Darqueze Derrell Dennard (born October 10, 1991) is an
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
cornerback
A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...
who is a free agent. He played
college football at
Michigan State
Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
and was drafted by the
Cincinnati Bengals in the first round of the
2014 NFL Draft. Dennard won the
Jim Thorpe Award
The Jim Thorpe Award, named in memory of multi-sport athlete Jim Thorpe, has been awarded to the top defensive back in college football since 1986. It is voted on by the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame. In 2017, the award became sponsored by Payco ...
in 2013 as the best defensive back in college football.
Early years
Dennard attended
Twiggs County High School in
Jeffersonville, Georgia
The city of Jeffersonville is the largest city and county seat of Twiggs County, Georgia, United States. The population was 1,035 at the 2010 census, down from 1,209 in 2000.
Jeffersonville is part of the Macon Metropolitan Statistical Area.
...
, where he was a letterman in football,
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
, and track. In
high school football
High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...
, he played
defensive back and
wide receiver. As a senior, he had 40 receptions for 502 yards and 11
touchdowns
A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Amer ...
on offense and 50 tackles and nine
interceptions with two touchdowns on defense.
In
track & field
Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...
, Dennard competed as a
sprinter. He was the runner-up in the
100-meter dash at the 2010 GHSA 1A State Championships, recording a personal-best time of 10.72 seconds.
Considered a two-star recruit by
ESPN.com
ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN. It is owned by ESPN Internet Ventures, a division of ESPN Inc.
History
Since launching in April 1995 as ESPNET.SportsZone.com (ESPNET SportsZone), the website has developed numerous sections including ...
, Dennard was listed as the #166 wide receiver in the nation in 2010.
College career
Dennard accepted an athletic scholarship to attend
Michigan State University, where he played for coach
Mark Dantonio's
Michigan State Spartans football
The Michigan State Spartans football program represents Michigan State University (MSU) in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level. The Spartans are members of the Big Ten Conference. Michigan State claims ...
team from
2010 to
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...
.
As a true freshman in 2010, Dennard played in six games with two starts, missing five games due to injury. As a sophomore in 2011, he played in 11 games, missing two due to injury, he finished the season with 42 tackles and three interceptions, two which came against
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
in the
Outback Bowl
The ReliaQuest Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, usually on New Year's Day. The event has been formerly called the Hall of Fame Bowl from 1986 to 1995 and the Outback Bowl from 1996 to ...
. As a junior in 2012, he started all 13 games, recording 52 tackles and three interceptions. He was a first-team All-
Big Ten
The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
selection. As a senior in 2013, he recorded 62 tackles and four interceptions and won the
Jim Thorpe Award
The Jim Thorpe Award, named in memory of multi-sport athlete Jim Thorpe, has been awarded to the top defensive back in college football since 1986. It is voted on by the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame. In 2017, the award became sponsored by Payco ...
.
Professional career
Coming out of Michigan State, Dennard was a projected consensus first round pick by NFL draft experts and scouts. He received an invitation to the NFL combine as a top prospect and chose to only run the 40-yard dash, 20-yard dash, 10-yard dash, and perform the bench press. His time in the 40-yard dash (4.51) was the 13th best among all qualifying cornerbacks. NFL draft analyst
Mike Mayock stated that Dennard would have to run a 4.45 or lower in the 40 to be considered a top ten overall pick. Dennard said that he was unable to complete all the combine drills due to unforeseen circumstances that limited him. On March 7, 2014, Dennard chose to participate at Michigan State's pro day, along with
Max Bullough,
Denicos Allen,
Bennie Fowler,
Dan France
Daniel Joseph France (born April 1, 1991) is an American football offensive tackle who is currently a free agent. He played college football at Michigan State. He was originally signed by the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent in 20 ...
,
Fou Fonoti
Fouimalo "Fou" Fonoti (born November 15, 1991) is an American football offensive lineman who is currently a free agent. Fonoti first enrolled at Cerritos College before transferring to Michigan State University. He has also been a member of the ...
,
Tyler Hoover,
Andrew Maxwell
Andrew Maxwell (born 3 December 1974) is an Irish comedian and narrator, known for narrating the MTV reality series '' Ex on the Beach''.
