It was a second-and-10 play with just under five minutes to go and the Cowboys already routing the Commanders on Thanksgiving evening when Washington quarterback Sam Howell served up something special for Dallas cornerback DaRon Bland—a floating pass to the left, which Bland stepped in front of at the Cowboys’ 43-yard line, then ran back 57 yards for a pick-6.
This fifth pick-6 of the season, giving him an NFL record, and it’s only Week 12. What was almost as impressive as the record and almost impressive as the run-back—Bland had to make three would-be tacklers miss—was the joy that erupted on the Cowboys sideline. The play was the capper for the big 45-10 win.
“That’s a big moment, let’s be honest. The sideline erupted. We’re very happy, very proud of him,” coach Mike McCarthy said in his postgame presser.
McCarthy was especially taken aback looking at what DaRon Bland has accomplished in just two seasons, as a 24-year-old fifth-round pick in 2022.
“Man, what an incredible play, what he’s done in such a short time in his career,” the coach said. “And he’s such a humble young man. I think if you could just see, I hope you saw it on the sideline and felt it, the reaction itself is something I’ll never forget. Obviously, it is NFL history but the reaction when he came into the locker room. I think it speaks volumes about how people feel, how everybody feels, about him as a man. But man, boy, he sees it and gets it. The return was as good as I’ve seen
In discussing the play after the game, Bland said his teammates had been impressed by his past four pick-6 plays, but that they had not seen one with real return skills. Ah, but DaRon Bland delivered on Thanksgiving, dodging a tackle attempt by Howell and slicing between two Washington wide receivers to slither into the end zone.
Just go, just go,” Bland said of his thought process after making the interception. “It actually was my perfect one just to show my teammates my return skills. They’ve seen all the pick-sixes but they said, we got to see one with return skills. Hopefully, I showed them …
Bland now is on track for an almost certain Pro Bowl bid, and likely an All-Pro spot. He is a history maker. DaRon Bland’s name is now sits above a list that includes Eric Allen of the Eagles (1993), Jim Kearney of the Chiefs (1972) and Ken Houston of the Houston Oilers (1971). Houston and Allen went to the Pro Bowl in their four-pick-6 seasons.
The emergence of Bland for the Cowboys has taken some of the sting out of losing Trevon Diggs for the season to a knee injury. Bland leads the NFL in interceptions with seven, and he currently sits with a Pro Football Focus grade of 91.1 this season, the best in the NFL among cornerbacks.
McCarthy said that Diggs was among the most vocal in celebrating Bland’s record.
“It’s great to see Trevon in there, another man that carries tremendous respect in our locker room. But it’s about opportunity which you have to have in this league,” McCarthy said. “That’s the unfortunate part of this game … DaRon Bland has just, from every opportunity he has been given, he is just so steady, so professional for a young man. His playmaking ability is special
Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA and NFL for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley became Wrigley,” and “Facing Michael Jordan.” More about Sean Deveney
