Martavis Bryant

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Martavis Bryant
refer to caption
Bryant with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2016
Edmonton Elks
Position:Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1991-12-20) December 20, 1991 (age 30)
Calhoun Falls, South Carolina
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school:T. L. Hanna
(Anderson, South Carolina)
College:Clemson
NFL Draft:2014 / Round: 4 / Pick: 118
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status:Active
Career NFL statistics as of 2021
Receptions:145
Receiving yards:2,183
Rushing yards:94
Return yards:151
Total touchdowns:18
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Martavis Alexander Bryant[1] (born December 20, 1991) is a Canadian football wide receiver for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Clemson, and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft.

High school career[]

Bryant was born in Calhoun Falls, South Carolina. In high school, Bryant was a standout football player for two schools. He attended Calhoun Falls High School in South Carolina and transferred to T. L. Hanna High School in Anderson, South Carolina prior to his senior year because Calhoun Falls High was shut down due to low student numbers from a small town.[2][3] He was named first-team all-state as a senior recording 70 receptions for 722 yards and 11 touchdowns. He had 44 catches for 776 yards and six touchdowns as a junior.

Considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, he was rated the 10th best wide receiver prospect in the nation.[4] After high school, he spent one year at Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham, Virginia to pass NCAA initial eligibility standards[5]

As a standout sprinter, Bryant ran for the T. L. Hanna track team. He finished 2nd in the 100 meters at the Regional Class 1 AAAA championships, with a time of 10.85 seconds. He also won the 200 meters at the 2010 Region 1-4A Meet, recording a personal-best time of 21.46 seconds.[6]

College career[]

Freshman season[]

Bryant began attending Clemson University in 2011. Coming into Clemson, he had to compete with future NFL players, Sammy Watkins, DeAndre Hopkins, and Jaron Brown.[7] His first reception was for 54 yards against Troy on September 3.[8] The next week, he had his first career touchdown, a 42-yard reception while playing Wofford.[9] His first career start was against No. 10 Virginia Tech on October 1, 2011. He also played in his first bowl game, against No. 22 West Virginia in the Orange Bowl. In that game, he caught 2 passes for 20 yards.[10] He completed his first season with 2 starts in 14 games. He finished 2011 with 9 receptions, 220 receiving yards, and 2 touchdowns.[11][12]

Sophomore season[]

After his first season, Bryant's production increased. Against Ball State, he would have a 22-yard touchdown catch, a 17-yard carry, and three kickoff returns for 69 yards. He would finish this game leading the Tigers with 108 all purpose yards.[13] For the season, he would show little improvement, having career highs with 10 receptions, 305 receiving yards, and 4 touchdown catches.[14] He would lead the entire FBS with 30.5 yards per a reception.[11]

Junior season[]

His junior season marked the best year in his college career. While playing against No. 5 Georgia, he recovered the game winning onside kick.[15] Against North Carolina State, he had 6 receptions for 73 yards.[16] On November 14, against Georgia Tech, he had a career-high 176 receiving yards, on 5 catches, for 1 touchdown.[17] In his second Orange Bowl against No. 6 Ohio State he had three catches, 28 receiving yards, and two touchdowns, marking a career-high.[18] He finished 2013 with 42 receptions, 828 receiving yards, and 7 touchdown receptions making his career totals, 61 receptions, 1,354 receiving yards, and 13 touchdowns.[11][19]

Bryant announced on January 5, 2014, that he would forgo his senior season and enter the 2014 NFL Draft.[20][21]

Professional career[]

Coming out of Clemson, Bryant was projected to be drafted anywhere from the second to fourth round by the majority of NFL analysts and scouts. Bryant received an invitation to the NFL Combine and completed all the required combine drills and positional drills for team representatives and scouts. On March 6, 2014, he participated at Clemson's Pro Day and chose to only perform positional drills. He was ranked as the 14th best wide receiver prospect available in the draft by NFLDraftScout.com and was ranked the 13th best wide receiver by NFL analyst Mike Mayock.[22][23]

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press Wonderlic
6 ft 3+3⁄4 in
(1.92 m) 		211 lb
(96 kg) 		32+5⁄8 in
(0.83 m) 		9+1⁄2 in
(0.24 m)		 4.42 s 1.57 s 2.57 s 4.15 s 7.18 s 39 in
(0.99 m)		 10 ft 4 in
(3.15 m)		 16 reps 14
All values from NFL Combine[24]

Pittsburgh Steelers[]

