'Hell of a Player!' Dallas Cowboys DB DaRon Bland Stars as Trevon Diggs Replacement
The Dallas Cowboys' commanding 38-3 victory over the New England Patriots saw many stellar individual performances inside The Star - but perhaps the biggest star was cornerback DaRon Bland.
Earning the start for the second straight week in place of injured corner Trevon Diggs, Bland intercepted Patriots quarterback Mac Jones twice and returned one to the endzone for a touchdown late in the first half.
It was Bland's second pick-six this season, tying him with running back Tony Pollard for the team lead in touchdowns. Bland is also tied for the NFL lead in interceptions with three, and his two defensive touchdowns are tops in the league.
Across the past two seasons, Bland, a fifth-round pick in 2022 who had five interceptions as a rookie, leads the NFL in interceptions with eight.
Bland's performance - and overall skill set - inspires plenty of internal confidence that Dallas' secondary will be able to mitigate the loss of Diggs.
"You can see it right away - just an extremely disciplined young man," coach Mike McCarthy said of Bland. "Excellent ball skills, which the whole back end [has] as a group, I don't know if I've seen so many guys that can hawk the ball. It's just great to see your young players have that success, especially when you know how much they put into it.
"I thought he played phenomenal."
DaRon Bland took his first interception of Sunday's game back to the endzone for a 54-yard pick-six.
USA Today
Bland's success is little surprise to those around him, in large part because he does these things on a daily basis at practice - just ask Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott.
Over the summer, Bland intercepted Prescott multiple times. The eighth-year signal caller attributed those plays to confidence, with Bland trusting his eyes and showing no hesitation while being more than willing to take risks.
The age-old saying is that you practice how you play - and Bland embodies exactly that.
"That's a guy that works his tail off and practices just as hard," Prescott said. "He's one of the best guys to have at practice. When we're going against him one-on-one, he makes it tough for everybody. He's a hell of a player and it's paying off on Sundays. He had a great rookie year last year. Coming into this year, he hasn't missed a beat and continues to get better."
Prescott later praised Bland's natural instincts and noted that he's doing everything the right way, asserting the best is yet to come.
Cowboys cornerback Stephon Gilmore, a five-time Pro Bowler, spends significant time around Bland each day and agrees with Prescott's evaluation.
"One thing about D.B., he's focused every day," Gilmore said. "He doesn't say much, he comes in and works. He competes, and it's only his second year. He's got a bright future and (I'm) just trying to teach him as much as I can. One day he's going to be one of those guys, for sure."
Without Diggs, the Cowboys needed Bland to become "one of those guys" sooner than perhaps they'd expected. After all, Diggs is one of football's best ballhawks.
As a result, Bland knew he had to step up ... and he did.
"I have to be another playmaker," Bland said. "We lost one playmaker, so it can easily be one of our days."
And Sunday, by all accounts, was Bland's day -and he's well on his way to joining Diggs as a premiere turnover player on the back end of the Cowboys' defense.
