Dez Bryant: Cowboys moved closer to Super Bowl despite 4-12 record

A 4-12 season doesn't appear to have left Dez Bryant any less confident that the Dallas Cowboys are moving in the right direction.

The star wide receiver recently told Will Brinson of CBSSports that the organization is now closer to its goal of earning another Lombardi Trophy.

"I'll tell you this - every year you have a chance to go to the Super Bowl," Bryant said. "I honestly think we have moved a step closer even though our record doesn't show it. I still think we're a damn good football team and we had an unfortunate situation no one could do anything about.

"I think right now we had an opportunity to get our mind right and understand what we have at stake. This doesn't last long, this team won't be together for a while, we have damn near all the pieces together, we have to somehow get it to back to where it's been. I just feel like injuries took a toll on us and we have to live with it and get better from it."

While getting back to the postseason and going on a Super Bowl run would make for a significant one-year turnaround, there may not be much of a ceiling on the team's potential if Bryant and quarterback Tony Romo can stay healthy.

Six of the Cowboys' 12 losses this year came by only one score, and a weak NFC East division kept the club alive until late December.

Bryant will enter next season looking to recapture the dominance that saw him finish the 2014 campaign with 88 receptions for an impressive 1,320 yards and 16 touchdowns.