Blogging The Boys
The Dallas Cowboys need DaRon Bland to be the best version of himself in 2026.
On Tuesday morning, Cowboys CB DaRon Bland underwent successful surgery on his left foot in Indianapolis in a procedure done by Dr. David Porter.
Bland played 12 games for the Cowboys in 2025 before being placed on injured reserve for the final three games of the year. He also missed Weeks 2 and 3 of the season with a right foot injury that he suffered in practice.
The newest surgery marks the second straight year that Bland has had a procedure done on his left foot. In training camp leading into the 2024 season, Bland suffered a fracture in his left foot, which led to the first surgery. He would go on to return and play seven games that season for Dallas.
Evidently, back-to-back seasons ending in surgery on the same foot is not what Cowboys owner/GM Jerry Jones or anyone wanted for Bland.
“I’m not a doctor… but I don’t like that at all,” Jones said. “I don’t like the sound of that. You have to watch feet, relative to the future.”
In August, the Cowboys signed Bland to a four-year, $92 million extension, two years removed from an All-Pro season where Bland set the NFL record for most pick-sixes in a season with five in 2023.
Despite two straight years of disappointing injury circumstances cutting Bland’s seasons short, Jones and the Cowboys do not regret signing Bland to his extension that keeps him in Dallas long term.
Finding a replacement for Matt Eberflus won’t solve all the defensive problems from last season.
Within the first 10 minutes of the Dallas Cowboys’ season-ending news conference on Jan. 7, Jerry Jones addressed the two biggest reasons they had a second consecutive losing season for the first time in 23 years. As owner and general manager, no one is more responsible.
The first one, Jones brought up on his own: Trading Micah Parsons a week before the season started.
The second, Jones was asked about: Hiring Matt Eberflus as their defensive coordinator.
The two go hand-in-hand in what ended up being a group that allowed an NFL-high and franchise-record 511 points — almost exactly 30 points per game. They also gave up 377 yards per game, third-worst in the league.
To illustrate just how bad it was, look at what MVP candidate and New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye did during the regular season: 4,394 passing yards, 31 touchdown passes, 8 interceptions, a 113.5 passer rating while completing 72 percent of his passes.
Opposing quarterbacks against the Cowboys this season:
4,276 passing yards
35 touchdowns passes
...
