Dez Bryant Desmond Demond Bryant ( born November 4 , 1988 ) is an American football wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League ( NFL ) . He played college football for Oklahoma State University , and earned All - American honors . He was chosen by the Dallas Cowboys number 24 overall in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft . Early years . Bryant was born in Galveston County , Texas , but eventually moved to Lufkin , Texas , where he attended Lufkin High School . As a junior , he caught 48 passes for 1 , 025 yards and 16 touchdowns . Bryant , along with defensive lineman Jamarkus McFarland , led Lufkin to a 14 – 1 record , including an appearance in the 5A Division II state semi - finals , where they lost 46 – 28 to Todd Dodge ' s Southlake Carroll . In his senior year , Bryant had 53 receptions for 1 , 207 yards with 21 touchdowns , and was an All - State selection . Lufkin finished the season 11 – 1 , after losing 38 – 25 to Round Rock in the area round of the playoffs . After the season , Bryant participated in the Offense - Defense All - American Bowl . He was also named an All - American by " Parade " and SuperPrep . Regarded as a four - star recruit by " Rivals . com " , Bryant was listed as the No . 9 wide receiver prospect in the class of 2007 , and the second from Texas behind only Terrence Toliver . Recruited by numerous major programs , including most Big 12 schools , Bryant took official visits to Texas A & M , Oklahoma State , and Texas Tech , before committing to the Cowboys . He was just the fourth " Parade " All - American to sign with OSU since 1985 . College career . Bryant attended Oklahoma State University from 2007 to 2008 and was a member of the Oklahoma State Cowboys football team coached by Mike Gundy . As a freshman in 2007 , he finished second on the team with 43 receptions for 622 yards and 6 touchdowns in 12 games . In a game against the University of Kansas Jayhawks , he set an OSU record for receiving yards in a game by a freshman with 155 . In the 2007 Insight Bowl , he recorded 9 receptions for 117 yards and 2 touchdowns in a 49 – 33 win against the Indiana Hoosiers . Bryant finished the 2008 season for Oklahoma State with 87 receptions for 1 , 480 yards and 19 touchdowns , including 2 punt returns for touchdowns . Bryant was ruled ineligible for the rest of the 2009 season on October 7 for violating an NCAA bylaw . He failed to fully disclose his interaction with Deion Sanders , a former NFL player , to the NCAA . He was considered the best receiver in 2009 and a possible Heisman contender before the suspension . Professional career . 2010 NFL Draft . On November 5 , 2009 , Bryant announced his intentions to enter the 2010 NFL Draft . He was widely believed to be the best wide receiver available in the draft , and was projected as high as the No . 1 pick overall in some mock drafts . Bryant was believed to be targeted by the Denver Broncos ( 11th pick overall ) , who traded their Pro Bowl receiver Brandon Marshall to the Miami Dolphins prior to the draft . If slipping by the Broncos , Bryant was projected to fall no lower than No . 27 to the Dallas Cowboys . Eventually the Cowboys traded their 27th overall pick to the New England Patriots for their 24th overall pick to select Bryant . Dallas Cowboys . 2010 . Bryant was signed by the Cowboys to a contract very similar to that of Vikings wide receiver Percy Harvin ( five years , $ 12 . 05 million , roughly $ 8 . 4 million guaranteed ) on July 22 , 2010 . On July 23 , 2010 , it was announced that Bryant will wear number 88 , the same as Hall of Famer Michael Irvin , and Cowboys legend Drew Pearson . On October 17 , 2010 , Bryant caught his first NFL touchdown catch , on a 31 - yard pass from Tony Romo . The Cowboys ended up losing that game 24 – 21 . In a Monday Night Football game vs . the New York Giants , at Cowboys stadium on October 25 , 2010 , Bryant caught four passes for 54 yards , two of them for TDs , and also returned a punt 93 yards for a touchdown , making the longest Cowboys ' punt return since Dennis Morgan ' s 98 - yard return during the 1974 NFL season . On November 15 , 2010 , Bryant caught 3 passes for 104 yards and 1 touchdown , to become the first Cowboys rookie with a 100 + yard game since Antonio Bryant . During the fourth quarter of the Cowboys ' 38 – 35 victory over the Colts , Bryant went down with a fractured ankle . Indianapolis ' Kavell Conner held onto Bryant ' s leg while tackling him on a kickoff return , and the Cowboys immediately took Bryant to the locker room . He was placed on the injured reserve list and had surgery on the fractured ankle . He left the game with one catch for 14 yards and a 35 . 