Daron Bland

[Simpleton]

This deserves it's own thread.

Go to the 2:10 mark here:


This is seemingly one of the first plays of team drills yesterday, which would imply that Bland is actually our CB4 and that he's moved into the starting trio with Lewis out. But aside from that, on this play the guy is carrying Mike Williams ($20M/year extension, easy top 20 WR in the league) across the field, which is difficult in the first place, then highpoints the ball running at full speed to nearly pick it.

That'd be an awesome play from Diggs or any other Pro Bowl CB, let alone a rookie late round pick.

To be flashing like that this early in camp and the preseason makes me think he could be a possible future starter and one of our best day 3 picks in the last 10+ years, along the lines of guys like Schultz, Scandrick, Ratliff, Anthony Brown, Hitchens and Cedrick Wilson (not going to include Prescott here since the value of a franchise QB on day 3 is in another world).

 

[Chocolate Lab]

Haha, just put that in the up/down thread. I think we really hit on something with Bland. He jumps out when you watch, and David Moore says all the vet DBs immediately mentioned him as a player almost from the very start.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

Haha, just put that in the up/down thread. I think we really hit on something with Bland. He jumps out when you watch, and David Moore says all the vet DBs immediately mentioned him as a player almost from the very start.

I think the guy is our third corner. Especially with Lewis out since Bland is I think the best slot guy behind our starters. Wright can't play the slot and they don't seem to play Kelvin Joseph there much. Bland on the other hand has been playing inside and outside. To me that tells me he is the fourth corner when the games start because he can cover an injury to any of the corners.

 

[Cotton]

I hope this guy isn't just a flash in the pan as we have seen in the past with some players in TC.

 

[bbgun]

his name sux

 

[p1_]

Put it this way, he’s already outplayed Joseph and Wright.

 

[Cotton]

his name sux

Yeah, it's almost... bland.

 

[Cotton]

Thanks for the softball there, bbpun.

 

[Cotton]

 

[Cowboysrock55]

I hope this guy isn't just a flash in the pan as we have seen in the past with some players in TC.

Yeah flash in the pan corners don't seem to he that common. You either have it or you don't. It's not like WRs who flash in camp every year and amount to nothing.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

Yeah flash in the pan corners don't seem to he that common. You either have it or you don't. It's not like WRs who flash in camp every year and amount to nothing.

Exactly, a lot of times those WRs are beating third and fourth string corners. Bland is doing well against basically everyone.

What I love is besides the cover ability, he hits people. He should be better vs the run than most nickel backs.

 

[Cotton]

I wasn't saying he is a flash in the pan. Christ.

 

[Simpleton]

Yeah flash in the pan corners don't seem to he that common. You either have it or you don't. It's not like WRs who flash in camp every year and amount to nothing.

I'm not worried about it given that the guy has been awesome every step of the way from regular practices to the first preseason game to practice against the Chargers where he was going up against arguably the best overall combination of QB+WR's in the league.

He may never become a long-term starter just because you never know, but at this point I'm expecting at least a solid CB3/very good CB4.

Jeremiah was really high on him in the lead up to the draft too, had him ranked around 125 or so when everybody else thought he was a 7th/UDFA type.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

I wasn't saying he is a flash in the pan. Christ.

Why do you hate Bland, man?

 

[boozeman]

I hope this guy isn't just a flash in the pan as we have seen in the past with some players in TC.

A lot of the time in camps, if a corner is making plays in both that and games, he can play. Bland has played his nuts off and showed up on both fronts.

Now, it does not apply when it is someone like Nahshon Wright.

I know I remember trading away a perfectly good corner a few years ago in Charvarius Ward because he got beat in a preseason game and the guy we were pitting against him in Donovan Olumba couldn't play.

 

[p1_]

 

[Cowboysrock55]

I must say that's pretty impressive for what I thought was kind of a throw away pick. It's why having those late round picks are worth it.

We can all say football is about earning things. But for a guy to pass up a second and third round pick (who have a year under their belts) to get that spot isn't easy.

 

[Cotton]

Really looking forward to what this kid can develop into.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

Yep, last night was just a thing for the fans, but it was useful in that it was the most I've seen the ones go against the ones without as much mixing and matching as earlier in camp.

Other observations, say it again, Bohanna is your starting NT. Live it, love it. Also Tolbert settled in a bit, Brown didn't catch much (Diggs and A. Brown especially talked a lot of shit with him and it didn't look all playful), and they said the TE coach Loves with a capital L Hendershot. Said he can do things no other TE on the team can do.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

Really looking forward to what this kid can develop into.

Yep, I love that he's a hitter, too. Very useful for a slot guy. I hate DBs that won't tackle.