Tag: Darqueze Dennard

Giants sign Dwayne Johnson, Darqueze Dennard to practice squad

The New York Giants have signed DBs Dwayne Johnson and Darqueze Dennard to their practice squad, if you smell what The Rock is cooking.

Finally, Dwayne Johnson has arrived in East Rutherford!

The catch is that it’s Dwayne Johnson Jr., a defensive back from San Diego State and not Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who the New York Giants signed to their practice squad.

In addition to Dwayne “Not The Rock” Johnson, the Giants also signed veteran defensive back Darqueze Dennard to the practice squad.

The 30-year-old Dennard was a first-round pick of the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2014 NFL draft. He spent his first six seasons with Cincy before making stops with the Atlanta Falcons (2020), Arizona Cardinals (2021) and Indianapolis Colts (2021).

In 85 career games (30 starts), Dennard has recorded 310 tackles (228 solo, seven for a loss), three forced fumbles, five QB hits, 3.0 sacks, 27 passes defensed, four interceptions and one touchdown.

Finally, the Giants also activated wide receiver/return man Pharoh Cooper as a COVID-19 replacements.

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Colts sign DE Da’Shawn Hand to the practice squad

The Colts signed DE Da’Shawn Hand to the practice squad.

The Indianapolis Colts signed defensive end Da’Shawn Hand to the practice squad and released cornerback Darqueze Dennard from the practice squad, the team announced Tuesday.

Hand worked out for the Colts on Monday following the team’s huge 27-17 win over the New England Patriots. He joins a defensive end room that consists of Kwity Paye, Al-Quadin Muhammad, Isaac Rochell, Kemoko Turay and Ben Banogu.

Hand, 26, was a fourth-round pick with the Detroit Lions in the 2018 NFL draft. The Alabama product was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team in 2018 when he had 3.0 sacks and four tackles for loss in 13 games (eight starts).

Hand then played in just three games during the 2019 season while dealing with various injuries and appeared in 10 games during the 2020 season. He was released by the Lions on Nov. 30 after appearing in just three games thus far in 2021.

In 29 career games (11 starts), Hand has recorded 54 tackles (39 solo), 3.0 sacks and six tackles for loss.

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Colts protect 3 practice squad players in Week 10

The Colts protected 3 practice squad players in Week 10.

The Indianapolis Colts protected three practice squad players ahead of the Week 10 matchup with the Jacksonville Jaguars, per the league’s transaction wire.

The three players the Colts protected in Week 10 include safety Jahleel Addae, cornerback Darqueze Dennard and quarterback Brett Hundley.

Given the injuries at the safety position, it makes sense the Colts would protect Addae and Dennard. Khari Willis was placed on the injured reserve list and still has two more games before being eligible to return while Julian Blackmon is out for the remainder of the season due to a torn Achilles.

The Colts are expected to see the return of cornerback T.J. Carrie soon as he was designated to return from the injured reserve list on Tuesday but it remains to be seen if that will be this week. There’s a chance he helps out more as a safety than a cornerback given the depth needed there.

As for Hundley, he will remain as the QB3 with rookie Sam Ehlinger taking over backup duties behind Carson Wentz.

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Colts sign CB Darqueze Dennard, S Josh Jones to practice squad

Colts add a pair of DBs to the practice squad.

The Indianapolis Colts signed cornerback Darqueze Dennard and safety Josh Jones to the practice squad, the team announced Wednesday.

With the secondary banged up, the Colts will continue to make moves adding depth to the practice squad. Dennard has been in the league since he was drafted with the No. 24 overall pick in the 2014 NFL draft.

Dennard spent the first six seasons of his career with the Cincinnati Bengals and spent the 2020 season with the Atlanta Falcons. In 85 career games (30 starts), he’s recorded 287 tackles (211 solo), 7.0 tackles for loss, 3.0 sacks, 27 passes defended and four interceptions.

Jones was a second-round pick with the Green Bay Packers in the 2017 NFL draft, spending two seasons with the team that drafted him. He’s also spent time with the Dallas Cowboys (2019) and Jacksonville Jaguars (2020). In 48 career games (25 starts), Jones has recorded 202 tackles (152 solo), 7.0 tackles for loss, 3.0 sacks, eight passes defended and two interceptions.

The Colts also elevated defensive tackle Antwaun Woods from the practice squad to the active roster.

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Ravens bring in two cornerbacks for tryouts on Tuesday

The Ravens brought in two cornerbacks for tryouts on Tuesday

The Baltimore Ravens have been hit hard with injuries at multiple key positions during the 2021 season so far. One area where the team could use some more depth is in the secondary, where they have lost players such as Marcus Peters, Jimmy Smith, Chris Westry and others for extended periods of time. Some of their players have recovered, while others are still awaiting their return to the field or won’t be able to play at all in 2021.

On Tuesday, Baltimore brought in two cornerbacks for tryouts in Darqueze Dennard and Alexander Myers.

