Tag: Trevon Diggs

Dez Bryant takes notice of Patriots WR Javon Baker’s highlight play

This is content nobody expected

New England Patriots rookie wide receiver Javon Baker hasn’t even been in training camp for two weeks, and former All-Pro wideout Dez Bryant is already analyzing his game.

Bryant responded to a video of Baker’s one-on-one rep at training camp practice when he drew oohs and ahhs from the crowd after juking past a defender. The video was shared by SCOUTD but originally posted by Patriots on CLNS Media.

“The wideout first step was a slight out hard inside to get the defender to move off his spot… he reset the stem to control the defender to win on the slant,” Bryant posted on X.

New England is hoping to see more of these kinds of plays from Baker on the field during the regular season. They have struggled in recent years drafting and developing receivers.

ESPN’s Mike Clay even ranked the unit dead last out of 32 teams in his 2024 projections.

Baker has the potential to develop into a legitimate No. 1 option, which is something the Patriots have needed for years.

Along with K.J. Osborn, Ja’Lynn Polk and DeMario Douglas, Baker is part of the new wave of talent looking to silence the doubters and change the narrative surrounding Patriots’ receivers.

Cowboys activate Trevon Diggs from PUP as pads come on

Mike Zimmer welcomes back his premier cornerback option after almost a year on the sideline recovering. | From @KDDrummondNFL

In the immortal words of Bruce Buffer and the Imagine Dragons, and the HuckaBucks if you’re a fan of DC go-go, It’s Time! The Dallas Cowboys have activated cornerback Trevon Diggs off the Physically Unable to Perform list, allowing him to be a full participant in 2024 training camp.

On the first day of padded practice, and Day 5 of their live practices, the Cowboys are finally able to unveil their premier All-Pro duo at the position, pairing Diggs with DaRon Bland.  Diggs, who suffered an ACL tear in practice leading up to Week 3 last season, has recovered to the point that he’ll be able to practice with no restrictions.

Diggs led the NFL in interceptions in 2021 with 11, the most in the league since 1981. He had three in 2022, but many feel he was much more solid in coverage in that campaign, as interceptions are close to just 1% of the snaps a defender sees.

Diggs started last year even better through two games, allowing just two catches for 26 yards on eight targets while hauling in another interception and forcing a fumble while recording a run stop.

Pairing Diggs with Bland, who moved into the boundary position opposite Stephon Gilmore when the former went down, gives Dallas what will hopefully be a dynamic duo that can quickly acclimate to new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer’s new, complicated scheme.

Cowboys CB Trevon Diggs expected to start camp on PUP list

Diggs is looking to return from an ACL tear from Week 3, but will be brought along slowly. | From @KDDrummondNFL

Recovering from an ACL injury is never an easy thing, but there are several Cowboys looking to do just that. Linebackers DeMarvion Overshown and pass catcher John Stephens, Jr. saw promising rookie campaigns cut short before given a chance with training camp tears, but the biggest ACL injury didn’t occur until September when All-Pro corner Trevon Diggs hurt himself in practice ahead of Week 3.

Diggs seems to be on track to return early in the season, but on Monday the team let it be known that the approach will be cautious. When players report to training camp on Wednesday, Diggs will be on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, according to the Dallas News.

Diggs is expected to be placed on the physically unable to perform list later this week once the Cowboys report to Southern California, a person with knowledge of the player’s status said. That designation comes as no surprise since the cornerback is just nine months removed from surgery to repair a torn ACL.

Club officials are operating under the belief that Diggs will be ready to play when the team opens the regular season against Cleveland on Sept. 8.

If the Cowboys can get Diggs back in time to start the season, the next challenge is being back to form. Oftentimes ACL injuries allow a player to come back the next season, but the first year back is often not up to the player’s normal level of performance.

If he’s somehow able to match what he was before, Dallas likely has the best cornerback tandem in the league as he’ll play opposite 2023 All-Pro DaRon Bland. Bland set the NFL record for interception returns for touchdowns with five last season, totaling nine in all. He leads the NFL in total interceptions over the last two seasons with 14 total.

Diggs became the first NFL player in 30 years to tally 11 interceptions in a season in 2021.

Criticism of Cowboys’ corners Diggs, Bland overblown, but not without merit

The Cowboys dynamic duo will need to tighten up under Mike Zimmer but not as much as some think, finds @ReidDHanson.

