Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant has finally gotten that MRI on his right knee, apparently.
Coach Jason Garrett told reporters on Wednesday that Bryant has a hairline fracture in his knee. Garrett called it a day-to-day, week-to-week situation. The coach holds out hope Bryant will play on Sunday at San Francisco.
Bryant twisted the knee while being tackled on Sunday night against the Bears, leaving temporarily before returning to the game. On Tuesday, owner Jerry Jones said that, to his knowledge, Bryant hadn’t undergone an MRI on his knee.
Bryant is the third key player in less than two weeks to injure a knee while being tackled. The other two, Brandon Marshall of the Jets and Russell Wilson of the Seahawks, continued to play. Marshall returned to action the week after suffering his MCL sprain. Wilson, also with a sprained MCL, apparently intends to play on Sunday against the Jets.
Bryant’s injury is different, and the question becomes whether and to what extent he’ll risk further injury by playing. Plenty will applaud his toughness if he finds a way onto the field without missing time, but if he re-injures the knee and misses significant time, many of those who would applaud him for continuing to play would chide him for coming back too early, in the way that some are now questioning J.J. Watt’s quick return from back surgery.