4 Bryant is back in the NFL, although he has a long way to go before appearing in a regular season game. Bryant signed with the Washington Commanders on Tuesday.
Bryant was with Mike Tomlin and catching balls from Ben Roethlisberger with the Pittsburgh Steelers from 2014-17 and was an emerging star, then had his final taste of NFL regular season games with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2018. It would be like a movie if he makes it all the way back from rock bottom and earns a job on the Commanders’ roster.
Washington released place kicker Ramiz Ahmed to make room for Bryant. Coach Dan Quinn was with Bryant in Dallas in 2023 when Bryant was on the Cowboys’ practice squad for less than two months, from November 6 until January 4, when he was released.
Embed from Getty Images“He’s in really good shape and he’s really hungry to prove it,” Quinn said. “He’s been ready for a while, so it’s good to have him here.”
Bryant, like the embattled Josh Gordon before him, had a promising career ravaged by multiple violations of the NFL’s substance abuse policy.
He was banned for the entire 2016 season for violating the policy. In 2018, he was suspended indefinitely for violating the terms of his conditional reinstatement.
Bryant said he did not know if he would be granted another opportunity to play in the NFL, saying he just needed to be prepared, physically and mentally.
“Got to be strong-minded,” Bryant said. “I’ve been through a lot. I don’t give up on myself; I’ve always been a fighter.”
Bryant went from pilar to post in various leagues looking to get back on his feet in the NFL, and was signed by the Dallas Cowboys’ practice squad last year, although he did not appear in a game. Quinn was the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator.
“Martavis has a really cool skill set. He’s got size and length and the ability to use him in the red zone,” Quinn said. “He looks like a linebacker playing wideout from a size standpoint.”
If Bryant can make the roster and appear in a game, it would be a rare feat that will be talked about and chronicled for years to come. It is unusual for a player to go six years between appearing in games. Stories like that of quarterback Doug Flutie, who went from 1990 to 1997 without appearing in an NFL game while he starred in the CFL and winning Gray Cups, do not happen often.
“I’m thankful to be here and super excited. I’ve still got more work to put in. I have to look good,” Bryant said.
Bryant is now a grizzled veteran at 32 years old, but apparently has retained many of the athletic skills at 6-foot-4, 210 pounds that he had scoring 14 touchdowns over his first two NFL seasons before his season-long suspension. After all of his football stops the past few seasons and the long gap since his last NFL regular season game, it would be a heck of a story if Bryant completes his comeback.