7 - yard average on three kickoff returns . Bryant finished his rookie season with 45 receptions for 561 yards and 6 receiving touchdowns . 2011 . With the departure of Roy Williams , Bryant won the starting job opposite of Miles Austin . Bryant started the first game of the 2011 season against the New York Jets where he had 3 receptions for 71 yards and a touchdown . Dallas lost the game . Bryant missed the second game of the 2011 season against the San Francisco 49ers due to injury as the Cowboys won their game in overtime . Bryant started his second game of the season against the division rivals and previously undefeated Washington Redskins on a Monday Night Football game . Playing injured , Bryant managed 4 receptions for 63 yards in that game helping his team to a win . In the fourth game of the season against the , at the time , undefeated Detroit Lions , Bryant had 3 receptions for 37 yards , 1 rush for 5 yards and 2 receiving touchdowns in his team ' s loss . His 2 touchdown game marked just the second time in his career with multiple touchdowns in one game . Against the New England Patriots Bryant had 4 receptions for 78 yards in a heartbreaking loss on the road . In Week 7 of the 2011 regular season , the Dallas Cowboys went up against the St . Louis Rams at Cowboys Stadium . In the contest , Bryant had the most productive game of his season this far , hauling in 5 receptions for 90 yards and a touchdown , helping his team to a win . His 5 receptions that game ranked 4th most receptions in a game for his career and his 90 yards were his second most yards in a game of his career . His yardage output of the game also ranked as the most yards in a single game for his 2011 season . Bryant was not officially given the start for the game . Bryant ' s best game of the season was overshadowed by rookie teammate Demarco Murray ' s record - breaking day . The 7th game of the season pinned the 3 – 3 Dallas Cowboys against the 2 – 4 Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Field . Bryant had just 3 receptions for 28 yards in a 34 – 7 loss . The 28 yards gained by Bryant was his lowest total yards in a game for the 2011 season through seven games . The following week , against the Seattle Seahawks , Bryant recorded 4 receptions for 76 yards on 9 targets . Bryant also fumbled and lost the fumble , both for the first time in his career as he was tackled near the opponent ' s 1 - yard line . The Cowboys got the win against the Seahawks 23 – 13 . At the midway point of the season , Bryant had 26 receptions for 443 yards and 4 touchdowns on 6 starts . Similarly , in 2010 at the midway point of the season , Bryant had 38 receptions for 435 and 3 touchdowns on 2 starts . Bryant finished the season with 63 receptions for 928 yards and 9 touchdowns . 2012 . Dez had a good start in the 2012 Season , bringing in 85 yards on only 4 catches ( 21 . 3 YPC / Yards Per Catch average ) in a 24 - 17 win against division rivals , the New York Giants . The next two weeks were shaky at best , as he hauled in only 79 receiving yards on 9 receptions and no touchdowns . Dallas would lose the game in week 2 versus the Seattle Seahawks , and would go on to win in week 3 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers . In the week 4 34 - 18 loss to the Chicago Bears , Dez would have a much better outing than the previous 3 games , as he caught for 105 yards on 8 receptions and no touchdowns . This would mark the 4 straight game of the season without a touchdown , and 0 touchdowns on 21 catches for the third year wideout . After the week 5 bye , Bryant would catch his first and second touchdowns of the season , while also setting his career high of 13 receptions in a crushing week 6 loss to the eventual Super Bowl champions , the Baltimore Ravens . With 32 seconds remaining in the game , Dez caught a touchdown pass from Quarterback Tony Romo to bring the score