Dennard is a former first round pick, as he was selected 24th overall by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2014 draft. He has accumulated 310 total tackles and four interceptions throughout his seven-year career.

Myers has only played in one NFL game, as he has bounced around the league after signing with the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted free agent in 2019.

Lions options for replacing Ifeatu Melifonwu at cornerback

It’s not a good time to need CB help around the NFL, but the Lions are in need with injuries to Melifonwu and OIkudah

Already down one starting cornerback, the Detroit Lions suffered another significant blow in the Week 2 loss to the Green Bay Packers. Rookie CB Ifeatu Melifonwu left Monday night’s game with a lower-body injury that head coach Dan Campbell deemed significant enough to keep Melifonwu out for some time.

Melifonwu rose up to the starting lineup to replace the injured Jeff Okudah, who is out for the year with a torn Achilles suffered in Week 1. Now the Lions are faced with replacing the replacement, no easy task.

Internal options

Bobby Price took over on Monday night in Green Bay. He’s a work in progress, still converting from safety in his second NFL season. Undrafted rookie Jerry Jacobs saw limited action as well and notably committed an obvious defensive pass interference penalty.

Another rookie, AJ Parker, was the bright spot in the secondary in both games so far. He has primarily been in the slot but could kick outside. The Lions do have veteran slot CB Nickell Robey-Coleman on the practice squad. Signing him to the active 53-man roster seems a foregone conclusion.

The Lions did bring in veteran Daryl Worley to the practice squad late last week. He’s another option to get called up to the active roster now that Worley has had time to settle in a little bit. Detroit also has youngster Parnell Motley on the practice squad at CB.

Quinton Dunbar

The Lions acknowledged they were looking at bringing Dunbar back into the den last week, but nothing has materialized to this point. Dunbar signed with the Lions in the offseason and was a projected starter at outside CB before a personal issue forced him away from the team.

Dunbar has a workout scheduled with the Buffalo Bills, so if the Lions are going to act here, it needs to happen swiftly.

External options

The current crop of unsigned veteran free agent CBs isn’t great, but there are a few who merit at least a workout to see if they might fit.

Richard Sherman has made it known he’s ready to return to action. His offseason legal issues complicate matters for the Lions and head coach Dan Campbell’s “no turd” policy, and Sherman, now 33, has battled injury issues for several seasons as well.

Darqueze Dennard carries some name-value recognition as a former first-round pick (Bengals in 2014) from Michigan State. He’s not played like a first-round talent but does have experience and can play either inside or outside.

Another former first-round pick, Gareon Conley, is also still out there. Conley hasn’t played since 2019, spending 2020 on injured reserve. If the 26-year-old is healthy, and that’s a big “if”, he could help in a pinch like the Lions find themselves in right now.

Damarious Randall is yet another former first-rounder (Green Bay in 2015) who could help. He’s primarily played safety in his NFL career but played CB while with Seattle over the summer and has a cornerback background.

Cardinals release CB Darqueze Dennard, OL Marcus Henry from IR

Dennard and Henry get injury settlements, which opens the door to the possibility Dennard could potentially be re-signed later this season.

The Arizona Cardinals had a pair of moves appear on the NFL transaction list on Thursday that they didn’t announce. Cornerback Darqueze Dennard and offensive lineman Marcus Henry were both released from injured reserve with injury settlements.

They now are free to sign with other teams.

Dennard, a veteran signed in the offseason, had a leg injury that, according to Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, would have made him miss time, is now a free agent before the first game of the season is played.

What is potentially interesting in this move is that he could potentially rejoin the Cardinals later in the year should they need cornerback help and should he remain a free agent.

While getting placed on injured reserve before the season begins normally ends a player’s season, it is not unprecedented for the Cardinals to later re-sign a player they released from IR with an injury settlement.

Back in 2015, safety Chris Clemons, who was a core special teams player, was placed on injured reserve and then released with an injury settlement early in the season. He was re-signed in December.

AZCardinals.com’s Darren Urban explained it when Clemons came back.

In short, an injury settlement allows a player to be released from IR and sign anywhere else, and it allows a team to avoid having a player on IR all season (and get paid for sitting out). The settlement is an agreement on both sides on how long whatever the injury might be will take to heal — and then the player is paid as if he remained on the roster that many weeks.

The released player is free to sign anywhere immediately — except back with his own team. In that case, the player can’t return to the original team until the length of the injury settlement has passed, plus six weeks.

So if he would like to return later in the season and the Cardinals have a need for him, that is an option down the road.

As for now, the Cardinals will roll with Byron Murphy, Robert Alford and rookie Marco Wilson as their three starting cornerbacks.

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Cardinals activate DT Jordan Phillips from COVID list, make other roster moves

Phillips had missed much of camp with an injury and then the virus. He is ready to return to practice.

The Arizona Cardinals have been busy making roster moves, both announced and unannounced. One they announced was the return of one of their starting defensive linemen.

