One sliver of good news from the Week 6 recap press conference at The Star on Monday came from Dallas Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer, when he said that injured cornerback Cobie Durant, who has been trying to return from a hamstring injury, was moving in the right direction as far as getting on the field this week. Schottenheimer said that Durant is “trending up” and while hamstrings are notoriously finicky, it does appear that Durant will play if he can get through a practice or two without any trouble. What that means for cornerbacks Shavon Revel and DeRon Bland could be the real intrigue.
Cowboys Made Changes in Cobie Durant’s Absence
Durant started the first two games of the season for the Cowboys, on the opposite boundary from Bland, with Revel listed as a potential starter in both games. Much has happened since Durant went out, though. The Cowboys brought in Joey Porter Jr., who has immediately staked a claim as the top cornerback in the room.
Meanwhile, both Revel and Bland have convincingly proven that their injury-related struggles last season are still lingering here a year later–at Pro Football Focus, Revel is rated the No. 98 corner in the NFL, out of 104, while Bland is No. 92.
With Porter’s arrival, Bland has held his post as the top cover man on the opposite sideline–in fact, he has played a team-high 400 snaps, fourth-most of any corner in the NFL. It is fair to wonder if that should hold. Durant was not a lockdown corner in the two games he played, but he is an upgrade over Bland and probably should start ahead of him–except the fact that Durant has a four-year, $90 million contract to justify.
The Cowboys will reveal much when they decide who starts once Durant returns–the guy who deserves it, Durant, or the guy who is being overpaid, Bland.
Shavon Revel, DeRon Bland Roles in Jeopardy
Speaking on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas on Tuesday, Cowboys writer Tommy Yarrish indicated that the expectation is that Durant’s return will, at least, knock Revel out of the CB rotation. Perhaps Bland will come later.
“It feels like it. I think they will still probably have one more body, because we saw Revel and Ameer Speed both play a good chunk in that game,” Yarrish said.
“Part of that was because Porter got hurt, but I would look at that lost spot and say it’s Revel or Speed and those guys are probably going to battle it out for it. … Revel has got some work to do. He has not played up to what he would be wanting to play for, or what the Cowboys would certainly hope he would play up for. He has had his moments but Sunday night was not his best night. If Durant comes back, tough decisions need to be made in the corner room.”
Cowboys Face ‘Tough Decision’ on Returning Starter