to 31 - 29 . Following a failed two - point conversion , Dallas would recover a crucial onside - kick to give the offense one last opportunity to win the game . After horrible clock management by the Dallas coaching staff , kicker Dan Bailey would attempt a 51 - yard field goal , but would sail wide left to end the game 31 - 29 . Dez only had 2 catches for 14 yards in the week 7 win against the Carolina Panthers . Throughout September and October , he was being criticized for dropping balls , fumbles or running poor routes , but he started to live up to his potential in a week 8 game against the New York Giants . Dez accumulated 110 yards on only 5 catches ( 22 . 0 YPC average ) , and almost came up with a last minute hail mary touchdown ( it was reversed because his hand was ruled out of bounds ) . Bryant only had one catch for 15 yards against the Atlanta Falcons on the November 14 , 19 - 13 week 9 loss in the Georgia Dome . Although his one catch performance was far from the start of a breakout season , he bounced back in the week 10 win against division rivals , the Philadelphia Eagles to amass 87 yards on only 3 catches and one touchdown . This brings his weeks 9 and 10 performance to 102 yards on 4 receptions ( 25 . 5 YPC average ) and one touchdown . That week 10 performance was the start of a break out season , that was worthy of Pro Bowl consideration . In week 11 against the Cleveland Browns , Bryant had 12 catches for a then career - high 145 yards , breaking his previous personal best of 110 yards during week 8 against the New York Giants . His 12 receptions fell short of his career - high 13 catches during week 6 against the Baltimore Ravens . Despite a week 12 loss against the Washington Redskins , Bryant matched his yardage total from the previous week while adding 2 touchdowns . In weeks 13 , 14 and 15 against the Philadelphia Eagles , Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers , Bryant compiled a total of 207 receiving yards on 14 receptions ( 14 . 8 YPC average ) , and 4 touchdown receptions . This brought his 6 - week scoring total to 8 touchdowns , which helped the team win 5 out of their last 6 games . Against the New Orleans Saints in a week 16 loss , he had the best game of his career up to that point , with nine receptions for a career - high 224 yards ( fourth most in team history ) , two touchdowns and also tying the franchise record for most consecutive games ( 7 ) with at least a touchdown reception , which is shared with Franklin Clarke ( 1961 – 1962 ) , Bob Hayes ( 1965 – 1966 ) and Terrell Owens ( 2007 ) . In the last game of the season , Bryant caught 4 balls thrown his way for 71 yards in the week 17 loss to rival and eventual division champions , the Washington Redskins . Since week 10 and the midway point of the 2012 season , Bryant accumulated 879 yards and 10 touchdowns on 50 receptions ( 17 . 6 YPC average and 5 : 1 touchdown ratio ) . Bryant finished the 2012 season with 92 receptions for 1 , 382 yards ( 15 YPC average ) and 12 touchdowns ; these ranked 10th , 6th and 3rd respectively among all receivers . He suffered from several injuries throughout the second half of the season . He injured his finger in early December , opting to play through the injury for the duration of the season , saying that opponents would " have to break my leg to keep me out . " He left in the fourth quarter of the final game of the season against the Washington Redskins with a back injury . Head Coach Jason Garrett stated after the game that Dez " could barely walk , " with the injury . 2013 . Dez Bryant ' s 2013 season started slow with just 4 receptions for 22 receiving yards in a week 1 victory over the New York Giants . Bryant rebounded with 9 receptions for 141 receiving yards and a touchdown in a Week 2 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs . Though Dez had such an impact in the 17 – 16 loss to the Chiefs , he dropped a deep pass from Tony Romo that surely would have been a game changing touchdown . Over the course of the next two weeks , Bryant had 10 receptions for 119 yards with three touchdowns , in a 31 – 7 win versus the St . Louis Rams and a 30 – 21 loss to the San Diego Chargers . In a Week 5 51 – 48 shootout with the Denver Broncos , Bryant had 6 receptions for 141 receiving yards and two