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Bryant in the fourth round (118th overall) of the 2014 NFL Draft. He was the 19th wide receiver selected in the 2014 NFL Draft.[25] On June 9, 2014, he signed a four-year contract with the team worth $2.659 million with $439,220 guaranteed and a $439,220 signing bonus.[26]

2014 season: Rookie year[]

Bryant spent the first six weeks of the season inactive due to a shaky training camp and preseason in addition to suffering a mild A/C sprain in the last preseason game. Head coach Mike Tomlin told Bryant he wanted to see him dominate the scout team in practice before he would activate him for a game.[27] Bryant was finally activated for a Week 7 matchup against the Houston Texans. His first NFL reception went for a 35-yard touchdown and he finished the game with two catches for 40 yards.[28] On October 26, 2014, he hauled in a season-high five catches for 83 yards and two touchdowns in a 51–34 victory over the Indianapolis Colts.[29] On November 2, 2014, Bryant received his first career start against the Baltimore Ravens and ended the game with three receptions, 44 receiving yards, and two touchdown receptions.[30] His 5 touchdown receptions set an NFL record for a player in their first 3 games. During a Week 10 contest at the New York Jets, he had four receptions for a season-high 143-yards and had an 80-yard touchdown catch.[31] This marked his sixth touchdown in first four games and again set an NFL record, which was later tied by Calvin Ridley.[32]

On December 28, 2014, Bryant caught a 21-yard touchdown reception in a 27–17 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.[33] He played in his first NFL postseason game on January 3, 2015, against the Baltimore Ravens. He finished the 17–30 loss with five receptions for 61 yards and a touchdown.[34]

Bryant finished his rookie year with 26 receptions for 549 receiving yards and eight touchdowns in ten games and three starts.[35] Bryant's 21.1 yards per reception ranked first among NFL wide receivers in 2014.[36]

2015 season[]

Bryant in Baltimore in 2015

On August 27, 2015, Bryant was suspended the first four games due to violating the league's substance abuse policy.[37] During his suspension, he spent time at a rehabilitation center in Houston, Texas and worked with ex-NBA coach John Lucas.[38] Although he was available to return for Week 5, he missed the game due to a knee injury, so he made his 2015 debut on October 18, 2015. In a 25–13 victory over the Arizona Cardinals, he caught six passes for 137 yards and two touchdowns including an 88-yard touchdown.[39] His first start of the season was on October 25, 2015, at the Kansas City Chiefs, and in his second game he caught three receptions for 45 yards and a touchdown.[40] During a Week 10 matchup against the Cleveland Browns, Bryant had a season-high 178 receiving yards on six catches while also scoring a 64-yard touchdown.[41] On December 13, 2015, he caught a season-high seven receptions for 49 yards in a 33–20 victory over the Bengals.[42] In Week 15, he made a season-high ten catches for 87 yards in a 34–27 win over the Denver Broncos, making it the first time he caught over nine passes in his career.[43][44]

On January 9, 2016, against the Cincinnati Bengals in a Wild Card Round playoff game, while in the red zone, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger threw a pass into the corner of the endzone intended for Bryant. During the process of the catch, he did a front flip and maintained control of the ball while holding it on the back of his leg throughout the flip. The NFL VP of officiating later deemed this should not have been ruled a catch.[45] This score gave the Steelers a 15–0 lead en route to winning the game by a score of 18–16.[46][47] In the Divisional Round against the Broncos, Bryant had nine receptions for 154 yards and also rushed for 40 yards in the 23–16 defeat.[48]

2016 season[]

On March 14, 2016, the NFL announced it had suspended Bryant for the entire 2016 NFL season for violating the league's substance abuse policy.[49]

2017 season[]

On April 25, 2017, Bryant was conditionally reinstated by the NFL.[50] He entered the regular season as the starting wide receiver alongside Antonio Brown.[51] In the Steelers' season-opening victory against the Cleveland Browns, Bryant caught two passes for 14 yards.[52] The following week, he caught three passes for 91 receiving yards and his first touchdown of the season on a 27-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger as the Steelers defeated the Minnesota Vikings 26–9.[53] However, following the Week 7 game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Bryant vented frustration about his lack of role in the offense on social media, and then skipped mandatory team meetings the following Monday.[54] Bryant then publicly told ESPN he would like to be traded; however, coach Mike Tomlin said the team had no plans to trade Bryant.[55] On October 25, 2017, prior to that week's game against the Detroit Lions, the Steelers demoted Bryant to the scout team and replaced him with JuJu Smith-Schuster after deactivating him for the game.[56] As of November 1, 2017, Bryant was promoted back onto the first team for the following game against the Indianapolis Colts.[57]

