| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born: | June 13, 2001 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Height: | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
| Weight: | 178 lb (81 kg) |
| Career information | |
| Position: | Cornerback |
| High school: | Penn Hills (Penn Hills, Pennsylvania) |
| College: | Penn State (2020–2023) |
| NFL draft: | 2024: 6th round, 219th overall |
| Career history | |
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Stats at Pro Football Reference | |
Daequan Keith Hardy (born June 13, 2001) [1] is an American professional football cornerback. He played college football at Penn State.
Hardy attended high school at Penn Hills. In Hardy's senior season, he amassed a total of 22 touchdowns. [2] Hardy helped led his team to a Pennsylvania state title, as in the game he scored four touchdowns, two receiving, an 84-yard kickoff return, and a 100-yard pick six, as he also intercepted three passes in the game. [3] Coming out of high school, Hardy was rated as a three-star recruit, where he decided to commit to play college football for the Penn State Nittany Lions. [4] [5]
In Hardy's first career season in 2020, he tallied ten tackles, three pass deflections, and a sack. [6] In 2021, Hardy had 15 tackles, with three going for a loss, a sack, six pass deflections, two interceptions, and a touchdown. [7] During the 2022 season, Hardy notched 13 tackles with half a tackle being for a loss, half a sack, four pass deflections, an interceptions, and a forced fumble. [8] In week seven of the 2023 season, Hardy returned two punts for touchdowns in a win over UMass. [9] His two touchdowns, was a single game school record for punt return touchdowns. [10] Hardy finished the 2023 season totaling 22 tackles with three going for a loss, a sack, seven pass deflections, and two interceptions, while also returning 17 punts for 248 yards and two touchdowns. [11] For his performance on the 2023 season, Hardy was named third team all Big-Ten. [12] After the conclusion of the 2023 season, Hardy declared for the 2024 NFL draft. [13] [14]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 9+3⁄8 in (1.76 m) | 179 lb (81 kg) | 30 in (0.76 m) | 8+1⁄8 in (0.21 m) | 4.38 s | 1.50 s | 2.56 s | 4.17 s | 7.17 s | 42.5 in (1.08 m) | 10 ft 6 in (3.20 m) | 15 reps | |
| All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day [15] [16] [17] | ||||||||||||
Hardy was selected by the Buffalo Bills with the 219th overall pick in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL draft. [18] He was released as part of final roster cuts on August 27, [19] then later added back to the practice squad. [20] He signed a reserve/future contract with Buffalo on January 27, 2025. [21]
On August 26, 2025, Hardy was released by the Bills as part of final roster cuts and re-signed to the practice squad the next day. [22] He was released by Buffalo again on August 28. [23]