Trevon Diggs off PUP list, Cowboys to work CB back slowly

OXNARD, Calif. -- As the Dallas Cowboys continue to wait for All-Pro wide receiver CeeDee Lamb to agree to a contract extension, they welcomed back All-Pro cornerback Trevon Diggs to practice Tuesday.

Diggs was activated off the physically unable to perform list, but the Cowboys will work him in slowly as he returns from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee that he suffered before the third game of last season.

"We'll get him into the jog-throughs and the teaching drills [as] the first step," coach Mike McCarthy said, "and then we'll see how we progress into individual [drills]."

Diggs signed a five-year, $97 million extension last July but played in only the first two games before getting injured in practice. He still managed to intercept a pass and force a fumble that led to a touchdown.

In 2021, Diggs led the NFL in interceptions, becoming the first Cowboy to do so since Everson Walls in 1981. He also picked off a pass in the first seven games of that season and was named a first team All Pro. He was named to the Pro Bowl in 2022 as well.

With Diggs out, DaRon Bland led the NFL with nine interceptions and set a league record by returning five for touchdowns.

With Diggs and Bland, the Cowboys say they have one of the best cornerback tandems in the league.

"He's such a playmaker," McCarthy said. "Obviously his ability to go get the football, get his hands on the football, the challenging of the receiver, the matchups, all of that, we missed all of his game. And I think where he is in his career, his value speaks for itself."