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The Dallas Cowboys are releasing Dez Bryant. The veteran wideout confirmed the move on his official Twitter account shortly after reports of the move began circulating.

"Cowboy nation I need you to know this wasn’t my decision.. I will always love y’all... forever Dallas in my heart," Bryant wrote.

As NFL.com notes, Bryant's release comes after a highly anticipated meeting with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones on Friday to discuss the receiver's contract situation. The 29-year-old was due $12.5 million with a $16.5 million cap hit in 2018.

A source told ESPN.com's Todd Archer that Bryant was not offered a pay cut, while another source added that Bryant will not be designated a post-June 1 cut. The Cowboys will save $8 million against the cap this season with the move.

And the truth is, Bryant's level of play doesn’t justify that kind of salary anymore.

Of the eight wide receivers set to earn more than $12 million in 2018, Bryant was the only one to have averaged less than 1,000 receiving yards per season (678).

Indeed, while Bryant was once among the league’s elite receivers, he hasn’t been the same player since signing a five-year, $70 million contract three years ago. He's failed to catch more than 69 catches or surpass 838 yards in a season during that span.

He missed time in 2015 with a broken foot and was bothered in 2016 with a tibial plateau fracture.

In 113 games over his eight seasons with the Cowboys, Bryant has caught 513 passes for 7,459 yards and a franchise-record 73 touchdown receptions. His yardage total ranks fifth in franchise history behind Jason Witten, Michael Irvin, Tony Hill and Drew Pearson.

Bryant will now become an unrestricted free agent and will shop his services to receiver-needy teams. He’ll surely find a market for his services, just not a market willing to pay him $12.5 million this season.

So where does he land?

According to Mickey Spagnuolo of the Cowboys’ team website, Bryant walked out of the team facility saying “I’ll see guys twice this year.”

As Profootballtalk.com's Darin Gantt suggests, the idea of Bryant bouncing back with Washington, the Giants or the Eagles is an interesting subplot, but only if the revenge makes him play the way he did when Tony Romo was his quarterback.

Of the three of them, Washington probably needs the most help at the position, unless the Giants end up moving Odell Beckham.

And what next for the Cowboys?

The team signed Allen Hurns and Deonte Thompson last month.

As USA Today noted, in his four years in the league, Hurns has established himself as a deep threat who can play all three receiver positions, X receiver, Z receiver and in the slot.

His best year came as a Z receiver in 2015, playing off the line of scrimmage. He took over as the X receiver when Allen Robinson went down with injury, and often moved into the slot in three-receiver formations.

Hurns basically has two good seasons under his belt and two lackluster years, with the former coming when he had to prove himself as a UDFA and the latter happening after he received a hefty contract.

He had a big game against the Patriots in the AFC Championship, catching six of seven targets for 80 yards. Those targets came in the slot, a position the Patriots were notoriously awful in defending last year, but show his value on the inside as a matchup problem for opponents.

Hurns stands 6-foot-3 and certainly fits the height profile Dallas has favored in their outside receivers over the last decade. Bryant is 6-2, Terrance Williams is 6-2, 2017 draft pick Noah Brown is 6-2.

An undrafted free agent from Miami, Hurns has spent his entire career catching passes from Blake Bortles. Up until 2017, his time was spent playing opposite No. 1 receiver and fellow downfield threat Robinson.

His best season was 2015, his second in the league. He caught 64 passes for 1,031 yards and 10 touchdowns. The Jaguars defense was bad that season and Hurns and Robinson racked up a lot of yardage in garbage time when games were already out of reach.

It's also safe to assume wide receiver will be a priority in the NFL Draft later this month.

Among the wideout prospects the Cowboys have had in for top 30 pre-draft visits: Alabama's Calvin Ridley, Maryland's D.J. Moore, Oklahoma State's James Washington and Florida's Antonio Callaway.

In addition, Jason Garrett was also the only head coach at SMU receiver Courtland Sutton’s Pro Day.

Again, we'll be watching for more on this front as well.