The Dallas Cowboys are hosting the rival New York Giants for an NFC East showdown in Week 2. With both teams looking for their first win of the season, Cowboys fans are hoping for all hands on deck; however, that won't be the case after head coach Brian Schottenheimer revealed that his squad will be without cornerback DaRon Bland.
Per The Athletic's Jon Machota, Bland (foot) won't be playing on Sunday, but Schottenheimer didn't give a timeframe for his return. Instead, he said, “I’m not gonna put a timetable on it,” adding to the standout ballhawk's uncertain future.
Cowboys CB DaRon Bland Will Miss Week 2 vs. Giants
Bland suffered this injury during Monday's practice and was even seen in a boot at the facility this week. This isn't what Dallas wants to see, especially since Dallas signed Bland to a four-year, $92 million extension with the team in August.
The Cowboys planned on him being a staple in their secondary, particularly since Trevon Diggs is still ramping up after offseason knee surgery.
Dallas doesn't have the best depth in the secondary either, and Schottenheimer expects to use some safeties in the slot to take some reps. Joseph Hoyt of the Dallas News also pointed out that Reddy Steward is a player who could be asked to step in for Bland in the nickel.
They don't know exactly how they plan to replace Bland in this outing, and it appears like it'll be a committee approach.
Nonetheless, Bland missed 10 games last season with a stress fracture in his foot. Now fast forward to this season, and he's slated to miss time once again. That isn't ideal, as they planned on leaning on the secondary more this season after trading star pass rusher Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers last month.
It'll be interesting to see how long Bland will be sidelined for. The Cowboys want him back on the field as soon as possible, but the fact that they didn't want to put a timetable on how many games he'll miss doesn't sound good.
Cowboys EVP and CEO Stephen Jones was a guest on San Antonio’s Sports Star on Thursday and expressed the team's hopes it's a two-to-three week absence. That seems to be the best-case scenario, but Dallas will need several other players to get up and fill in the void.
Getting a win against an NFC East rival will help Cowboys fans forget about Bland's injury, but this is certainly something to keep an eye on going forward.