Cowboys’ Trevon Diggs wins Pro Bowl Best Catch competition as a defender
After teammate Micah Parsons miraculously won the Fastest Man race in the Pro Bowl Skills Competition, Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs was put up against three other Pro Bowl receivers in the Best Catch showdown. Diggs beat out his brother/Buffalo Bills wide receiver Stefon Diggs, Minnesota Vikings WR Justin Jefferson, and Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill.
Like the NBA Dunk Contest, this competition was all about skill and creativity. The showdown was judged by actor Anthony Mackie, Super Bowl XLIII MVP Santonio Holmes, and Super Bowl XLII hero David Tyree. Each player got to do two pre-thought-out catches. The scores were averaged by the three judges and whoever had the biggest total would win it all.
You may be thinking that it’s unfair for a defender to go up against wide receivers, but Trevon was ready for the challenge. Some great catches included Trevon’s brother, Stefon Diggs, taking inspiration from “Bills Mafia” and jumping off a car and catching a ball while landing on and breaking a folding table. Hill tried to mimic Tyree’s famous Super Bowl catch as well.
But it was Trevon who took home the trophy. His first catch was a one-handed, under-the-leg grab. That grab, thrown by Kirk Cousins, was awarded a 96, 100, and 100 from the judges. It gave Trevon the lead going into round two. Then, he brought in a trampoline and pulled this amazing stunt.
https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1489399953445240833?s=20&t=6XD_C1la_yzsUpoa7mfkYg
Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs beats out three wide receivers to win Best Catch at Pro Bowl Skills Competition
Russell Wilson threw Trevon a ball that he caught while upside down in the middle of a front flip. It was amazing. This incredible flipping catch gave Trevon a walk-off victory and a total score average of 198.7. I guess Parsons’ nickname for Trevon, the Eagle, really does make sense. The second-year player can fly.
Back in college at Alabama, Diggs played receiver for part of his career. Then, good ole Nick Saban famously got him to switch to defense. There’s no denying that Trevon knows how to catch. He led the league in interceptions with 11 picks in the regular season. The next closest player, J.C. Jackson, had eight.
But, it still feels like having 11 picks doesn’t necessarily qualify you to be put up against three of the best wide receivers in the entire league. It’s hard to compete with guys who had over 100 receptions this year. Yet, Trevon made it happen.
After the victory, he said, “I had to represent for all my DBs out there. They say that we can’t catch. It’s a new age. We can catch.” This kind of skill has us wondering if Mike McCarthy will be writing up trick plays for Trevon next year. It could add some spark to a struggling passing game. You can catch Trevon Diggs and three other Cowboys in the Pro Bowl game today at 3 pm EST on ESPN.
