On February 24, 2013, a single photo of Desmond Bryant went viral, and his life took an unexpected turn. At that time, Bryant was days away from signing a five-year, $34 million deal with the Cleveland Browns. But one night, Bryant barely remembered drinking, yet the next morning, he woke up in a jail cell. While he was later taken in for a mugshot, Bryant stuck out his tongue in front of the camera to prevent it from being taken seriously.
But by the time Bryant walked out of jail, his mugshot had already become a viral meme. Yet, that snapshot only captured one of the many nights that Bryant had been struggling with addiction and mental health issues. Now sober, Bryant has opened up about just how serious mental health struggles had become in his life.
“I was in that house by myself, drinking to the worst and talking to myself, and in that moment, like, I came to the realization that I wanted to die,” Desmond Bryant said during a CBS interview this week. “She [Therapist] had me talk to myself on the couch in that moment, and I was trying to talk to myself, and he was telling me to go F off, I don’t care, and I wanna be done with it. And that was really revolutionary for me because that really didn’t resonate with me.”
“When I would go to different treatment centers and, ‘Hey, do you wanna die?’ No, I don’t. Of course, not. That doesn’t make sense. But once I realized, it explained all of these decision-making. Like, I was so lost, and I didn’t care about my health or anything. I was gonna do whatever floated.”
When he was seven years old, Desmond Bryant wanted to go to Harvard University and play in the NFL, and he managed to fulfill his ambitions. While studying psychology at Harvard University, Bryant played as a defensive tackle for the Harvard Crimson.
Nevertheless, coming from a small farm town, Desmond Bryant suddenly had to fit into a new society at Harvard. To adapt to the new surroundings, Bryant began drinking and smoking. Nonetheless, despite the difficulties he experienced during his studies at Harvard University, the Oakland Raiders drafted Bryant as an undrafted free agent in 2009.
Former NFL player Desmond Bryant’s life unraveled after a viral mugshot in 2013 resulted in him losing a contract with the Cleveland Browns and years of addiction that left him struggling to find purpose beyond football.
Now sober, Bryant tells @DavidBegnaud that he has rebuilt… pic.twitter.com/gl6QHfgBXx
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) April 6, 2026
But even though Bryant was arrested and his addictions were being questioned at that time, the Browns offered him a five-year deal. After that, Bryant played 41 games for the team and recorded 113 tackles, 44 quarterback hits, and 14.5 sacks. The NFL career of Desmond Bryant was going well; however, in 2016, he injured his pectoral muscle while working out, which caused him to miss the whole year. In 2017, the Browns canceled Bryant’s contract, ending his NFL career there.
“That’s when I really fell into the darkness, man,” Bryant recalled. “Losing football is a devastating thing. I didn’t know where to go. I didn’t know what to do, and I didn’t really have a purpose.”
Unable to play professional football, Desmond Bryant lost his purpose in life and began abusing drugs and alcohol. Bryant also attempted to return to Harvard to finish his psychology degree, but the effort didn’t last long. So, for the first time in his life, work ethic wasn’t enough to pull Bryant out of mental health issues.
How has Desmond Bryant rebuilt his life despite mental health issues?
During the pandemic, Desmond Bryant found himself isolated in a large house in Florida, and things only got worse. It wasn’t until a therapist had asked Bryant to close his eyes and confront the version of himself sitting on the couch that things changed for the better.
The former Browns player was forced to realize just how lost he had become in life. Soon after, Bryant ventured on the path toward sobriety, which led him to yoga. But at first, yoga was only a workout for Bryant, and he was unable to focus while meditating.
“When I first started doing yoga, I couldn’t do that,” Bryant said during the CBS interview. “I couldn’t sit still, I didn’t wanna spend time with myself.”
Then, during one yoga session focused on simple breathing drills, Desmond Bryant became emotional. In that moment, Bryant recalls he felt both his Native American heritage and God’s presence guiding him. After that, Bryant bought a yoga studio in Miami Beach and committed to sobriety.
“My test is my testimony,” Desmond concluded. “During that period of darkness, I learned a lot about myself. I learned a lot about humanity, and I had to adapt. Fortunately, I was able to get out of it, and so the things that I learned, I wanna share with others now.”
Now, Desmond Bryant volunteers to help feed the homeless and works every day to set an example for his two children. Ultimately, Bryant now uses his experiences to help others facing mental health issues.