The Cowboys have two of the most thrilling and dynamic cornerbacks in the NFL. Trevon Diggs, who in 2021 posted the first 11-interception season since Everson Walls in 1981, and DaRon Bland, last season’s interception leader (9) and all-time NFL record holder of the most interceptions returned for touchdown in a single season, are possibly the best ballhawks in the game.

Both players have the ability to shift the balance of a contest in a single play and both play with the versatility and confidence required to match up against the best receivers, week after week. In an era where the passing game dictates winners and losers more than any other facet of the game, it’s a tremendously valuable advantage for Dallas to have. However the Cowboys’ dynamic duo isn’t without their warts.

A primary reason the two players have thrived in the turnover department is because they’ve been targeted so freely. And they’ve been targeted because they often allow separation in coverage, leading to a fair number of wide-open catches and big plays for the opposing offense.

When asked to rank the NFL’s secondaries heading into 2024, Pro Football Focus slotted the Cowboys in the middle of the league at No. 13. The reason cited was their boom-or-bust style of play CB because they “give up a ton of separation and big plays for the payoff of the interception.”

As many may recall, Diggs infamously broke the grading scale in 2021 when he posted his All-Pro season. From a film study perspective, the separation he allowed was impossible to ignore, even if he limited opponents to decisively negative EPA/play when targeted. His film graded 80th in a pool of 116 CBs that season shedding light on everything that was wrong with traditional grading such as PFF’s and other scouting agencies’.

PFF recently hailed Darius Slay as the separation stopping king of 2023. At a tight coverage rate of 35.0% Slay finished No. 1 in the NFL in reducing separation. Yet in an act that almost seems contradictory to the Diggs-Bland critique, PFF only gave this their separation stopping king a 65.4 coverage grade and a No. 55 overall ranking on the CB score chart. Apparently, the tightest coverage in the league wasn’t enough for Slay to score a good film grade.

As if that wasn’t confusing enough, DaRon Bland, who was disparaged for the separation he supposedly allows, graded No. 2 overall in CB grade. It seems as if the narrative didn’t fit the reality because Bland quietly made PFF’s top-10 list in tight coverage rate as well, tying for seventh overall in 2023 at 30.0%.

Unlike Slay, he turned that tight coverage into a positive grade, proving there is much more to the CB position than simply providing tight coverage. It appears the “separation allowed” argument isn’t quite so valid or quite so consequential as it’s made to believe.

That doesn’t mean it isn’t important. And that doesn’t mean Mike Zimmer isn’t going to focus on consistent tight coverage in 2024. In offseason discussions, Zimmer has already prepped Cowboys Nation for a reduction in interception numbers.

The reason Diggs and Bland seemed so boom-or-bust is partially because of the Cowboys system. Dan Quinn employed more of a high-risk, high-reward secondary than Zimmer traditionally plays with. Quinn was willing to give up more plays because he knew his guys would return the favor and take big plays of their own. Zimmer is less inclined to do that.

The system itself is designed to limit big plays. Zimmer plays far more 2-deep safety coverage than Quinn because he likes to keep plays in front of him. It’s reasonable to assume he’s going to ask his dynamic duo to play a little less loose and a little more disciplined in 2024. Whether that’s best for the Cowboys defense or not remains to be seen, but separation is a big deal in his system because separation is directly related to big plays.

But as the numbers show, separation isn’t everything and finding the right balance in coverage is the key to success.

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3 former Alabama CB’s rank among the elites of the NFL in 2024

Former Alabama stars continue to shine in the NFL, and 3 former Tide DBs are among the best in the league.

The Alabama Crimson Tide football program is well-represented in the NFL, with many players being household names and fan favorites due to their high level of play. As the 2024 season approaches, positional rankings continue to prove that Alabama produces some of the best players in the league.

Jared Dubin of CBS Sports recently revealed the top 20 cornerbacks in the NFL ahead of the 2024 regular season. While the list is full of talented players from colleges all across the nation, the Crimson Tide landed three former standouts in the top 20.

RELATED: Recent NFL player rankings prove Alabama is ‘RBU’

No. 12 – Trevon Diggs

Oct 23, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs (7) reacts during the first quarter against the Detroit Lions at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Former Alabama cornerback Trevon Diggs has been stellar in his time with the Dallas Cowboys. He was selected in the second round of the 2020 draft and has made the most of his time in the league. He led the NFL in interceptions in 2021 and is already a two-time Pro Bowl CB.