Bryant finished the 2017 season with 50 receptions for 603 yards and three touchdowns.[58] The Steelers made the playoffs and faced off against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Divisional Round. In the 45–42 loss, he had two receptions for 78 yards and a touchdown.[59]

Oakland Raiders[]

On April 26, 2018, the Steelers traded Bryant to the Oakland Raiders for Oakland's third round pick previously acquired from the Arizona Cardinals (79th overall) in the 2018 NFL Draft.[60]

On September 1, 2018, Bryant was released by the Raiders.[61] Despite facing a possible year-long suspension by the NFL for a violation of the league's drug policy during the off-season, the Raiders re-signed him to a one-year deal ten days later.[62] He played in eight games, recording 19 catches for 266 yards and no touchdowns, before being placed on injured reserve on December 5, 2018, with a knee injury.[63] On December 14, 2018, the NFL suspended Bryant indefinitely for violating the terms of his conditional reinstatement.[64] Bryant applied for reinstatement in 2019.[65]

Toronto Argonauts[]

On January 25, 2021, Bryant signed with the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League.[66] He was placed on the suspended list on July 10, 2021 after failing to report for training camp.[67] Bryant never played for the Argos and after the season he was released on December 23, 2021.[68]

Edmonton Elks[]

The Elks announced the they had signed Bryant on February 28, 2022.[69]

Career statistics[]

Legend
Led the league
Bold Career high
Regular season statistics
Year Team Games Receiving Rushing Returning Fumbles
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Att Yds Avg Lng TD Ret Yds Avg Lng TD Fum Lost
2014 PIT 10 3 26 549 21.1 94T 8 3 12 4.0 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2015 PIT 11 5 50 765 15.3 88T 6 5 37 7.4 13 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
2016 PIT 0 0 Suspended
2017 PIT 15 8 50 603 12.1 51 3 6 22 3.7 13 0 9 151 16.8 38 0 0 0
2018 OAK 8 2 19 266 14.0 47 0 3 23 7.7 17 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
NFL Career 44 18 145 2,183 15.1 94T 17 17 94 5.5 17 1 9 151 16.8 38 0 2 1
Postseason statistics
Year Team Games Receiving Rushing Returning Fumbles
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Att Yds Avg Lng TD Ret Yds Avg Lng TD Fum Lost
2014 PIT 1 0 5 61 12.2 22 1 1 6 6.0 6 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
2015 PIT 2 2 14 183 13.1 52 1 3 84 28.0 44 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
2017 PIT 1 0 2 78 39.0 42 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
Career 4 2 21 322 15.3 52 3 4 90 22.5 44 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0

Personal life[]

Clemson began recruiting Bryant when he was a freshman in high school. He verbally committed to them during his second year of high school.[70] He also has amassed many tattoos including the NFL shield logo on his abdomen to remind him he was drafted in the fourth round and to keep himself motivated.[70] His cousin is former Clemson quarterback and former Toronto Argonauts teammate Kelly Bryant.

References[]

