"I mean, I think about it always, you know?" he said. "That's probably one of my best years, so I'm really trying to just hone in on being back to myself and knowing what I could take the good and the bad from it."
The Pro Bowler and former NFL interceptions leader has only one interception since that iconic 2023 campaign, playing a total of roughly just one season's worth of games in the two years that followed, the aforementioned foot issue costing him both time and explosiveness.
The latter is back, and the former will tell the tale of if he can remain healthy, but he's already hearing from offensive and defensive players about exactly how back he actually looks.
"They can tell the difference between last year and this year," said Bland.
So far, so good for Bland in Oxnard, and his biggest test awaits, effective Sept. 13, when he and the Cowboys kick off the regular season and look to put the New York Giants the bed in the City That Never Sleeps.