touchdowns . Quarterback Tony Romo would break the Dallas Cowboys single game passing yards record with 506 yards , and throw for 5 touchdowns and one interception , as opposing quarterback Peyton Manning would throw for 414 yards and 4 touchdowns and one interception , giving Manning the first of his sensational season . Although both captains had a turnover each in this game , Romo would be highly criticized for the timing of his , as it happened at his own 24 yard line as he tripped over Pro Bowl left tackle Tyron Smith ' s foot with 2 minutes remaining in the game , and the score tied 48 - 48 . Denver ' s sure - legged kicker , Matt Prater , would go on to kick game winning field goal as time expired . The total of 99 points between the two teams are tied for second most all - time since the AFL - NFL merger in 1970 . Dez could not get things going in the next week , finishing with 5 catches for 36 yards in a week 6 victory over NFC East rivals , the Washington Redskins . In a week 7 blowout win against Nick Foles and the Philadelphia Eagles , Bryant had 110 yards on 8 catches with no touchdowns . After a heartbreaking 31 – 30 loss to the Detroit Lions in week 8 , Bryant would finish with 3 catches for 72 yards and two touchdowns , his 3rd multi - touchdown game of the season . Prior to the game , Dez said in an interview about Lions ' receiver Calvin Johnson , " I believe I can do whatever he can do . I think it ' s just a pride thing . When it comes to football , just being on the field , it ' s a mindset and having a mentality . I honestly believe when I ' m there , I ' ll be feeling like there ' s nothing I can ' t do . Whatever the coaches ask me to do , I ' m going to do it . " Many people around the league took this out of context as Dez was saying he was " better " than " Megatron " is . He then replied with this statement : “ I think a lot of people took it the wrong way , ” Bryant said . “ I don ’ t compare myself with anybody . I think when you get to comparing yourself with others , that ’ s when you start to have a downfall . “ What I was saying was , I can make catches and all of that . Things he can do , I can do . I wasn ’ t saying it as it was just me who was able to do it . I ’ m pretty sure the next guy would say the same exact thing . ” Johnson would go on to have a career day , breaking the single game receiving yards record with 329 yards on 14 catches and one touchdown . Over the next 5 games against the Minnesota Vikings , New Orleans Saints , New York Giants , Oakland Raiders , and Chicago Bears , Dez compiled a total of 267 yards on 25 catches and only two touchdowns ; averaging a mere 5 catches with 53 . 4 yards and 0 . 4 touchdowns per game . In yet another heartbreaking week 15 loss to the Green Bay Packers without Aaron Rodgers , Dez finished with a season high 11 catches for 153 yards with one touchdown . Dallas would go on to lose the game by one point , 37 – 36 , making it the third time this was done in the 2013 Season . TV cameras showed Bryant leaving the field with over a minute left in the game . Bryant would finish the final two games of the season with 12 catches for 172 yards and two touchdowns against division rivals Washington Redskins and Philadelphia Eagles . Dez finished the season with 93 catches and 13 touchdowns ; both career highs , and 1 , 233 yards . These ranked 8th in catches , 13th in yards , and 3rd in touchdowns respectively among all receivers . Bryant would go on to his first Pro Bowl in 4 seasons . Personal . Bryant had a troubled upbringing , born to a fourteen year old mother who was arrested for dealing crack cocaine when he was age eight . He went on to live in eight different homes while at Lufkin High School . Bryant Also has two sons , Zayne , 7 , and Dez Jr . 4 . Bryant was sued in March 2011 for $ 861 , 350 for legal fees and the cost of jewelry he allegedly took without payment . On July 16 , 2012 , Bryant was arrested on a class A misdemeanor domestic violence charge for allegedly striking his biological mother , Angela Bryant . She ultimately didn ' t press charges . On April 4 , 2013 Bryant signed his second major endorsement deal with the Jordan Brand . He made the announcement via his Twitter account . In March 2013 Bryant spoke at an event for Dallas Men Against Abuse .