Darqueze Dennard has run into another injury issue, and it will cut his time with the Cardinals short. Arizona is placing the veteran cornerback on IR, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.
Although teams can bring back players from IR after three weeks, that only applies to players carried through to teams’ 53-man rosters after cutdown day. Since the Cards are sending Dennard to IR now, he cannot play for them this season.
The former Bengals corner has run into some tough injury luck in recent years. A knee issue delayed the start of his 2019 season, when he re-signed with Cincinnati, and the former first-round pick also spent time on the Falcons’ IR list last year with a hamstring malady. Dennard, 29, only landed in Atlanta after a deal with Jacksonville fell through last year. He ended up playing just eight games (six starts) with the 2020 Falcons.
The Cardinals signed Dennard in June, bringing him aboard after not re-signing fellow ex-Bengals first-rounder Dre Kirkpatrick. The Cards also lost Patrick Peterson in free agency. Dennard, Daryl Worley and Malcolm Butler represented the team’s notable veteran additions at the position.