Wikipedia

DaRon Bland

(Redirected from Daron Bland)

DaRon Bland (/dəˈrɒn/ də-RON;[1] born July 12, 1999) is an American professional football cornerback for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Sacramento State Hornets before transferring to the Fresno State Bulldogs. The Cowboys selected Bland in the 5th round of the 2022 NFL draft. In 2023, he led the NFL with 9 interceptions and set the NFL single-season record for most interceptions returned for a touchdown with five; this also tied Ken Houston's record for the most defensive touchdowns in a single season.[2]

DaRon Bland
refer to caption
Bland in 2022
No. 26 – Dallas Cowboys
Position:Cornerback
Personal information
Born: (1999-07-12) July 12, 1999 (age 25)
Modesto, California, U.S.
Height:6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:197 lb (89 kg)
Career information
High school:Central Catholic (Modesto)
College:
NFL draft:2022 / round: 5 / pick: 167
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
NFL records
  • Most interceptions returned for touchdown in a season: 5
  • Most defensive touchdowns in a season: 5 (tied with Ken Houston)
Career NFL statistics as of 2023
Total tackles:151
Forced fumbles:1
Fumble recoveries:1
Pass deflections:26
Interceptions:14
Defensive touchdowns:5
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

edit

Bland grew up in Modesto, California, and attended Central Catholic High School, playing receiver on the football team as well as running track and field.[3][4] He was named the Valley Oak League Defensive Player of the Year as a senior.[5]

College career

edit

Bland began his college career at Sacramento State. As a junior, he was named first-team All-Big Sky Conference after recording 43 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, one sack, and forced fumbles with two interceptions and eight passes broken up.[6] After his senior season was canceled and moved to the spring of 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, Bland entered the NCAA Transfer Portal.[7] Bland ultimately committed to transfer to Fresno State.[8] In his only season with the Bulldogs he recorded 45 tackles with five passes defended and two interceptions in 13 games played.[9]

College statistics

edit
Season GP Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
Solo Ast Cmb TfL Sck Int Yds Avg TD PD FR FF TD
Sacramento State Hornets
2017 7 5 3 2 0.0 0.0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0
2018 10 33 11 44 3.0 0.0 1 47 47.0 0 6 0 1 0
2019 13 30 13 43 6.5 1.0 2 43 21.5 0 10 1 1 0
2020 0 Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Fresno State Bulldogs
2021 13 34 11 45 1.0 0.0 2 38 19.0 0 5 0 1 0
Career 43 102 38 140 10.5 1.0 5 128 25.6 0 21 1 3 0

Professional career

edit
Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 0+1⁄4 in
(1.84 m) 		197 lb
(89 kg) 		32 in
(0.81 m) 		9 in
(0.23 m)		 4.48 s 1.55 s 2.59 s 4.15 s 7.26 s 35.5 in
(0.90 m)		 10 ft 3 in
(3.12 m)		 14 reps
All values from Pro Day[10]

2022 season

edit

The Dallas Cowboys selected Bland in the fifth round (167th overall) of the 2022 NFL draft. He was the 23rd cornerback drafted in 2022.[11][12]

On May 13, 2022, the Dallas Cowboys signed Bland to a four-year, $3.96 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $304,788.[13]

Throughout training camp, Bland competed against Kelvin Joseph, Nahshon Wright, and Jourdan Lewis for a role as the primary backup cornerback and slot cornerback.[14] Head coach Mike McCarthy named him the fifth cornerback on the depth chart to start his rookie season, behind Trevon Diggs, Anthony Brown, Jourdan Lewis, and Kelvin Joseph. He was also named the backup slot cornerback behind Lewis.[15] Although Bland wore No. 30 throughout training camp, he opted to switch to No. 26 after it became available when Kyron Brown was released during final roster cuts.