“Diggs of course is coming off a torn ACL, and might not be at the peak of his powers in 2024,” writes Dubin When last we saw him, though, he had rebounding from being a Bland-esque boom-bust corner into someone who was much more solid in coverage, with his interception total declining but his seeming burnability also going by the wayside. He’s always going to take chances to try to get his hands on the ball, but he had found the proper balance prior to his injury, and should be able to recapture it once back on the field.”

No. 10 – Marlon Humphrey

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - DECEMBER 04: Greg Dulcich #80 of the Denver Broncos comes down with a catch as Marlon Humphrey #44 of the Baltimore Ravens defends in the second quarter at M&T Bank Stadium on December 04, 2022 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
(Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)

Marlon Humphrey is a veteran in the league and has been a key contributor for the Baltimore Ravens since the team drafted him in the first round in 2017.

“Injuries have kept Humphrey from being at the top of his game in several recent seasons, and yet he has still allowed a passer rating over 80 in just two of his seven NFL seasons, and he’s been below 72 in each of the last two years, with only one touchdown allowed against four interceptions. His role in Baltimore changes often, and he can just do absolutely whatever the defensive coordinator asks of him. A truly marvelous player.”

No. 2 – Patrick Surtain II

 

Former Alabama standout cornerback Patrick Surtain II was drafted ninth overall by the Denver Broncos in 2021 and has been a star in the league since his rookie season. Though the Broncos have not been among he league’s best, Surtain is nonetheless one of the biggest overall stars in the NFL due to his consistent high level of play.

“Surtain was disappointed with his own play in 2024, and while it was indeed a down year by his standards, the by his standards part of that sentence is key. He remains a prototype modern corner with the size, speed, length, and agility to cover anyone, anywhere, at any time. He has a chance to challenge for the top spot in any given season.”

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow former Alabama football players in the NFL, as well as any Alabama Football news as the 2024 season approaches.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow AJ Spurr on X @SpurrFM. 

Are the Cowboys really that far from the Jets in secondary rankings?

While the Cowboys’ corners are seen as risk takers, the grades argue against the PFF projections for 2024 dominance. | From @ArmyChiefW3

Pro Football Focus (PFF) is gradually releasing their annual projected rankings for the upcoming 2024 season and their latest list has Dallas falling out of the top 10 secondary rankings a year after coming in sixth.

PFF ranked Dallas as the 13th best in the NFL and a comparison against the top rated teams reveal the Cowboys may need a mulligan.

In a brief overview, according to PFF, the surprising development for the Cowboys fall is largely due to the departure of veteran cornerback Stephon Gilmore, who remains a free agent.

Despite this, the Cowboys’ secondary boasts formidable players in corners DaRon Bland and Trevon Diggs. However, both are known for their high-risk, high-reward play styles, often allowing significant separation and big plays in exchange for potential interceptions.

This boom-or-bust approach results in a net positive overall but negatively impacts their grading and rankings, highlighting a need for more consistency. In comparison, the top-ranked Jets present a stark contrast.

Cowboys fans may see things a bit differently.

The Jets returning four starters is a bit misleading. Presumed starting safety Chuck Clark tore his ACL last season and has yet to play a down for the team. His counterpart, safety Tony Adams, fared decently with a 68.0 grade.

In Dallas, safety Donovan Wilson is the type of player who could excel in the new defensive scheme. His 68.0 PFF grade is identical to New York’s Adams, the only Jets safety without a question mark.

The Jets’ third safety, Ashtyn Davis, earned a 74.7 PFF grade. He also had nine games where he played less than double-digit downs on defense. Behind him, the four other bodies the Jets employ have played a combined 4 defensive snaps in the NFL including three rookies – none taken before the sixth round of the draft.

Dallas on the other hand returns the PFF’s 13th-highest rated overall safety in Malik Hooker, who is also the highest rated safety amongst both teams with a 77.3 grade.

The Cowboys will also welcome safety turned linebacker Markquese Bell back to his original position a well. Bell was moved to the second level to assist a thin group. He finished the season with a 76.8 overall grade and an impressive 5.7% incompletion rate.

Bell’s 83.5 coverage grade ranked sixth amongst all NFL linebackers.

Cowboys reserve safety Juanyeh Thomas has generated buzz in Cowboys circles and recorded an 81.1 PFF grade in 2023. His 192 defensive snaps in a reserve role are just below the 218 snaps the Jets Davis recorded as a supposed returning starter.

Advantage, Dallas.

