Cowboys sign Martavis Bryant, ending a 5-year absence for a receiver suspended 3 times

FRISCO, Texas (AP) - The Dallas Cowboys signed receiver Martavis Bryant to their practice squad Wednesday, ending a five-year absence from the NFL for a player who has been suspended three times.

Bryant last played in 2018 with the Raiders before they moved from Oakland to Las Vegas. He was indefinitely suspended over substance-abuse violations late that season.

The 31-year-old was a fourth-round pick by Pittsburgh in 2014 and spent four years with the Steelers, including when he was suspended for the entire 2016 season.

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Bryant spent time in the CFL and more recently the XFL before signing with the Cowboys after a workout following his reinstatement by Commissioner Roger Goodell.

"I know I'm 31, but I'm still fast, still big, I still want to play football," Bryant said. "I haven't lost anything. I got a lot of doubters out there. It's more of me proving to myself that I still got it."

Bryant scored eight touchdowns with Pittsburgh as a rookie, then had his career high with 765 yards receiving and six TDs in 11 games a year later after serving his first suspension, a four-game ban.

After missing all of 2016, Bryant had 603 yards and three touchdowns with the Steelers in 2017 before eight games with the Raiders in 2018.

"I've been through a lot over those last years that I haven't played ball," Bryant said. "Getting down on myself and wanting to give up on football. But at the end of the day, I had to look myself in the mirror and face my own demons."

Bryant joins a group led by CeeDee Lamb, who has had three consecutive 100-yard games to reach fifth in the NFL with 824 yards. Brandin Cooks, an offseason trade acquisition, was in the same draft class with Bryant.