Dez Bryant Says He Might Return 'Later in the Year' Amid Browns Rumors

The 2018 NFL regular season is just more than one week away, and three-time Pro Bowl receiver Dez Bryant has yet to sign. He's not sweating unemployment, though.

On Monday night, Bryant revealed he is prepared to sit out the start of the season:

He recently visited with the Cleveland Browns, and according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, he declined an offer worth around $5 million in base salary.

Michael Silver of NFL Network reported earlier this week Cleveland remains interested:

After spending the first eight years of his career with the Dallas Cowboys, Bryant was released in April. Given the timing came about a month after free agency had opened, teams around the league had already bolstered their receiving corps or allocated their money elsewhere.

That left Bryant with limited options.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported earlier this offseason that Bryant had a multiyear offer from the Baltimore Ravens but turned it down because he preferred a deal that would allow him to test free agency in 2019:

Bryant, 29, ranks fifth in Cowboys history with 7,459 receiving yards and first with 73 receiving touchdowns. He is coming off a season in which he hauled in 69 catches for 838 yards and six touchdowns.

He's not in his prime—when he posted 1,300-plus yards and double-digit scores in three consecutive seasons from 2012 to 2014—but he's still a useful option.

Bryant made it clear that he felt his release from Dallas was "personal" and that he wanted to remain in the NFC East so he could play the Cowboys twice.