On the outside, the 2023 All Pro team consisted of two starting cornerbacks in the Cowboys’ DaRon Bland and the Jets Sauce Gardner. Bland (89.5) graded out higher than Gardners 88.6 in 2023.

Gardner has two career interceptions while Bland recorded nine interceptions including an NFL record five pick-six’s in a single season. This is a year after he notched 5 interceptions in his rookie season.

That pits Cowboys All Pro cornerback Trevon Diggs, who is retuning from an ACL tear, against Jets corner D.J. Reed. Diggs played in only two games before his injury yet his 80.7 grade suggests he was well on his way to another great season.

Reed has played in 15 games and finished the season with a 77.9 grade. In six seasons, the 5-foot-9 corner has yet to make a Pro Bowl. Diggs, on the other hand, is a two time Pro Bowler and was selected to the All Pro team in 2021. Circumstances may make the comparison amongst the starting corners a push.

That leaves the reserve corners in a battle for supremacy.

Cowboys slot corner Jourdan Lewis returned from a serious foot injury and played a below-average season with a 52.5 PFF grade. Rookie fifth round  corner Caelen Carson joins second-year corner Eric Scott, who did notsee a snap in 2023, as the next in line to play.

This is where Dallas may miss Gilmore.

In his third season, Jets slot corner Michael Carter II posted an impressive 80.4 PFF grade but like the others in New York, has only two career interceptions. New York added cornerback Isaiah Oliver who posted a 67.7 in San Francisco last season.

Behind him, cornerback Brandin Echols had three high volume games in 2023 and nine others where he played less than 10 defensive snaps. The rest is unknown with three rookies drafted in the fifth round or later.

Dallas has the better starting cornerback duo and is better and deeper at safety while New York employs two starting caliber slot corners and a fifth corner with some experience.

The Jets take this round and highlights the authors view of how big of a loss Gilmore is for Dallas.

Ultimately, the Jets have smaller separation gaps in coverage yet fail to generate the type of turnovers that gain notoriety. Dallas on the other hand has gambled with coverage but their payoff has been astronomical. PFF seems to think that risk taking will eventually burn Dallas more than it helps, despite their grades saying it hasn’t yet.

Cowboys’ Trevon Diggs once again will have to prove NFL value in 2024

Trevon Diggs repeatedly gets dogged in the media and will once again be forced to prove his value to the NFL, finds @ReidDHanson.

Ever since his first interception in the NFL, Trevon Diggs has been a lightning rod for criticism at the cornerback position. Frequently flowing between in-phase and out-of-phase coverage, Diggs isn’t afraid to give up separation, receptions and yardage in his pursuit of game-breaking interceptions.

As a converted collegiate receiver, Diggs has a natural “the ball is mine” mentality and unwavering confidence in his ability to make great plays come from seemingly poor coverage. It’s this style of play that has baffled coaches, analysts, and film nerds alike and it’s this style of play that continues to cast shade on the Cowboys All-Pro CB.

The Athletic recently ran a redraft of the 2020 class. They broke down the class position by position and picked which order the players would be picked today if teams could do things over again. Diggs, drafted eighth in his position group originally, moved up four spots in the redraft to come in fourth amongst his peers.

Jaylon Johnson, A.J. Terrell and L’Jarius Sneed ranked above Diggs in the redraft, fanning the flames of disrespect and once again calling for Diggs to silence doubters across the league.

In all fairness, Johnson, Terrell and Snead are elite CBs in the NFL and deserve every bit of praise they’ve received in their journey. But Diggs is arguably the most talented ballhawk the NFL has seen in years and the benefits gained by his untraditional style of play have far outweighed the costs.

The reason Diggs has so many detractors across the NFL is because the style in which he plays. Where most CBs focus on technique and minimizing separation, Diggs plays things more naturally, willing to fall out-of-phase in coverage because he knows he has an uncanny ability to get back in-phases at a moment’s notice. It’s this that caused traditional grading sources like Pro Football Focus to rework their grading process and this that has caused so many wildly opposing evaluations of his game.

It should be telling, Nick Saban, a certified cornerback guru and unbending taskmaster, nurtured Diggs’ loose playing style during their time together at Alabama. He saw the good outweighed the bad and was willing to live with any negative consequences. In case anyone is wondering, that’s significantly out of character for Saban.

It’s been the same thing in Dallas under Dan Quinn. Quinn saw the potential for game-changing turnovers and was willing to give up yardage along the way if it gave the offense a few extra possessions by way of interceptions.

