CINCINNATI -- Darqueze Dennard's sixth sense has started tingling.
It's been going off all offseason, but it was really activated March 25, the day the Cincinnati Bengals officially had an opening in their starting cornerback rotation.
That day Terence Newman, a well-liked veteran corner, ended his three-year stay in the Queen City and signed as a free agent with Minnesota.
As saddened as he was about Newman's departure -- after all, it meant one of his favorite locker-room sages was gone -- Dennard also saw the exit as a positive for himself.
He saw it as an opportunity.
"I see blood in the water," Dennard said. "I'm a shark."
As he embarked on his hunt for the cornerback opening, last year's Bengals first-round pick spent 15 minutes during the open of Monday's offseason workouts filling reporters in on his busy offseason. In addition to training in Boca Raton, Florida, with the same group that prepared him for the NFL combine last spring, Dennard bought his mother a four-bedroom house near his hometown of Dry Branch, Georgia. From the time he was a little boy, he dreamed of the opportunity to move her out of apartment living in nearby Macon, Georgia, and into her own home.
"To have her own house and her own living space -- she finally has a backyard and things like that -- that was a big step for me," said Dennard, who was paid $1.45 million as a rookie last year. Still renting his own space for the time being, the 23-year-old will make $1.81 million in 2015.
Along with seeking stability for his mother, Dennard has been looking for it for himself on the field. Thus, the shark-like mentality.
With no Newman, the Bengals could move Dennard into the spot, significantly bumping him up from the 58 snaps he took on defense last year.
A 21st overall pick, Dennard has every reason to believe he can start at the position. The problem, though, is he's competing for that vacancy with other former first-round picks such as Dre Kirkpatrick.
Like Dennard, Kirkpatrick had the start of his career stifled a bit by the presence of Hall, Newman and Adam Jones. All five were first-round selections.
Kirkpatrick spent the latter part of last season coming off the bench and relieving Newman. After a few promising games, including his two-interception showing in a late-season Monday night win over Denver, Kirkpatrick has reason to believe Newman's old job will be his.
There's a chance Kirkpatrick also has his fifth-year option exercised by the Bengals within the next two weeks. If that happens, the move has to be viewed as a sign the Bengals are confident Kirkpatrick will be the one to replace Newman.
In an effort to win the starting job through training camp, Dennard has changed his eating habits this offseason. Now that he's back from Florida, his mission is to avoid local pizzerias LaRosa's and Donatos, two places that became his favorite area dining options last year.
"[The vets] were telling me I need to shed some weight and start eating better and take care of my body with little things like massages and acupuncture and eating the right foods," Dennard said.
Along with eating better, Dennard believes a subtle tweak to his shark-like mentality will help too.
"Me having the confidence and having a year under my belt to actually play in a game and experience the atmosphere and the speed of the game and learn from those guys, that's why I have that mindset," Dennard said. "Last year I still had that same mindset, but I had to be realistic about the situation.
"The spot is now open, so it's there to be taken."