On September 11, 2022, Bland made his professional regular season debut, but appeared only on special teams during a 9–13 loss in the home-opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. On October 2, 2022, Bland saw his first action on defense after Jourdan Lewis was sidelined due to a groin injury.[16] He made three solo tackles, a pass deflection, and his first career interception on a pass attempt to Curtis Samuel by quarterback Carson Wentz in the fourth quarter of a 25–10 win over the Washington Commanders.[17] On October 24, 2022, defensive coordinator Dan Quinn promoted Bland to starting nickelback in place of Lewis, who was placed on injured reserve for the rest of the season after sustaining a lisfranc injury.[18] In Week 10, Blabs earned his first career start at nickelback and recorded six combined tackles (five solo) in a 28–31 loss at the Green Bay Packers. On December 4, 2022, he collected a season-high eight combined tackles (four solo), deflected two passes, and made a season-high two interceptions off pass attempts by Matt Ryan as the Cowboys defeated the Indianapolis Colts 54–19.[19][20] In Week 15, he made six combined tackles (four solo), a pass deflection, and intercepted Trevor Lawrence to mark his fourth of the season in a 34–40 win at the Jacksonville Jaguars. The following week, he made five combined tackles (four solo), a pass deflection, and intercepted a pass by Gardner Minshew to mark his fifth of the season in a 40-34 win against the Philadelphia Eagles. His five interceptions set an NFL record for most interceptions by a rookie.[21] He finished the season with 54 combined tackles (38 solo), seven pass deflections, and five interceptions in 17 games and 8 starts.[22]

The Dallas Cowboys earned a playoff berth as a wildcard after ending the regular season second in the NFC East with a 12–5 record. On January 16, 2023, Bland started in his first playoff appearance and made seven combined tackles (three solo) during a 31–14 victory at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC Wildcard Game. The following week, he collected a season-high 11 combined tackles (seven solo) and deflected a pass as the Cowboys were eliminated from the playoffs as the San Francisco 49ers defeated them 12–19 in the NFC Divisional Round.

2023 season

edit

During training camp, he competed to be the primary backup cornerback against Kelvin Joseph and Nahshon Wright after Jourdan Lewis missed camp while he recovered from surgery and due to the departure of Anthony Brown. HeF coach Mike McCarthy listed Bland as the third cornerback on the depth chart to begin the season, behind starters Trevon Diggs and Stephon Gilmore.

On September 10, 2023, Bland made three solo tackles, a pass deflection, and returned an interception by Daniel Jones 22-yards to score his first touchdown during a 40–0 win at the New York Giants. The pass was intended for Saquon Barkley, before it was broken up by Trevon Diggs and caught by Bland.[23] On September 23, 2023, the Dallas Cowboys placed Trevon Diggs on injured reserve due to a torn ACL and in turn, defensive coordinator Dan Quinn named Bland his replacement as an outside starting cornerback alongside Stephon Gilmore.[24]

In Week 4, Bland recorded four combined tackles (three solo), three pass deflections, two interceptions, and a touchdown in a 33–8 win over the New England Patriots. His two interceptions were thrown by Mac Jones and he scored his second touchdown after intercepting a pass to Kendrick Bourne and returned it for a 54-yard touchdown in the second quarter.[25] On October 29, 2023, he made seven combined tackles (six solo), two pass deflections, and intercepted a pass by Matthew Stafford, while covering Cooper Kupp, and took it for a 30-yard touchdown as Dallas defeated the Los Angeles Rams 43–20. Bland's third touchdown in Week 7 set the Cowboys' franchise record for single-season interceptions returned for a touchdown previously held by five other players.[26]

On November 19, in a game against the Carolina Panthers, Bland intercepted a pass from Bryce Young and returned it for his fourth interception return for a touchdown of the year, tying the NFL single-season record and the Cowboys career record. Bland was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance.[27]

On November 23, during the win over the Washington Commanders, Bland intercepted a pass from Sam Howell and returned it for his fifth interception return for a touchdown of the year, setting the NFL single-season record.[28] Bland was named NFC Defensive Player of the Month for November.[29]

During training camp in 2024, Bland suffered a stress fracture and began the season on injured reserve.[30] He was activated on October 30.

NFL career statistics

edit
Legend
Led the league
NFL record
Bold Career high

Regular season

edit
Year Team Games Tackles Fumbles Interceptions
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck FF FR Yds TD Int Yds TD PD
2022 DAL 17 8 54 38 16 0 0 0 0 0 5 19 0 7
2023 DAL 17 15 69 53 16 0 0 0 0 0 9 209 5 15
2024 DAL 5 5 28 18 10 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 4
Career 39 28 151 109 42 0 1 1 0 0 14 228 5 26

Postseason

edit
Year Team Games Tackles Fumbles Interceptions
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck FF FR Yds TD Int Yds TD PD
2022 DAL 2 2 18 10 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
2023 DAL 1 1 5 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Career 3 3 23 15 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

