Countdown to Kickoff: Profile on Dallas Cowboys No. 88 Dez Bryant

The Countdown to Kickoff series continues on with a look at Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant who will try to return to his elite status after an injury last season.

There are exactly 88 days until the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers open up the 2016 NFL regular season with a Super Bowl rematch. In the meantime, we at NFL Spin Zone are going to profile a player each day as we countdown the days to kickoff.

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The Countdown to Kickoff series began with a look at number 99 Joey Bosa and has continued on everyday since (check out all of the posts here). There were plenty of strong choices to profile at number 88, including Demaryius Thomas, Jimmy Graham, Greg Olsen and Allen Hurns, but looking at the return from injury of Dez Bryant seemed like the obvious choice.

Fresh off of the single-best season of his career where he caught 88 passes for 1,320 yards and a league-leading 16 touchdowns in 2014, Dez Bryant entered the 2015 season ready to dominate his opponents like usual.

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Unfortunately, Bryant broke a bone in his foot in the first game of the Dallas Cowboys’ regular season against the New York Giants. Bryant quickly under-went surgery and forced his way back on to the field, missing five games before returning to the Cowboys’ line-up quickly with his team at 2-4 on the season.

Bryant was able to quickly get back on the field, but he was no the same guy from 2014. The raw athleticism and physicality was gone, as Bryant limped his way through the rest of the season playing mostly with back-up quarterbacks.

The Cowboys ended shutting down Bryant’s season two weeks early, as he received more work on his broken foot and had a bone spur removed from his ankle. Bryant played in only nine games last season, catching 31 passes for 401 yards and three touchdowns, far and away the worst year of his career.

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Bryant clearly tried to get back on to the field too quickly and it hurt his ability to produce at a high level.

The Cowboys are taking it slow with Bryant right now, but the early signs on his health are positive. With no reason to rush him, the Cowboys will likely continue to play a cautious role with him until training camp begins. Seeing how Bryant looks in camp will be a great indication on how healthy he really will be for camp.

Dez is clearly one of the most gifted wide receivers in the entire NFL. He can make plays on balls in the air that no other wide receiver in the league can even dream of making. Case in point:

However, he certainly looked mortal last season after suffering that foot injury. Those highlight reel catches are certainly in the arsenal, but he did not show that kind of raw ability on the field last season.

An absolute physical freak who will undoubtedly continue to dominate on the field if fully healthy, Bryant’s ability to return from this foot injury will be an extremely important story to watch in 2015.

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Will Dez get back on track, continuing to throw up the X on a consistent basis, or will this foot injury continue to hold back arguably the most naturally gifted receiver of this era of NFL football?

Only time will tell. For now, all we can do is wait and hope for the best.