Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Dez Bryant was forced out of Tuesday (December 8) nights rescheduled game against the Dallas Cowboys after he tested positive for COVID-19 before kickoff.
Bryant, who was excited to play against his former team for the first time, was warming up when he was pulled off the field because the team learned that his most recent coronavirus test was inconclusive. He was given another test, which came back with a positive result.
Bryant was sent home, where he tweeted that he tested positive. He then said he was going to sit out for the rest of the season.
"Yea I'm going to go ahead and call it a quit for the rest of the season... I can't deal with this," he tweeted.
Bryant later clarified that he was not retiring, and plans to be back next season.
"Yea I'm coming back... I'm being smart," he replied to a fan.
Despite the disappointment of not being able to face off against his old team, Bryant cracked open a bottle of wine and watched the game while interacting with his fans.
"I'm not drunk yet.. I only had one glass of wine... I'm getting my business stuff together to share with you all lol," he wrote before asking people to share photos of their wine glasses.
After the Ravens finished off their 34-17 victory against the Cowboys, Dez admitted that it was more than just a regular game for him.
"This was more than just another game for me... It wasn't about revenge.. I didn't need a catch... I wanted to make a point...," he wrote.
After the game, the Ravens players said they rallied around Dez after learning he had COVID-19.
"We were looking around for him, then he told us. It was like, we're just going to have to pull the game for him; we've got to win that game for him because we know how much it meant to him," Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson said. "He's been talking about it for a minute now since he's been here. So, I don't like what happened, but it is what it is. We got the victory for him. I'm feeling for him, though, because I know this is a game he wanted to be in."
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