The Dallas Cowboys are no strangers to injuries and today was another part of the saga as it was announced by the team that All-Pro cornerback DaRon Bland will undergo surgery for a stress fracture in his foot after feeling discomfort on Wednesday. He is expected to be back on the field in six to eight weeks.
This is a massive blow for the Dallas Cowboys as they obviously expected him and Trevon Diggs to lock down the opposing wide receivers. Bland had a dominant season that landed him fifth in the Defensive Player of the Year voting as well as becoming an All-Pro and Pro Bowler. He had nine interceptions (five returned for a touchdown) with 15 pass deflections and three tackles for loss.
According to Pro Football Focus, DaRon Bland had a 90.4 defensive grade last season and an 89.9 coverage grade. Quarterbacks struggled when targeting Bland as he had a 50.9 passer rating allowed. This is a massive blow for the Dallas Cowboys and it will be interesting to see how they defend without one of their young stars on the defensive side of the ball for the first handful of weeks for the team.
What does the Dallas Cowboys schedule look like when DaRon Bland is out?
Jun 5, 2024; Frisco, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy addresses the media before practice at the Ford Center at the Star Training Facility in Frisco, Texas. Mandatory Credit: Chris Jones-USA TODAY Sports
The Dallas Cowboys have a few tough teams to face in the first six weeks of the season, the longer timeframe of the recovery process. Below is the breakdown of the first six games for the Cowboys this season.
- at Cleveland Browns (9/8)
- vs. New Orleans Saints (9/15)
- vs. Baltimore Ravens (9/22)
- at New York Giants (9/26)
- at Pittsburgh Steelers (10/6)
- vs, Detroit Lions (10/13)
How will the team look without Bland?
Mike Zimmer (L) working with Bill Parcels (R) for the Dallas Cowboys. Credit: USA TODAY Sports
With DaRon Bland miss the first handful of games of the 2024 season, there are going to be a few options that the team can do to address this. One would be to insert fifth-round rookie corner Caelen Carson from Wake Forest into the starting lineup immediately. The other would see Eric Scott Jr. get promoted to the starter.
Either way, expect the opposing quarterbacks to target that defender. With the hit-or-miss ability of Trevon Diggs and seeing how he looks after tearing his ACL, this will be interesting for new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer to address.