Career
In 1992, Maxwell tried stand-up comedy for the first time at the Comedy Cellar at The Internation ...
, and nine other teammates. He opted to perform the vertical jump, broad jump, short shuttle, three-cone, and positional drills. He was ranked the top cornerback prospect in the draft by NFLDraftScout.com, CBSSports.com, and ''
Sports Illustrated
''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twi ...
''. He was also ranked the second best cornerback by NFL analyst Mike Mayock.
Cincinnati Bengals
The
Cincinnati Bengals selected Dennard in the first round (24th overall) of the
2014 NFL Draft. He was the third cornerback taken in the 2014 NFL Draft, behind
Justin Gilbert
Justin Rodrell Gilbert (born November 7, 1991) is an American football cornerback for the Sioux City Bandits of Champions Indoor Football (CIF). He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns with the eighth pick in the 2014 NFL Draft after playing col ...
(8th overall,
Browns) and
Kyle Fuller (14th overall,
Bears
Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Nor ...
).
2014
On June 12, 2014, the Bengals signed Dennard to a four-year, $7.97 million contract that includes $6.47 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $4.12 million.
Dennard joined a deep position group upon his arrival at training camp and competed with
Adam Jones,
Terence Newman,
Leon Hall
Leon Lastarza Hall (born December 9, 1984) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football for the University of Michigan, and earned consensus All-American honors. Hall was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the first rou ...
, and
Dre Kirkpatrick
D'Andre Lawan "Dre" Kirkpatrick (born October 26, 1989) is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He played college football at the University of Alabama and was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the first round of the 2012 NF ...
for the job as the starting cornerback. Kirkpatrick, Newman, Hall, and Jones were all first round picks in the NFL draft themselves. Head coach
Marvin Lewis named Dennard the Cincinnati Bengals' fifth cornerback on their depth chart behind Newman, Hall, Jones, and Kirkpatrick to start the regular season.
On September 14, 2014, Dennard made his professional regular season debut for the
Cincinnati Bengals and made one tackle during their 24–10 over the
Atlanta Falcons. The next game, he recorded a season-high three solo tackles and made the first sack of his career on
Tennessee Titans' quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
Jake Locker
Jacob Cooper Locker (born June 15, 1988) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football at the University of Washington, and was drafted by the Tennessee Titans eighth overall in the 2011 NFL Draft.
A backup during his e ...
during the Bengals' 33–7 victory. He saw limited playing time behind the host of a talented veterans during his rookie season and finished with only 17 combined tackles (14 solo), one pass deflection, and one sack in 14 games and zero starts. He was limited to only 41 defensive snaps as a rookie in .
The Bengals finished the 2014 season second in the
AFC North with a 10-5-1 record. On January 4, 2015, Dennard appeared in his first career playoff game and collected two solo tackles and forced a fumble to set up a touchdown during a 10–26 AFC Wildcard loss to the
Indianapolis Colts.
2015
Dennard returned to the Cincinnati Bengals' training camp in and competed with Leon Hall, Dre Kirkpatrick, Adam Jones, and
Josh Shaw for the position as one of the starting cornerbacks. He was named the fourth cornerback on their depth chart to begin the season, behind Jones, Kirkpatrick, and Hall.
In the
Bengals' season-opener against the
Oakland Raiders, Dennard recorded five solo tackles and defended a pass in a 33–13 victory. During a Week 4 matchup against the
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division.
The ...
, he earned a season-high six combined tackles and deflected a pass, as the Bengals won their fourth consecutive game 36–21. On October 18, 2015, Dennard made a tackle and his first career interception after picking off a pass attempt by
E. J. Manuel
Erik Rodriguez "EJ" Manuel Jr. (born March 19, 1990) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football at Florida State, leading the Seminoles to an ACC championship and Orange Bowl win in his senior year, and was drafted by ...
during the Bengals' 34–21 victory. On November 22, 2015, he earned the first start of his career and made two solo tackles in a 31-34 loss to the
Arizona Cardinals. He started in place of Adam Jones who was unable to play due to a foot injury, but was unable to finish the contest after suffering a shoulder injury. On November 27, 2015, the Cincinnati Bengals officially placed him on injured reserve for the remainder of the season after discovering he had torn
ligaments
A ligament is the fibrous connective tissue that connects bones to other bones. It is also known as ''articular ligament'', ''articular larua'', ''fibrous ligament'', or ''true ligament''. Other ligaments in the body include the:
* Peritoneal l ...
in his right shoulder that would require surgery. Dennard finished the 2015 season with 20 combined tackles (14 solo), three pass deflections, and an interception in ten games and one start.
