What a comeback story.
The Washington Commanders have signed receiver Martavis Bryant, who last played in the NFL in 2018 due to an indefinite suspension for drug use. The suspension lasted a total of five years as Bryant was reinstated in 2023.
Bryant was originally with the Pittsburgh Steelers from 2014 to 2017 and was a promising young star. His final stint prior to the suspension was with the Raiders in 2018.
He was suspended for the entire 2016 season for violating the policy. In 2018, he was suspended indefinitely for violating the terms of his conditional reinstatement.
Bryant bounced around various leagues looking to get back in the NFL, and was signed by theĀ Dallas Cowboys’ practice squad last year, although he didn’t appear in a game.
If Bryant can make the roster and appear in a game, it would be a rare case. It’s unusual for a player to go six years between appearing in games. Stories like that of Doug Flutie, who went from 1990 to 1997 without appearing in an NFL game while he starred in the CFL, don’t happen often.
Bryant is 32 years old but apparently has retained many of the athletic skills at 6-foot-4, 210 pounds that he had scoring 14 touchdowns 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.
