49ers roster: Darqueze Dennard a dark-horse starter in 2022
By Peter Panacy
With the 49ers’ loss of K’Waun Williams this offseason, Darqueze Dennard might be the choice to start at nickel cornerback entering 2022.
The overarching storyline about the San Francisco 49ers’ nickel cornerback situation from 2021 into 2022 revolves around how they lost a longtime veteran, K’Waun Williams, to free agency and subsequently replaced him via the NFL Draft with former Toledo defensive back Samuel Womack.
Well, that won’t happen if another veteran corner, Darqueze Dennard, has anything to say about it.
Dennard, a one-time first-round draft pick of the Cincinnati Bengals back in 2014, spent the bulk of his pro career in Cincy before brief stints with both the Atlanta Falcons, Arizona Cardinals, Indianapolis Colts and New York Giants for the 2020 and 2021 seasons, eventually joining the Niners late last season and seeing a scant 21 defensive snaps over just one game played.
| Game | Game | Def | Def | Def | Def | Def | Fumb | Fumb | Tack | Tack | Tack | Tack | Tack | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Age | Tm | No. | G | GS | Int | Yds | TD | Lng | PD | FF | FR | Sk | Comb | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits |
| 2014 | 23 | CIN | 21 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.0 | 17 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| 2015 | 24 | CIN | 21 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 0.0 | 20 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2016 | 25 | CIN | 21 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 47 | 32 | 15 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2017 | 26 | CIN | 21 | 16 | 6 | 2 | 109 | 1 | 89 | 6 | 2.0 | 85 | 61 | 24 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 2018 | 27 | CIN | 21 | 13 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 68 | 54 | 14 | 1 | 0 |
| 2019 | 28 | CIN | 21 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0.0 | 37 | 25 | 12 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2020 | 29 | ATL | 34 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0.0 | 36 | 28 | 8 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2021 | 30 | 2TM | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| NYG | 35 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||
| SFO | 43 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||
| Career | Career | 87 | 30 | 4 | 119 | 1 | 89 | 27 | 3 | 1 | 3.0 | 313 | 230 | 83 | 7 | 5 | ||
| 6 yr | 6 yr | CIN | 77 | 24 | 3 | 119 | 1 | 89 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 3.0 | 274 | 200 | 74 | 5 | 5 | |
| 1 yr | 1 yr | ATL | 8 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0.0 | 36 | 28 | 8 | 2 | 0 | |||
| 1 yr | 1 yr | NYG | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 1 yr | 1 yr | SFO | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com
Generated 6/1/2022.
San Francisco must have liked what little it saw from Dennard from his one-month stint at the end of last season, inking him to a new one-year deal worth up to $1.12 million.
And, in the wake of Williams’ departure, there’s a road for Dennard to be an integral piece of the 49ers defense in 2022.
Let’s explore how.
Why Darqueze Dennard latches on with 49ers in 2022
Dennard might have turned into a journeyman player over the last two seasons after his lengthy time with Cincinnati, but the 5-foot-11 and 200-pound defensive back had regularly been an above-average corner for the bulk of his career.
It’s not the end-all, be-all judge here, but Dennard’s Pro Football Focus grades fell below the 60 threshold just once in his career, 2016, and he’s generally been viewed as a well-balanced coverage option over the slot with no hesitancy to defend against the run.
Those were Williams’ traits in many ways. And while the Niners would ideally like Womack to take over as a starting nickel, Dennard has both the experience and pedigree.
Why Darqueze Dennard flames out with 49ers in 2022
Dennard might have the experience, but it’s a bit concerning the 30-year-old veteran hasn’t latched on with teams who have had notably bad defenses in recent years.
True, injuries have slightly derailed Dennard’s recent attempts to find a “forever home,” but defensively challenged teams like the Falcons could have easily sought to make him a veteran presence amid a rebuilding secondary.
Read More: Ranking 49ers’ 3 weakest positions after 2022 draft
Additionally, San Francisco might also choose the same path and let Dennard serve as a competition point for some of its younger defensive backs like Womack during training camp, potentially releasing the aging veteran if it feels youth is a better option than experience.
Chances of Darqueze Dennard making 49ers’ 53-man roster
For now, Dennard has been taking first-team reps at nickel cornerback during organized team activities, which jives with the notion of working a player like Womack slowly up to speed.
Should Dennard hang around, he’ll likely retain this role. Sure, the 49ers could feasibly move cornerback Emmanuel Moseley over the slot in the wake of offseason additions of fellow corners Charvarius Ward and Jason Verrett to handle boundary duties. Yet Dennard is more natural a nickel cornerback than Moseley anyway.
However, Dennard’s contract carries zero in guaranteed money, and there won’t be any dead-cap hit if he’s released outright.
From that vantage point, Dennard is far from a lock to even survive post-preseason roster cuts ahead of Week 1, and it’s possible his time with the Niners will be little more than serving as a camp body.
That’s a pretty wide trajectory for where he’ll land and what his role will be.
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