2016
Dennard recovered from his shoulder surgery in time for Cincinnati Bengals' training camp and competed with Adam Jones, Dre Kirkpatrick, Josh Shaw, and rookie
William Jackson III. Head coach Marvin Lewis named Dennard the third cornerback on the Bengals' depth chart to begin the season.
In Week 4, he made his first start of the season and recorded four tackles during a 22–7 win against the
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...
. On November 27, 2016, Dennard made a season-high eight combined tackles, as the Bengals 14–19 loss at the
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...
. He finished the season with 47 combined tackles (32 solo) and a pass deflection in 15 games and three starts.
2017
On April 28, 2017, the Bengals picked up the fifth-year option on Dennard's rookie contract that was to pay him a salary of $8.52 million for .
He competed with Adam Jones, Dre Kirkpatrick, Josh Shaw, and William Jackson III in training camp for the job as a starting cornerback. Dennard was named the Bengals' third cornerback on their depth chart behind Jones and Kirkpatrick for the second consecutive season.
He started the
Cincinnati Bengals' season-opener against the
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...
and collected four combined tackles and deflected a pass during their 0–20 loss. On September 24, 2017, Dennard recorded a career-high ten combined tackles and sacked
Aaron Rodgers during a 24–27 loss to the
Green Bay Packers. During a Week 4 matchup against the
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...
, he recorded four combined tackles and a sack on
DeShone Kizer
DeShone Allen Kizer (born January 3, 1996) is an American football quarterback who has played in the National Football League (NFL) for four seasons. He played college football at Notre Dame and was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the secon ...
as the Bengals earned a 31–7 victory. On October 29, 2017, Dennard tied his career-high with ten combined tackles and defended a pass during a 24–23 win over the
Indianapolis Colts He finished the season playing in all 16 games, starting six, recording a career-high 85 tackles, six passes defensed, and two interceptions.
2019
On March 21, 2019, Dennard re-signed with the Bengals. He was placed on the reserve/
physically unable to perform list (PUP) on August 31, 2019. He was activated from the PUP list on October 18, 2019.
Atlanta Falcons
Dennard signed with his hometown
Atlanta Falcons on August 3, 2020.
In Week 3 against the
Chicago Bears, Dennard recorded his first interception as a Falcon during the 30–26 loss. He was placed on injured reserve on September 29, 2020 with a hamstring injury. He was activated on November 7, 2020.
Arizona Cardinals
On June 3, 2021, Dennard signed a one-year contract with the
Arizona Cardinals. He was placed on injured reserve on August 30, 2021. He was released on September 9, 2021.
Indianapolis Colts
On October 20, 2021, Dennard was signed to the
Indianapolis Colts practice squad. He was released on December 21, 2021.
New York Giants
On December 22, 2021, Dennard was signed to the
New York Giants practice squad and released on December 28, 2021.
San Francisco 49ers
On January 4, 2022, Dennard was signed to the
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
practice squad. His contract expired when the team's season ended on January 30, 2022. He re-signed with the team on March 25, 2022. He was released on August 15, 2022.
Personal life
Dennard's last name is pronounced as deh-NARD. This pronunciation differs from that of his
second cousin
Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, ...
,
Alfonzo Dennard, due to a family dispute between Darqueze's mother and father. Alfonzo, who is a cornerback in the Arena Football League, pronounces his last name DENN-erd.
References
External links
Atlanta Falcons bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dennard, Darqueze
1991 births
Living people
People from Twiggs County, Georgia
People from Jeffersonville, Georgia
Players of American football from Georgia (U.S. state)
All-American college football players
American football cornerbacks
Michigan State Spartans football players
Cincinnati Bengals players
Atlanta Falcons players
Arizona Cardinals players
Indianapolis Colts players
New York Giants players
San Francisco 49ers players