HEADLINES

Marlon Brown

Broncos To Sign Marlon Brown

July 27th, 2016 at 2:02pm CST by Zachary Links

The Broncos have agreed to sign Marlon Brown to a one-year deal, Cameron Wolfe of The Denver Post tweets. The speedy wide receiver has history with coach Gary Kubiak thanks to their time together in Baltimore. Marlon Brown

Brown, who turned 25 in April, spent the last three seasons in Baltimore, though he saw his role in the offense decline since making his debut in 2013. In his rookie season, the Georgia product caught 49 balls for 524 yards and seven touchdowns. He has failed to reach the end zone since then, and recorded just 14 receptions and 112 yards in 2015.

While Brown contributed occasionally on special teams, wasn’t a key piece of that unit in Baltimore last year. When taking into account his reduced role on offense, it was no surprise that the team opted not to extend him an RFA tender earlier this offseason. The Ravens re-signed Brown to a lesser salary in mid-March, but dropped him from the roster in May.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Redskins Audition Jimmy Clausen

July 18th, 2016 at 12:10pm CST by Zachary Links

The Redskins worked out free agent quarterback Jimmy Clausen today, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Along with Clausen, the Redskins also worked out former Ravens wide receiver Marlon Brown, among other pass-catchers (Twitter link).

Jimmy Clausen

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As Rapoport notes, Clausen stands as of the top free agent quarterbacks available with starting experience. Clausen served as the Bears’ primary backup in 2014 and got a start in Week 17 of that season when the team was testing out Jay Cutler alternatives. In 2015, Clausen was called into action once again after Cutler went down with an injury. In two games (one start) for the Bears, Clausen completed 23 of 40 passes for 184 yards and an interception.

Later in the year, the Bears waived the Notre Dame product, but he was quickly picked up by the Ravens, who needed a fill-in for Joe Flacco. The Broncos – who were having QB issues of their own – also put in a claim on Clausen, but they were beaten to the punch. Clausen would appear in three games for the Ravens with two starts. In that stretch, he completed 49 of 85 passes for a 57.6% completion rate and threw for two touchdowns against three interceptions.

As the Redskins’ page on Roster Resource shows, Washington currently has Colt McCoy and sixth-round rookie Nate Sudfeld on the depth chart behind starter Kirk Cousins.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Ravens Sign Ronnie Stanley

May 13th, 2016 at 1:33pm CST by Luke Adams

The Ravens are the latest team to lock up their first-round pick from this year’s draft, announcing today (via Twitter) that offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley has signed his rookie contract. More than half of 2016’s first-rounders are now under contract, with 17 signed and 14 still unsigned.Ronnie Stanley

Stanley, who was the first offensive tackle off the board this year, was selected with the sixth overall pick by the Ravens. There was speculation that if a video showing Laremy Tunsil smoking marijuana out of a gas-mask bong had not been leaked just before the draft, Baltimore would have drafted the Ole Miss tackle over Stanley, but both players were very high on the team’s board, and the Ravens are happy to have a potential long-term left tackle to protect Joe Flacco‘s blind side.

According to Over the Cap’s data, Stanley will be one of six rookies who receives a four-year contract with a total value exceeding $20MM. The Notre Dame alum’s deal is set to be worth $20.484MM, with a signing bonus of about $13.098MM. Baltimore will also have a team option for Stanley’s fifth season in 2020, which the team can exercise or decline in 2019.

As our tracker shows, the Ravens have now secured nine of their 11 draftees, with only third-round edge defender Bronson Kaufusi and sixth-round QB/WR Keenan Reynolds not locked up yet.

The Ravens also announced a few more roster moves today, per Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun, who tweets that the team has cut wide receiver Marlon Brown, defensive end Nordly Capi, and defensive backs Jermaine Whitehead and Nick Perry. Brown received a failed physical designation.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Ravens Re-Sign Marlon Brown, Chris Carter

March 17th, 2016 at 10:19am CST by Luke Adams

The Ravens have brought back a pair of their own free agents, announcing today (via Twitter) that they’re re-signing wide receiver Marlon Brown and outside linebacker Chris Carter. Terms of the deals weren’t announced, but inexpensive, short-term contracts seem likely.Marlon Brown

[RELATED: Ravens sign Eric Weddle]

Brown, who turns 25 in April, has spent the last three seasons in Baltimore, though he his seen his role in the offense decline since making his debut in 2013. In his rookie season, the Georgia product caught 49 balls for 524 yards and seven touchdowns. He has failed to reach the end zone since then, and recorded just 14 receptions and 112 yards in 2015.

While Brown contributes occasionally on special teams, he hasn’t been a key piece of that unit. When taking into account his reduced role on offense, it was no surprise that the team opted not to extend him an RFA tender last week. He figures to earn less than the $1.671MM he would have been tendered as a restricted free agent.

