When Allen Hurns signed with the Cowboys in free agency, he couldn't take the No. 88 jersey that he wore during his four-year run with the Jaguars. In Dallas, that number belonged to Dez Bryant, who's sported No. 88 ever since the Cowboys drafted him in the first round back in 2010. But in the aftermath of the Cowboys' abrupt -- and "personal," according to Bryant -- decision to cut Bryant on Friday, 88 is suddenly available.

Hurns, however, won't be grabbing it. On Friday, Hurns tweeted that he won't be wearing No. 88 with the Cowboys. Instead, he said, they should probably just retire it.

That wouldn't be the worst idea considering the history of the Cowboys' No. 88 jersey. There's Bryant, who finished his Cowboys career with the third-most catches (531), fifth-most receiving yards (7,459), and the most touchdown catches (73) in franchise history. There's Michael Irvin, who ranks second in catches (750), second in receiving yards (11,904), and fourth in touchdown catches (65). And before him was Drew Pearson, who finished his career with the fourth-most catches (489), the fourth-most receiving yards (7,822), and the seventh-most touchdowns (48) in franchise history. 

Funnily enough, Pearson said way back in 2012 that Bryant wasn't "living up to the expectations that were placed on him by wearing that number." Now? Pearson is afraid that the Cowboys' decision to cut him will burn them in the future because Bryant has the "88 DNA."

Pearson did add that he believes Bryant and the Cowboys will "mend the fences" and "come back together" perhaps when Bryant is inducted into Ring of Honor. Time will tell if that prediction becomes true. In the meantime, Bryant seems dead-set on getting his revenge against the Cowboys by signing with another NFC East team, though as it stands, the rest of the division reportedly isn't all too interested in his services. 

Meanwhile, the Cowboys suddenly need to rebuild a no-name receiving corps that is now apparently spearheaded by Hurns, who sounds like he was looking forward to playing alongside Bryant.

Regardless of the number Hurns wears, he's suddenly under a lot more pressure to replace Bryant's production. That might seem like too tall of a task for Hurns to accomplish, but their stats actually align over the past three seasons. Since Bryant's decline began in 2015, they've been pretty identical players.


CatchesYardsYPCTDs

Bryant

150

2,035

13.6

17

Hurns

138

1,992

14.4

15

Still, nobody should expect the Cowboys to roll into the regular season with their receiving room as currently constructed. Last year, their passing game ranked 26th in yards as Dak Prescott took a step backward after a marvelous rookie season. Sitting at No. 19 in the draft order, it really wouldn't be surprising to see the Cowboys address the position in the first round. 

Who knows, maybe that rookie will be bold enough to wear the 88 that Bryant is leaving behind.