The Dallas Cowboys and Micah Parsons have reportedly not even been negotiating on his new contract extension.
But the Cowboys aren’t totally resting on their laurels. Star cornerback DaRon Bland and Dallas appear to be trending toward a new deal.
Bland told reporters on Tuesday that he and the team have had “some talks” about a contract extension.
He said that he hopes there’s a deal before the season starts.
Bland’s crowning NFL season so far was 2023, when he had nine interceptions. He returned five of those to the end zone for touchdowns.
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His story is pretty darn inspiring, too. Bland had just a single offer out of high school but never stopped believing in himself.
“I was the guy that didn’t have too many offers out of high school,” Bland said. “I had one offer so I went to Sac State, played three years, and then went to Fresno [State] and didn’t start until four games into the season. Just stuff like that. Just keep going. You’ll never know when your opportunity is going to come.”
It’s not exactly clear how much Bland will get paid, but it certainly won’t be chump change.
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The top cornerbacks have gotten in the $90 million total value range. Could Bland top $70 million? It definitely seems that way.
Cowboys fans probably wouldn’t love to see this progress without any deal with Parsons, but at the same time, you’ve gotta take what you can get.
And one contract signed with a defensive star is better than none, even if it’s a bit Bland and not quite the brilliance of Parsons.
Bland is a great option to tide hopeful Dallas fans over until a Parsons deal finally gets on the table.
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