Notes and references

edit
  1. ^ "2022 Dallas Cowboys Media Guide" (PDF). NFL.com. National Football League. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
  2. ^ Podell, Garrett (November 24, 2023). "Cowboys' DaRon Bland breaks NFL single-season pick-six record with fifth of 2023; CB called 'inspirational'". CBSSports.com. Archived from the original on December 8, 2023. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  3. ^ "Daron Bland - 2018-19 Track & Field Roster". hornetsports.com. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
  4. ^ Licciardi, Anthony (November 21, 2023). "Dallas Cowboys' DaRon Bland Reveals Playing Receiver in High School Key to Pick-Six Prowess". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  5. ^ Burns, James (January 23, 2017). "Cousins Montell and DaRon Bland commit to Causeway Classic". The Modesto Bee. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  6. ^ Moore, Jackson (January 21, 2021). "All-Big-Sky CB transfer Daron Bland commits to Fresno State". 247Sports.com. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  7. ^ Salerno, Cameron (June 4, 2021). "Why are so many NCAA football players looking to transfer?". The Sacramento Bee. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  8. ^ Kuwada, Robert (February 3, 2021). "Fresno State football: 2021 class up to 17, three transfers". The Fresno Bee. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  9. ^ "Cowboys select Fresno State CB DaRon Bland with No. 167 pick NFL draft". The Dallas Morning News. April 30, 2022. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  10. ^ "2022 Draft Scout DaRon Bland, Fresno State NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  11. ^ "2022 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  12. ^ Galaviz, Anthony (April 30, 2022). "Former Fresno State cornerback DaRon Bland is taken by the Dallas Cowboys in NFL draft". The Fresno Bee. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  13. ^ "Spotrac.com: DaRon Bland contract". Spotrac.com. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  14. ^ Brandon Clements (August 25, 2022). "DaRon Bland has locked up a spot on the Cowboys roster in 2022". BloggingtheBoys.com. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  15. ^ Brandon Clements (August 9, 2022). "Cowboys Release First Unofficial Depth Chart of the 2022 Season". BloggingtheBoys.com. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  16. ^ Cameron Burnett (October 2, 2022). "Cowboys CB Jourdan Lewis ruled out with groin injury against Commanders". cowboyswire.usatoday.com. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  17. ^ Burnett, Cameron (October 2, 2022). "WATCH: DaRon Bland jumps route, makes first career INT". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
  18. ^ Jon Machota (October 24, 2022). "Cowboys' Jourdan Lewis out for season with foot injury after fourth-quarter INT vs. Lions". The New York Times. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  19. ^ "DaRon Bland Hauls Sideline INT vs Colts". Dallas Cowboys. December 5, 2022.
  20. ^ "DaRon Bland surges in front of Dulin's route for CB's second INT on 'SNF'". NFL.com. December 4, 2022.
  21. ^ "DaRon Bland rips football away from Watkins for CRUCIAL INT". NFL.com. December 24, 2022.
  22. ^ "Pro-Football-Reference: DaRon Bland stats (2022)". .pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  23. ^ "Watch: DaRon Bland comes down with INT, scores big TD for Cowboys' defense vs. Giants". The Dallas Morning News. September 10, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
  24. ^ "Cowboys' Trevon Diggs underwent ACL surgery with good news". cowboyswire.usatoday.com. October 25, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  25. ^ "Cowboys' Bland comes up with second pick-six of 2023". ESPN.com. October 1, 2023. Retrieved October 1, 2023.
  26. ^ Rodriguez, Mauricio (October 29, 2023). "Cowboys: DaRon Bland's pick-six vs. Rams carries historical meaning". A to Z Sports. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
  27. ^ Ochoa, RJ (November 22, 2023). "Dallas Cowboys CB DaRon Bland named NFC Defensive Player of the Week". Blogging the Boys. Retrieved November 22, 2023.
  28. ^ Silverman, Steve (November 23, 2023). "Lakers' LeBron James honors DaRon Bland after historic pick-6". ClutchPoints. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  29. ^ Gordon, Grant (November 30, 2023). "Texans QB C.J. Stroud, Cowboys QB Dak Prescott highlight November Players of the Month". NFL.com. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
  30. ^ Eatman, Nick (August 27, 2024). "DaRon Bland moved to IR; Will miss at least 4 games". DallasCowboys.com.
edit
Retrieved from "https://en.wiki.x.io/w/index.php?title=DaRon_Bland&oldid=1265867152"