9:06am: The Lions are sending kicker Kyle Brindza to Tampa Bay in the deal for Wright, tweets Field Yates of ESPN.com.
8:18am: For the second consecutive August, the Buccaneers have decided to trade tight end Tim Wright, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who tweets that Tampa Bay is sending Wright to the Lions. A year ago, the Bucs sent Wright to New England in a swap for Logan Mankins.
Playing behind Rob Gronkowski on the Patriots’ depth chart in 2014, Wright grabbed 26 balls for 259 yards and six touchdowns, receiving far fewer targets than he did in his 2013 rookie campaign with Tampa Bay. In ’13, Wright recorded 54 receptions on 76 targets.
New England moved on from Wright in June, and when the young tight end hit waivers, 10 teams – including the Lions – placed waiver claims on him, with the Bucs getting him back. In Detroit, Wright will join a group of tight ends that includes Brandon Pettigrew, Eric Ebron, and Joseph Fauria.
Meanwhile, another Lions pass-catcher, former second-round pick Ryan Broyles, will be waived after requesting his release from the team, per Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. According to Birkett, Broyles’ decision to ask to be let go was solidified after he played just 16 snaps during Detroit’s Friday win over Jacksonville, which was the latest sign that he likely wouldn’t make the team’s 53-man roster.
Since joining the Lions in 2012, Broyles has totaled just 420 yards and two touchdowns on 32 catches, with the majority of those catches and yards coming in his rookie year. He’ll have to pass through waivers unclaimed to become an unrestricted free agent.
I’ll be interested to see what Detroit’s plans are for Wright, as they have a fairly deep TE corps, all with complementary skillsets. Two excellent wideouts and a whole host of pass-catching tight ends should make Stafford pretty happy. On the flip side, this is yet another tough break for Broyles, but the writing was on the wall. He should at least get one more shot, and at this point a change of scenery is probably the best thing for him.