Defensive tackle Jordan Phillips was reinstated from the reserve/COVID-19 list to the active roster on Monday. He contracted the virus despite being vaccinated.

He had missed a while in training camp before that with an undisclosed injury but is apparently healthy again. According to AZCardinals.com’s Darren Urban, head coach Kliff Kingsbury said Phillips will be able to practice once he came off the COVID list.

That leaves two players — guard Justin Pugh and cornerback Robert Alford — remaining on the COVID list, although they are expected back this week.

In other roster moves, the Cardinals placed veteran cornerback Darqueze Dennard on injured reserve, which will end his season. They also reached an injury settlement with linebacker Terrance Smith.

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Former Michigan State football CB Darqueze Dennard placed on IR

Darqueze Dennard’s season is over after being placed on IR

Darqueze Dennard’s season is over after being placed on IR by the Arizona Cardinals on Monday afternoon. It is unknown at this time what injury he has suffered.

Dennard was a standout cornerback at Michigan State from 2010-2013 before getting drafted in the first round of the 2014 NFL draft by the Cincinnati Bengals.

Dennard spent 2014-2019 with the Bengals before signing a one year deal with the Atlanta Falcons this past season, and most recently signing with the Arizona Cardinals.

Spartan nation is sure to wish Dennard a speedy recovery.

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3 free agents the Lions could sign before the draft

With the Detroit Lions finalizing their draft board, there are 3 free agents they could sign while not affecting their draft strategy.

With the draft right around the corner, the free-agent market has come to a screeching halt. Teams are more focused on finalizing their draft board at this particular point and then turn sights to free agents afterward with positions they may not have filled through the draft.

The way the Lions have attacked free agency, don’t expect them to sign any players to multi-year deals considering they have only handed it out to a few this offseason, and from the looks of it, they are playing the compensatory game.

The Lions have also shown they are willing to take reclamation projects heading into the season and possibly get something out of them and boost their stock heading into next season like Charles Harris, Corn Elder, and Quinton Dunbar.

Even though there is a strong possibility those after-the-draft free agents not even making the team when it is all said and done, but there are a few free agents who might be able to battle out for one of those coveted roster spots heading into the season for the Lions.

WR Dede Westbrook

Westbrook missed the majority of last season after he tore his ACL after returning a kickoff. Thankfully, his injury occurred early last season, giving plenty of time to recover from the harsh injury. He has seen success as the primary slot receiver for Jacksonville Jaguars, catching  1,805 yards and nine touchdowns with a 65% catch rate through his four years as a fourth-round draft pick. Additionally, this all came from quarterbacks like Blake Bortles, Nick Foles, and Gardner Minshew slinging the ball.

With Westbrook coming off a tough injury, essentially sidelining him all last season, it comes as little surprise teams have not signed the 27-year old receiver. The Lions could get him for cheap and give him a one-year prove-it deal, hoping he can show the same spring in his step he had in Jacksonville, giving the Lions an established, young slot receiver who has return experience. By no means would this stop the Lions from drafting a receiver, but if they can find magic in Westbook, he could stick further into the rebuild either on offense and/or special teams as a returner.

 CB Darqueze Dennard

General manager Brad Holmes has not been shy in taking on former first-round picks in hopes of untapped potential, and Dennard fits right into that category. The seven-year veteran has been battling injuries the past two seasons, missing 15 games in that span, which could be the pinpoint reason for not finding a team this offseason. When he has seen the field, he has shown to a reliable corner with the versatility to play outside and inside.

Once again, injuries have played a part in Dennard’s market, but the Lions cornerback depth lacks both outside and inside, and Dennard could fill in both spots if push came to shove. With Jeff Okudah, Amani Oruwariye, or Quinton Dunbar taking care of the outside and Corn Elder handling the middle, no one should expect him to start. Still, the local Michigan State product could provide that necessary depth and veteran savviness the Lions could use during the rebuild.

DL Jurrell Casey

The Denver Broncos brought in Casey after trading only a seventh-round draft pick to the Tennesse Titans. Unfortunately, he would only play 156 for Denver when he tore his bicep ending his season prematurely. At which point the Broncos decided to cut bait with the oft-injured veteran clearing nearly $12 million in cap space. When he has seen the field, he has been a model of consistency, making five straight Pro Bowls from 2015-2019 and notching at least 50 pressures from 2013-2017. He has the versatility to align anywhere in the inside from the 1 to the 3 tech, bringing a repertoire that makes him an effective run stuffer and a pass rusher.

Even though the Lions have a fair amount of defensive lineman, you can never have enough versatile lineman that allows you to put your defense in the best matchup possible. Casey can be a strong presence as a rotational lineman due to his age and injury history. It wasn’t long ago Casey was viewed as one of the better defensive linemen in the league, where he earned a $60 million contract from the Titans. Now those days are probably long gone where you see the sack and pressure numbers, but he brings a skillset the Lions could use to bridge the rebuild for any young players Detroit could potentially bring in.

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