Injuries alter the makeup of NFL teams during every season. Often, the bad news comes even before meaningful games begin.
Such is the case for the 2024 Dallas Cowboys, who on Saturday announced All-Pro cornerback DaRon Bland would miss the start of the regular season after undergoing surgery to repair a stress fracture in his foot. Recovery will sideline Bland for about six to eight weeks, the team said, a time frame that will extend well beyond the Sept. 8 opener.
The Cowboys envisioned starting Bland at outside cornerback opposite two-time Pro Bowler Trevon Diggs, with veteran Jourdan Lewis cover slot receivers at nickelback. Now, Bland will likely begin the season on injured reserve and Dallas will need to look deeper down its depth chart — or outside of it — for a replacement. Here’s a breakdown of paths they could take to identify a new starting cornerback:
IN-HOUSE OPTIONS
If the Cowboys stay within their own building to replace Bland, fifth-round rookie cornerback Caelen Carson stands as a logical option. Carson has impressed in training camp, but a move to the starting lineup would require a large leap for the 22-year-old from Wake Forest.
Carson does have an example to follow in hopes of rocketing toward NFL success. Bland was a fifth-round pick himself in 2022 and then led the NFL with nine interceptions and five defensive touchdowns in 2023.
Andrew Booth, Eric Scott and Kemon Hall are other Cowboys cornerbacks who’ve made impressive plays this preseason, and they suddenly face a more open lane to a role in the team’s regular-season secondary. But none of the corners on the team’s roster outside of Diggs and Lewis have extensive NFL experience.
FREE AGENTS
With the regular season close, few established cornerbacks remain available in free agency. Stephon Gilmore, who started for the Cowboys last year, signed with the Vikings last weekend, taking a viable option off the market.
The names of veteran cornerbacks who do remain unsigned include Xavien Howard, Jalen Mills, Adoree’ Jackson, JC Jackson, Eli Apple and Patrick Peterson.
Peterson is an especially intriguing name because he played for the Minnesota Vikings in 2021, the final year of Mike Zimmer’s head coaching tenure. Zimmer is now the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator.
OTHER ROSTERS
NFL roster cutdowns are looming, so the Cowboys can try to scour the players released from other teams or strike a trade to bolster their defensive backfield.
The deadline for teams to trim their roster from 90 players to 53 is 3 p.m. CDT on Tuesday, and waiver claims for released players are due at noon Wednesday. It’ll be a busy time in the league — especially for teams like the Cowboys suddenly in need of filling a hole in the starting lineup.