Dez Bryant reportedly only interested in signing with a contender for next season

Bryant's list of teams he's willing to sign with is only getting shorter

For a player that doesn't seem to be generating a ton of interest on the free agent market, former Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant doesn't seem interested in making his life any easier. Bryant is reportedly only interested in signing with a contender, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. So, his list of stipulations now include a short-term contract on a contender.

"He's being choosy, wants to be with a team that of course can win right away," Rapoport said on the NFL Network Monday. "And the kind of team that can compete for championships and, from what it sounds like, this is a guy who is willing to wait. And we know that because he's still waiting, so it is quiet ... Dez Bryant could be one of those guys who waits around and in the event of some injury to a top receiver maybe he gets a call and the kind of deal that he's been waiting for."  

CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora noted in May that Bryant's best bet is to wait for a receiver to go down in a receiving corps that's already thin, as that's the only time he'll have any real leverage in negotiations. Bryant, of course, turned down a reported three-year contract from the Baltimore Ravens earlier this offseason.

In terms of possible contenders, the Patriots are always on the table -- especially with Julian Edelman suspended for the first four games of the season. However, not a lot of other contenders need help at wide receiver. The Jaguars signed Donte Moncrief to the contract Bryant wanted, while the Eagles no longer have the receiving woes that plagued them two years ago. At the moment, Bryant's best bet to play on a contender might be if the Falcons get fed up with the Julio Jones situation and try to bring on a body to prove a point.

Either way, the Bryant situation doesn't seem like it's going to be resolved any time soon without some external factors taking place. Whether it takes an injury or a frustrated front office, Bryant may need to wait until we're fairly deep in the preseason before he either gets the call he wants or has to settle on something else.