BREAKING: Dez Bryant COVID Test Means He's Out For Cowboys vs. Ravens
After 12 days of rest, the Dallas Cowboys are back in action on Tuesday night vs. a Baltimore Ravens team in desperation mode. The unexpected rest was because of rescheduling due to COVID-19 issues on the Ravens team.
And now, the anticipation of seeing Dez Bryant in a Ravens uniform opposing his old Cowboys fans is a victim of COVID, too.
Shortly before the game, Bryant tweeted that he was pulled back from warming up to get tested and it came back positive. ... so he has apparently been scratched for the game.
Bryant tweeted this out less than 30 minutes before kickoff.
Dez later wrote: "Yea I’m going to go ahead and call it a quit for the rest of the season... I can’t deal with this.''
So Baltimore, looking to stop a three-game losing skid, will be doing it without Dez. A win vs. Dallas is crucial for the Ravens in order to get an AFC wild-card berth. ... and a win for Dallas maybe just got a tad more possible.
[READ: Is Cowboys QB Dalton A 'Ravens-Killer'?]
The Cowboys’ embarrassing 41-16 Thanksgiving loss to the Washington Football Team didn't end Dallas’ NFC East Division chances, but it certainly didn't help. Dallas is a tick from first place in the division. ... On the other hand, Dallas but is also a tick behind having the No. 3 overall pick in this April's draft.
Before the New York Giants beat the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, the NFC East teams had not beaten a team with a winning record this season.
RECORDS: Dallas Cowboys (3-8) vs. Baltimore Ravens (6-5)
ODDS: The Cowboys opened as 7.5-point underdogs. The over/under is 45 total points. Here is my best bet for the game.
FUN FACT: Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson has never lost a start to an NFC team. Although Jackson is 8-0 straight-up as a starter, he is only 3-5 against-the-spread, including 0-2 ATS against the NFC East this year.
[READ: BREAKING: Ravens QB Lamar Jackson Coming Off COVID, Will Start Vs. Cowboys]
HELLO, OLD FRIEND: Dez Bryant, the Cowboys' all-time leader in touchdown catches (73), was to play his first game against his former team. Bryant was picked up out of retirement by the Ravens two months ago. ... but now he watches.
WHEN: Tuesday, Dec 8, 2020 at 7:05 CT
LOCATION: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore Maryland
TV/RADIO: FOX, 105.3 The Fan
THE FINAL WORD: Bryant on facing the Cowboys, as of a few days ago ...
"I'm excited, I'm looking forward to it. A lot of those guys on that team I know, I'm real good friends with. They're helluva football players. Whenever we line up across from one another, it's going to be fun. Like I said, it's going to be an exciting moment."
Instead, tonight, Dez watches. Along with the rest of us.