Jaguars, cornerback Darqueze Dennard fail to reach final contract agreement

What appeared to be a done deal was not so, as the Jacksonville Jaguars and former Bengals cornerback Darqueze Dennard failed to reach a final contract agreement.

The seventh-year veteran will not be signing with the Jaguars after all, and he will remain an unrestricted free agent, the Jaguars released today.

Last week, it was reported and made official by the Jaguars that the two sides had come to an agreement on the terms of his contract. However, it now appears the two sides have hit a snag in negotiations. The contract was reportedly a three-year deal.

All NFL clubs are now under strenuous circumstances due to the pandemic affecting the nation and around the globe. No team may conduct physicals at their facility.

Due to these circumstances, many clubs are failing to officially sign free agents as they wait in limbo to conduct physicals outside of the establishments. The Jaguars are not along in this, however it is important to point out the Jaguars have not revealed the reasoning for why Dennard and the team could not come to terms on a contract agreement.

Dennard was one of two cornerbacks the Jaguars had reportedly agreed to terms with, the most recent being former Detroit Lions cornerback Rashaan Melvin. Both Melvin and Dennard were expected to compete at the outside cornerback position.

The Jaguars will need to look elsewhere if they are to shore up their defensive back depth chart further.