Ex-Lions receiver dealing with another blow to NFL career after latest cut

Former Detroit Lions wide receiver D.J. Chark has been released by the Atlanta Falcons after one preseason game. The release comes less than one month after Chark signed a one-year deal with the Falcons.

Chark's one game in the preseason against the Tennessee Titans was not the performance the Falcons were looking for as he recorded one reception for 11 yards on three targets. The Falcons lost the game to the Titans 23-20.

Chark spent one season with the Lions in 2022, a year in whi ch Detroit started 1-6 before winning eight of their last 10 games to finish with a 9-8 record. In 2022, Chark played in 11 games for the Lions, recording 502 yards and three touchdowns.

He finished third in receiving for the Lions during the 2022 season behind Amon-Ra St. Brown and Kalif Raymond.

Chark's other NFL Appearances

Chark's best football of his career arguably was in his first four seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars selected Chark with the 61st overall pick in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft.

In four seasons with the Jaguars, Chark recorded one 1,000-yard receiving season and finished his Jacksonville career with 2,042 yards and 15 touchdowns.

He was named as a Pro Bowl Selection during the 2019 season for the Jaguars, the same year that he recorded over 1,000 yards receiving. Since then, Chark has struggled to return to the same heights that he reached during the 2019 season.

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Chark would leave the Jaguars for the Lions before spending his last two seasons with the Carolina Panthers and the Los Angeles Chargers. Chark had a productive tenure with the Panthers, collecting 525 receiving yards and five touchdowns.

His one season with the Chargers, however, turned out to be a major disappointment as Chark struggled with injuries and appeared in seven games for Los Angeles, recording 31 yards and one touchdown on four receptions.

Now a free agent once again, Chark's future in the NFL remains uncertain. The question is which team, if any at all, would be willing to take a chance on Chark? There's still three weeks until the 2025 NFL season kicks off, and plenty of holes at wide receiver around the league. Chark is a seasoned vet who can at least provide an emergency effort.

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