Bryant wouldn't accept pay cut from Cowboys: 'Hell no, I believe in me'

Dez Bryant doesn't buy the notion that he's lost a step, and even if he secretly does, it won't lead to him accepting a pay cut from the Dallas Cowboys this offseason.

"I haven't heard no talks of that, but if it comes ... I don't know, probably not," the receiver told Brandon George of the Dallas Morning News, before cementing his stance: "Hell, no. I believe in me, yeah."

Bryant, who turned 29 in November, hasn't looked like his old self this year, instead struggling to get separation from defenders. However, he attributed his declining production to the Cowboys' offensive scheme, a case of tendinitis that bothered him down the stretch of the season, and mental struggles.

"I'm not going to sit here and act like nothing has been wrong because it has," Bryant said. "Football is my life. I accept my role 100 percent but I know who I am and I know exactly what I can do.

"I know if my mind is not cluttered I can beat whoever and whenever and anybody at any time," he added. "Sometimes I let some things get to me that I shouldn't. Watch the tape. I feel like at times I look damn good and then I get to thinking about certain things and it bothers me."

Through 15 games this year, Bryant has 66 catches for 814 yards and six touchdowns. He's never before fallen short of the 1,000-yard benchmark in a season when he's played 16 games, and his 12.3 yards-per-catch average in 2017 is the lowest mark of his career.