Assessing DaRon Bland and the Cowboys trapdoor contract

It feels like it was forever ago that cornerback DaRon Bland was wowing the football world with his historic pick-six performance that altered the record books (five in a season), and put some added excitement into the Dallas Cowboys’ 2023 season. In reality, only two years have passed, but a lot has changed since. Bland has been hurt in each of the last two seasons, and the Cowboys haven’t made the playoffs since. Sad face emoji.

While things have fallen a bit, the team still rewarded their young corner with a four-year, $90 million extension last summer, showing no concern about the foot injury and hoping more of the good stuff was to come.

At the time, the Bland signing felt like the team was hedging its bet from the uncertainty that Trevon Diggs brought. That ultimately looked pretty smart considering that Diggs faded quickly and found himself off the team before the season even concluded last year, and he remains unemployed. But the pivot to Bland hasn’t necessarily been a breath of fresh air, as another injury-riddled season has put a similar dark cloud over his future with the team.

To gain a better understanding of this unsavory cornerback investment talk, we want to run through some details and get a real sense of what lies ahead. First off, let’s talk contract.

Signing his new deal last year made him the fifth-highest paid corner in terms of average salary at $22.5 million. While that seems high, he actually fits into the third tier of high-priced corners following the top guys around $30 million (Trent McDuffie, Ahmad Gardner, and Derek Stingley Jr.) and the next level guys around $25 million (Jaycee Horn and Patrick Surtain II). He is more grouped with the $20 million guys (Jalen Ramsey, A.J. Terrell, Denzel Ward, and Marlon Humphrey).

He’s closer to the 20th-highest-paid corner than he is to the top guys. And it gets better when you look at total guarantees. Bland sits under $50 million, while most other Top-10 paid corners exceed $70 million, $80 million, or reach $100 million like the recently paid Trent McDuffie. Bottom line is that the front office was a little more cautious when it comes to investing in Bland.

Contract discussions can be a little convoluted, so we’re going to break things down into a very simple year-by-year cumulative cost analysis. You can go to your favorite financial website if you want to learn about his cap hits and roster incentives, but we’re going to keep it simple and give you what’s important, which is the actual cost based on how long they keep him on the roster. He got a four-year extension, so here is a breakdown of what they will end up paying based on how far into that contract he goes.

• One year (2026, his extension actually starts this year), cost = $36.3 million

• Two years (through 2027), cost = $49.3 million (avg annual cost = $24.6 million)

• Three years (through 2028), cost = $71.4 million (avg annual cost = $23.8 million)

• Four years (through 2029), cost = $90 million (avg annual cost = $22.5 million)

The important thing to remember from this is that they are 100% committed to him this year because his 2026 salary is fully guaranteed. Additionally, they do have a quick, one-year safety valve where they can get out of any future costs before March of next year, but it would mean they would pay a hefty amount for what ultimately would have been just a one-year extension. Starting next offseason, they get a year-by-year assessment of whether they want to keep investing in him. The longer he plays, the lower his average cost becomes.

It behooves both him and the front office for things to work out, so let’s talk about that now. Bland suffered a stress fracture in his foot in 2024, missing 10 games. Last year, he missed another five games and required a second surgery on that same foot. When he did play, he did not resemble the pick-six king he was a couple of years ago, except for that one errant throw by Marcus Mariota. Bland was getting beaten his fair share of times, allowing the fifth-most yards in zone coverage. Sometimes, it was outright embarrassing. If the foot is to blame, a healthy version of him could paint a completely different picture this year.

The team’s most heavily paid corner will have some competition this year. With the slot corner now likely handled by the slew of new safety acquisitions, attention must focus on which guys can best handle the outside. Second-year corner Shavon Revel Jr. is fully healthy now and making noise in training camp. Free agent Cobie Durant is no slouch and will make his case for playing time. We also must consider that some of the young draft investments, like Caelen Carson and this year’s rookie Devin Moore, have something to prove as well. There are some intriguing, albeit unproven, pieces to this cornerback room.

Factor in that the team is hoping they gained a boost in the coaching of their secondary with the additions of new defensive coordinator Christian Parker and assistants Derrick Ansley and Ryan Smith. There is a lot of positivity coming out of camp that a new scheme and some better teachers will greatly improve the strength of the secondary this year. Bland stands to gain from this change in management, but so do others.

The team will have a better sense of where they stand with everyone once actual football begins, meaning that, for all intents and purposes, Bland is entering a de facto contract year, despite just signing an extension last year. The upcoming season is a make-or-break year for Bland. If he masters Parker’s new system and gets past those nagging foot issues, they could once again find themselves with a highlight reel corner, but this time, the good highlights.

If not, contract construction has provided the front office with an opportunity to pull the plug on this extension as Bland’s historic season becomes even more of a distant memory. The only question is, which one of these outcomes is more likely to ring true?