After coming off his third suspension from the NFL, defensive end Armonty Bryant has been officially released by the Detroit Lions.
Bryant was signed by the Lions last season after he was cut by the Cleveland Browns. His suspension was officially over last week, but the Lions let him practice all week before coming to a final decision today.
Bryant had three sacks and one assisted tackle in five games for Detroit last year before he suffered a season-ending knee injury. While those are good stats, it is not worth keeping a player on the roster who constantly gets in trouble with the league. Cutting him doesn’t hurt the Lions depth at the position as they still have five defensive ends on their active roster.
Oct 30, 2016; Houston, TX, USA; Detroit Lions outside linebacker Armonty Bryant (97) sacks Houston Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler (17) during the first quarter at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY SportsThree drug-related suspensions in a year, no matter how talented the player, is not a good thing to have on a resume. While the Lions decided last year to pick him up and give him a second chance in this league, he blew it when he failed the third test. Though they could use his talent, it clearly isn’t worth it to Bob Quinn and the rest of the Lions organization to keep a troublemaker around a rising team.
Bryant has a lot of potential talent and could still play in the league if he starts to get his act together. There is no doubt that he will draw attention from other teams, but unless he starts to show that he is willing to change his ways, then he will likely be out of the league sometime soon.
Even if he does not get picked up right away, injuries do happen and teams are always looking to add solid depth players to their team. One potential fit for him right out of the gate is the Houston Texans who recently lost J.J. Watt for the rest of the season with a tibial plateau fracture.