  1. ^ "Martavis Bryant Pro-Football-Reference Profile". rbref.com.
  2. ^ "Small town dream turns into reality for Clemson's Bryant". The Clemson Insider. August 29, 2017. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  3. ^ "Hanna WR Bryant headed to prep school before Clemson". Independent Mail. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  4. ^ "Rivals.com". sports.yahoo.com.
  5. ^ "Orange and White – Independent Mail". Independent Mail.
  6. ^ "Region 1-4A – Boys results (Raw)".
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  9. ^ "Wofford at Clemson Box Score, September 10, 2011". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  10. ^ "Orange Bowl – West Virginia vs Clemson Box Score, January 4, 2012". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  11. ^ a b c "Clemson Tigers Football:Player Bio:Martavis Bryant". Archived from the original on January 7, 2014.
  12. ^ "Martavis Bryant 2011 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  13. ^ "Ball State at Clemson Box Score, September 8, 2012". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  14. ^ "Martavis Bryant 2012 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  15. ^ Iacobelli, Pete. "No. 5 Georgia can't keep up with No. 8 Clemson". San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
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  19. ^ "Martavis Bryant 2013 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  20. ^ Martavis Bryant was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. Clemson WR Martavis Bryant tells Post and Courier he will enter NFL draft
  21. ^ "Clemson WR Martavis Bryant intends to enter 2014 NFL Draft".
  22. ^ "*Martavis Bryant, DS #14 WR, Clemson". nfldraftscout.com. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
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  24. ^ "NFL Events: Combine Player Profiles – Martavis Bryant".
  25. ^ "2014 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  26. ^ Overthecap.com. "Martavis Bryant Contract Details, Salary Cap Charges, Bonus Money – Over The Cap".
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  37. ^ Louis Bien (August 27, 2015). "Martavis Bryant suspended first 4 games for violating NFL substance abuse policy". Retrieved August 31, 2015.
  38. ^ "Pittsburgh Steelers, Martavis Bryant working with John Lucas". September 22, 2015. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  39. ^ "Arizona Cardinals at Pittsburgh Steelers – October 18th, 2015". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  40. ^ "Pittsburgh Steelers at Kansas City Chiefs – October 25th, 2015". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
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  44. ^ NFL.com. "NFL Player Profile:Martavis Bryant". Retrieved December 22, 2015.
  45. ^ "NFL VP of officiating: Wild Martavis Bryant TD vs. Bengals wasn't a catch".
  46. ^ Levin, Josh (January 10, 2016). "The Most Horrifying Moments in the Steelers-Bengals Game, Ranked". Slate. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
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  49. ^ Sessler, Marc (March 14, 2016). "Martavis Bryant suspended minimum one season". NFL.com.
  50. ^ Shook, Nick (April 25, 2017). "Steelers' Martavis Bryant conditionally reinstated". NFL.com.
  51. ^ "Ourlads.com: Pittsburgh Steelers Depth Chart: 09/01/2017". ourlads.com. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  52. ^ "NFL Game Center: Pittsburgh Steelers @ Cleveland Browns: 9/10/2017". NFL.com. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  53. ^ "NFL Game Center: Minnesota Vikings @ Pittsburgh Steelers: 09/17/2017". NFL.com. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
  54. ^ Disgruntled WR Martavis Bryant calls in sick to Steelers meetings, ESPN. Published October 24, 2017. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  55. ^ Mike Tomlin: Steelers won't trade Martavis Bryant, despite his beef, ESPN. Published October 24, 2017. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  56. ^ Steelers demote disgruntled Martavis Bryant to scout team, ESPN. Published October 25, 2017. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  57. ^ Rutter, Joe (November 1, 2017). "Steelers' Martavis Bryant Steelers' Martavis Bryant works with 1st-team offense, vows to make fresh start". triblive.com.
  58. ^ "Martavis Bryant 2017 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  59. ^ "Divisional Round – Jacksonville Jaguars at Pittsburgh Steelers – January 14th, 2018". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  60. ^ "Steelers trade WR Martavis Bryant to Raiders for 3rd-round pick". ESPN. April 27, 2018. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
  61. ^ Bergman, Jeremy. "Martavis Bryant cut by Raiders, facing suspension". NFL.com. Retrieved September 1, 2018.
  62. ^ "Raiders sign Bryant and Sieg; place DePaola on IR and waive Hatcher". Raiders.com. September 12, 2018. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
  63. ^ Raiders Media Relations (December 5, 2018). "Raiders announce transactions – 12.5.18". Raiders.com. Retrieved March 15, 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
  64. ^ Knoblauch, Austin (December 14, 2018). "Martavis Bryant suspended indefinitely by NFL". NFL.com. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
  65. ^ BUMBACA, CHRISTOPHER (July 15, 2019). "Martavis Bryant, indefinitely suspended by NFL, formally applies for reinstatement". USAToday.com. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
  66. ^ Argonauts Media Relations (January 25, 2021). "Argos add former Steeler Martavis Bryant and re-sign Alden Darby". Argonauts.com. Retrieved January 25, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
  67. ^ Toronto Argonauts Media Relations [@ArgonautsMR] (July 10, 2021). "The following players have been added to the suspended list: AME WR Brandon Sheperd AME WR Keyarris Garrett AME WR Martavis Bryant AME WR Kendall Wright AME DB James Sample CDN LB Nelkas Kwemo CDNLB Nick Shortill CDN DB Robert Woodson" (Tweet). Retrieved July 10, 2021 – via Twitter.
  68. ^ "Toronto Argos release former NFL receiver Martavis Bryant | 3DownNation". Retrieved December 24, 2021.
  69. ^ "Elks sign former NFL wide receiver Martavis Bryant". Edmonton Elks. February 28, 2022. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
  70. ^ a b Starkey, Joe (November 1, 2014). "Bryant could transform Steelers offense". TribLive.com. Retrieved January 10, 2016.

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