Dez Bryant expected an ordinary visit to a restaurant in Texas, but a confrontation with two motorists ended with the former Dallas Cowboys receiver lying on the ground in handcuffs as armed police officers investigated an alleged threat involving a firearm.
The 37-year-old said his girlfriend and children arrived while officers were dealing with the situation, turning what began as a disagreement over reckless driving into a particularly distressing experience for his family.
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Footage obtained by OutKick shows Bryant and two other men lying facedown on the ground while police assess the situation. An officer can be seen aiming a rifle in their general direction as a woman tells authorities that nobody involved is carrying a gun.
Bryant has since criticized the officers' approach, arguing that they failed to properly consider his version of events before taking action.
According to Bryant, the confrontation began when two men driving recklessly cut him off as they approached the same restaurant.
The disagreement continued after they stopped, with Bryant claiming one of the men suggested he would produce a firearm during their argument.
"He go to threatening me and basically saying, um, he'll insinuate that he'll, you know, he'll shoot me or whatever," Bryant recalled.
Bryant acknowledged responding aggressively to the alleged threat, telling the man he should be prepared to use a weapon if he produced one.
"You pull that gun, I'm telling you right now, you better use it because if you don't I'm going to do something to you," Bryant said.
No firearm was ultimately produced during the exchange, according to Bryant. Instead, one man began recording with his phone, which the former NFL player admitted pushing away.
Police were subsequently contacted, and Bryant said he welcomed their involvement because he expected them to investigate what had happened.
Ex-Cowboys star describes frightening police response
The situation became more serious when responding officers ordered all three men onto the ground before handcuffing them.
Bryant said his family arrived while the police response was underway, leaving his children to witness their father being detained.
"I get on the ground," Bryant explained. "My lady pulled up, she got my children, and they seen everything that's going on."
The retired receiver was placed inside a police vehicle while officers questioned those involved. He was eventually released with a citation, while the other two men were also allowed to leave.
Bryant questions police handling of confrontation
Although nobody was injured, Bryant believes the officers should have conducted a more thorough investigation before deciding how to handle the situation.
"I would rather you guys take us all down to the police station and do the proper investigation instead of just taking somebody else's side," Bryant added. "I felt like it was very one-sided."
Despite his criticism, Bryant emphasized that the incident hadn't changed his generally positive relationship with local law enforcement.
He described knowing an officer whose son plays football alongside his child, explaining that their previous interactions had always been friendly.
"Every time I see him, we talk ball. We just talk about the regular things," Bryant said. "It's always been good. This situation was just extremely unfortunate."