There won’t be any “Yo Momma” jokes about gardening tools here, that’s for sure. The tool, in this case a pick, is more valuable than the gardener as the NFL continues their Top 100 player list rollout with numbers 40 through 31. The Dallas Cowboys have had just one player named thus far, with Zack Martin checking in at No. 53. That’s a little wild considering the play of DeMarcus Lawrence and the fact that Trevon Diggs is expected back for a full season and he ranked 60th and 23rd entering the prior two seasons.
Their total should rise considerably in the next few days, starting with Tuesday’s announcement that cornerback DaRon Bland placed No. 31. His placement comes with him landing ahead of the more renowned cornerback of the New York Jets, Sauce Gardner.
Gardner is widely considered the top young corner in the game, rightfully anointed based off collegiate film and draftnik takes. However there’s always going to be Day 3 guys who were slept on for whatever reason who end up making just as big of a name for themselves. That’s Bland, the 2022 fifth-round pick who followed up an impressive rookie campaign with five interceptions in just half a season, by leading the league in picks (9).
More importantly is what Bland did once he got the ball, setting the NFL all-time record with five touchdowns, making him the Pick-6 King.
The NFL’s pick-six king ranks just one spot off the number of points he scored last season. Dallas’ defense easily could have folded after cornerback Trevon Diggs tore his ACL during a Week 3 practice. Instead, players like Bland stepped up to power a fifth-ranked scoring unit. The second-year CB led the league with nine interceptions, and he set an NFL single-season record during a Thanksgiving Day blowout in which he dazzled with his fifth pick-six of the year.
Bland isn’t slowing down, either, as he may have taken a step forward with accolades from training camp raining in from all onlookers.
Dallas will likely end up with five players in the top 60, with Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and Micah Parsons having yet to be named, with a possible sixth if left guard Tyler Smith is valued league-wide the way he should be.