Dennis Gardeck

KEY TRANSACTIONS

• Originally signed by Arizona as an undrafted rookie free agent on 4/30/18
• Re-signed by the Cardinals on 4/15/21
• Re-signed by Arizona on 3/14/22
• Signed by Jacksonville as a free agent on 6/4/25
• Re-signed with the Jaguars on 3/9/26

KEY TRANSACTIONS

• Originally signed by Arizona as an undrafted rookie free agent on 4/30/18
• Re-signed by the Cardinals on 4/15/21
• Re-signed by Arizona on 3/14/22
• Signed by Jacksonville as a free agent on 6/4/25
• Re-signed with the Jaguars on 3/9/26

PRO

2025 (Jaguars)

• Appeared in 17 games (six starts) and totaled 37 tackles (24 solo), including six for loss... Led all Jaguars linebackers with 2.5 sacks... Added eight quarterback hits, one forced fumble and two passes defensed... Posted 11 tackles (four solo) on special teams, tied for the second most on the team... In the postseason, started one game and posted one solo tackle on defense and two solo tackles on special teams
• 12/14 vs. NYJ: Started at linebacker and registered four tackles (three solo) and 1.0 sack
• 11/30 at TEN: Started at linebacker... Recorded one quarterback hit, one pass defensed and one tackle on special teams
• 11/23 at ARI: Saw action at linebacker and on special teams... Recorded 1.5 sacks for a loss of 16.5 yards and four quarterback hits... Added five tackles (three solo), including one for loss... Made one tackle on special teams
• 11/2 at L.V.: Totaled four tackles (three solo) and one quarterback hit... Registered one tackle on special teams

2024 (Cardinals)

• Appeared in seven games (three starts) where he had 20 tackles, six tackles for loss, four QB hits, 3.0 sacks, two passes defensed, an INT and a forced fumble before suffering a season-ending knee injury
• 9/22 vs. DET: had four tackles (one for loss) and an INT of Lions QB Jared Goff, which he returned 10 yards... was the only NFL player with five tackles for loss and an INT through the first three games of the season
• 9/15 vs. LAR: Set career highs with six solo tackles, four tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks and added a forced fumble in the win vs. LAR (9/15)... his three sacks of Rams QB Matthew Stafford resulted in a loss of 19 yards and a fumble recovered by the defense... he joined DL Chandler Jones (2021) as the only players in Cardinals franchise history to have 4+ TFLs, 3.0+ sacks and a forced fumble in a game

2023 (Cardinals)

• Named a captain for the 2023 season
• Played all 17 games for the first time in his career, including a career-high eight starts... led the team with 6.0 sacks and had career highs with 41 tackles, 12 QB hits, seven tackles for loss, four passes defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery
• 11/12 at ATL: had five tackles, one pass defensed and a seven-yard sack of Falcons QB Taylor Heinicke... the sack gave him 13.0 career sacks, which is the most in Cardinals franchise history by a player who entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent
• 10/1 @ SF: brought down QB Brock Purdy for a 12-yard sack
• 9/17 vs. NYG: had four tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack becoming just the second Cardinal since 2006 to have 3.0+ sacks through the first two games of a season (DL Chandler Jones - 5.0 in 2021 and 3.0 in 2017)
• 9/10 at WAS: had four tackles, 2.0 sacks and a forced fumble in the season opener... it marked the fourth multi-sack game of his career and his first with a sack and a forced fumble

2022 (Cardinals)

• Named a Pro Bowl alternate for the second time in his career and a team captain for the third time in his career
• Collected 21 tackles, 1.0 sack, one interception and one forced fumble as well as 10 special teams tackles in 14 games (three starts)
• With 10 special teams tackles, he led or shared for the team lead for the third time in five seasons (2019, 2021)
• 10/2 at CAR: Totaled two tackles, 1.0 sack and the first interception of his career along with three special teams tackles
• 9/11 vs. KC: Registered two tackles, a QB hit and a forced fumble to go with two special teams tackles in the season opener

2021 (Cardinals)

• Named a team captain
• Appeared in 14 games, making his first three career starts ... produced 14 tackles (one for loss), four QB hits and one fumble recovery and added a team-best 13 tackles on special teams
• 1/17 at LAR (Wild Card): Had a special teams tackle in his postseason debut
• 1/2 at DAL: Totaled one tackle, one QB hit and one fumble recovery on defense in addition to three special teams tackles
• 10/28 vs. Green Bay: Registered two tackles, including one for loss on third down to force a Packers punt

2020 (Cardinals)

• Named a team captain for the first time in his career
• Had 10 QB hits, nine tackles, 7.0 sacks and a fumble recovery in just 93 defensive snaps while adding nine special teams tackles... established a single-season Cardinals franchise record for the most sacks by a player who entered the league undrafted
• 12/20 vs. PHI: Had 2.0 or more sacks for a second consecutive game and added a pair of special teams tackles
• 12/13 at NYG: Recorded 2.0 sacks and his first career fumble recovery in just eight defensive snaps
• 10/11 at NYJ: Registered a team-high 2.0 sacks @ NYJ (10/11), marking his first multi-sack performance

2019 (Cardinals)

• Named a Pro Bowl alternate as a special teamer
• Posted a team-high 10 tackles and a fumble recovery on special teams in 14 games... added two tackles on defense
• 12/8 vs. PIT: Recovered a fourth-quarter fumble that led to a Cardinals TD on the ensuing possession
• 10/20 at NYG: registered a career-high three special teams tackles

2018 (Cardinals)

• Played in all 16 games as a rookie... led all NFL rookies with 388 special teams snaps and finished the year with eight special teams tackles
• 12/30 at SEA: Recovered a blocked punt in the end zone for his first career touchdown
• 10/28 vs. SF: Had a pair of special teams tackles
• 9/9 vs. WAS: made his NFL debut in the season opener

COLLEGE

• Recorded 345 tackles, 57.5 tackles for loss, 32.0 sacks, nine forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and one interception in three seasons at West Virginia State (2014-16) and one at Sioux Falls (2017)
• Named Division II All-American as a senior in 2017 after leading the Cougars with 75 tackles, 21 tackles for loss and 14.0 sacks... Also earned First-Team All-NSIC and NSIC Defensive Newcomer of the Year honors
• As a junior at West Virginia State in 2016, named second-team All-Mountain East after collecting 111 tackles, seven tackles for loss, four forced fumbles and 3.0 sacks
• Named First-Team All-Mountain East as a sophomore in 2015 after posting 102 tackles, 22.5 tackles for loss, eight passes defensed, three forced fumbles, an interception and a fumble recovery

PERSONAL

• Two-time Salute to Service award nominee with Arizona (2019, 2023)
• Named All-Conference and All-Area during his senior year at Crystal Lake (Ill.) South High School
• Also earned All-Conference honors as a defenseman in lacrosse
• Worked at McDonald's and Panda Express as a Division II student athlete; used the work to pay for gas money and the free food as he tried to put on weight
• Heavily involved in community service; during his time with the Cardinals, he rarely missed an opportunity to participate in a team community event
• He and his wife, Codi, have a son, Cooper