Coming off an ACL injury suffered in Week 3 of last season, Diggs will have to remind the NFL exactly who he is and what he brings to the table. He only has four total interceptions since his breakout 11-interception season in 2021. He’s playing under a new defensive coordinator in Mike Zimmer and will be in Year 1 of an enormous five-year extension he signed last offseason.

It seems Diggs will have to prove his doubters wrong once again.

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Giants WR Malik Nabers incidentally sparks a beef with Cowboys’ Trevon Diggs

Cowboys CB Trevon Diggs had a message for WR Malik Nabers, who looks forward to facing him: New York Giants been getting belt for years now.

New York Giants rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers isn’t short on confidence, and he’s shown no reason why he should be.

Nabers has been electric in practice, wowing onlookers with Odell Beckham-like catches and impressive route running. First impressions would suggest he’s got all the necessary drive and athletic talent to become a dynamic, game-changing wide receiver.

And like most other talented wide receivers, Nabers looks forward to challenging the league’s top cornerbacks.

“Trevon Diggs,” Nabers said when asked by Bleacher Report who he can’t wait to match up against.

The Dallas Cowboys corner got wind of Nabers’ answer earlier this week and was quick to reply on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Unfortunately for the Giants, Diggs isn’t wrong. The Cowboys have beaten Big Blue in six straight games, 13 of the last 14, and 18 of the last 22. And many of those contests haven’t been particularly close.

But 2024 breeds new optimism for the Giants and their underwhelming offense. Is Nabers and an improved offensive line enough to return them to respectability? Can they finally strike back in their rivalry against Diggs and the Cowboys?

That question will be answered on Thursday night in Week 4 when Nabers gets his first crack at Diggs.

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Commanders DC Joe Whitt Jr. gives his early impressions of cornerback Emmanuel Forbes

Whitt says he’s pleased with Forbes’ work throughout this offseason.

Washington Commanders cornerback Emmanuel Forbes has been a popular player to discuss this offseason. Some fans have already determined last year’s first-round draft pick is a bust.

Forbes had a miserable rookie year for Washington under the previous coaching staff. He was benched multiple times, and it looked like that former head coach Ron Rivera had given up on him.

When he was introduced as the new defensive coordinator in February, Joe Whitt. Jr said he liked Forbes coming out of Mississippi State. Head coach Dan Quinn loves Forbes’ skill set, saying his ability to create turnovers is his “superpower.”

The biggest knock on Forbes is his size. Some believe he’s too skinny to succeed in the NFL. Quinn said Forbes worked hard to add size in the offseason.

What has Whitt thought of Forbes thus far?

“I’ve seen a young man every day getting better, getting used to my hard coaching,” Whitt said. He’s a kid that has a really good skill set, just like the rest of the young guys, he’s out there working his butt off, and I’ve been pleased with him.”

Quinn and Whitt have a history of getting the most out of cornerbacks. Trevon Diggs and DaRon Bland thrived under their coaching in Dallas, each leading the interceptions once. Forbes is known for his ability to force turnovers from his time at Mississippi State.

Forbes has worked with the return team this spring. Relax. So have several others. Forbes working with the return team doesn’t mean he’s not in Quinn’s plans. It’s all about finding what each guy does best. If Forbes doesn’t begin the season as a starter at cornerback, it doesn’t mean he can’t eventually get there.

Forbes is at a crossroads in the 2024 season. He appears up to the challenge. The next step is translating it to the field this fall.

Cowboys’ Trevon Diggs on Giants’ commemorative uniforms: ‘Eww’

Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevor Diggs is no fan of the New York Giants’ “Century Red” uniforms.

The New York Giants unveiled their “Century Red” alternate uniforms celebrating their 100th season last week, and to say the reception was less than positive would be an understatement.

Despite the historical significance (and accuracy) of the uniforms, the Giants have been chided by anyone and everyone.

Viktor, the Minnesota Vikings mascot, was among the many to poke fun at the Giants.

“They stopped wearing these for a reason,” the character wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

But Viktor wasn’t the only opponent throwing shade. Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs also chimed in, simply writing, “Eww.”

Although the Giants are proud of the throwbacks, it’s clear that the opinion is not shared by many — opponents and fans alike.

The Giants are expected to wear their “Century Red” uniforms at least twice during the 2024 regular season, but those dates and games have not yet been announced.

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