As for Carter, the former fifth-round pick has practically done a full tour of the AFC North since entering the league in 2011, spending time with the Steelers, Bengals, and Ravens. Although he has appeared in 48 total regular season contests, he hasn’t started a game since 2013, serving primarily as a defensive reserve and a special-teamer.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

RFA Tender Decisions: 3/9/16

March 9th, 2016 at 9:10pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Unrestricted free agent news will obviously dominate the day, but several clubs also had to make decisions on whether to offer tenders to restricted free agents. We’ll round up those decisions here:

Tendered

Non-Tendered

More Minor NFL Transactions: 12/29/15

December 29th, 2015 at 5:19pm CST by Luke Adams

Tuesdays are generally the busiest day of the week during the NFL regular season for transactions, and on the last Tuesday of the 2015 campaign, that’s especially true. After rounding up several minor moves from around the league earlier today, we’ve got plenty more to pass along now. Here’s the latest:

AFC:

  • After re-signing him three weeks ago, the Chargers confirmed today that they have released wide receiver Vincent Brown. The 26-year-old was active for just one game and caught only one pass, for 22 yards.
  • The Ravens have placed wide receiver Marlon Brown on season-ending injured reserve due to a back injury, replacing him on the roster with defensive back Sheldon Price, the team announced today (via Twitter). Brown, the 20th player Baltimore has placed on IR this year, is eligible for restricted free agency, and he may not be tendered a contract this winter, tweets Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun.
  • The Broncos have cut safety Shaun Prater, who was inactive on Monday, the team announced in a press release. Prater was signed as insurance after David Bruton was placed on IR, but with T.J. Ward and Darian Stewart back in action, his services weren’t required.
  • The Patriots have filled their roster by signing linebacker and special-teamer Dekoda Watson, per Mike Reiss of ESPN.com (Twitter link). It’s the third contract signed with New England this year by Watson, who has been off and on the Pats’ roster.
  • The Texans have officially confirmed the previously-reported transaction that sent cornerback Charles James to IR, elevating safety Corey Moore to the active roster from the practice squad to replace James, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle.
  • The Raiders have signed safety Dewey McDonald from off their practice squad, according to the team. McDonald has also spent time with the Colts and Patriots this season.

NFC:

  • The Buccaneers are ending Major Wright‘s season, placing the safety on injured reserve prior to Week 17, tweets Rand Getlin of NFL Network. In a corresponding move, Tampa Bay is elevating tight end Tevin Westbrook from its practice squad to the 53-man roster, according to agent Brett Tessler (Twitter link).
  • Washington has made a change at the back of its 53-man roster, announcing that tight end Je’Ron Hamm has been waived to make room for cornerback Jeremy Harris, who received a promotion from the practice squad.
  • The Lions have once again waived cornerback Bill Bentley, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Bentley, a third-round pick by Detroit in 2012, was cut by the team in the summer before re-signing last month.
  • The Saints are promoting tight end Rashaun Allen to their 53-man roster from the practice squad, tweets Aaron Wilson. As Evan Woodbery of the Times-Picayune (Twitter link) observes, a corresponding move will be required to make the signing official, which could mean moving tight end Josh Hill to IR.
  • Wilson also passes along details on a couple players who have been cut from their respective teams’ injured reserve lists, reporting (via Twitter) that the Cardinals have cut defensive back Cariel Brooks with an injury settlement, while the Packers have released defensive end Jermauria Rasco from their IR.

Hensley On Ravens: Thomas, Torrey Smith, Hill

January 18th, 2015 at 10:45am CST by Rory Parks

ESPN.com’s Jamison Hensley’s latest mailbag includes his take on a number of issues facing the Ravens this offseason. Let’s dive in:

  • Hensley was asked what the most surprising development of the Ravens’ offseason would be, and he responded with his prediction that Baltimore will pursue a bona fide No. 1 wide receiver in free agency. Such a move would represent a significant departure from the Ravens’ typically low-key approach to free agency, and the team currently does not have enough cap room to make such a splash, but Baltimore needs a big-bodied, athletic receiver to continue the offensive momentum it established under Gary Kubiak in 2014. Quarterback Joe Flacco has never had such a weapon at his disposal, and Hensley believes the time is right to bring in a player like Demaryius Thomas.
  • Of course, if the Ravens do make such a move, they may part ways with Torrey Smith and Marlon Brown may see a much-deserved increased role in the offense.
  • Hensley believes the Ravens should give extensions to starting guards Kelechi Osemele and Marshal Yanda, and that John Urschel will probably take Jeremy Zuttah‘s job as the starting center in 2016.
  • Echoing Conor Orr of NFL.com, Hensley writes that the Ravens are factoring restricted free agent Will Hill into their 2015 plans, and they hope he will win the starting free safety job. However,given the mediocre play of Matt Elam and Darian Stewart, strong safety is still a big question mark.
  • Even if Jimmy Smith and Lardarius Webb can remain healthy in 2015–a very big “if” considering their injury histories–Hensley believes the team’s biggest weakness is at cornerback, and he believes the Ravens should draft a corner in the first three rounds of this year’s draft.
  • Hensley does not see the team using the franchise tag this year.

Ravens Interested In Re-Signing Jacoby Jones If Price Is Right

January 31st, 2014 at 5:40pm CST by Matt Feminis

Ravens receiver/kick returner Jacoby Jones is a pending unrestricted free agent the team would like to have back, though limited cap space means a raise is not in order, according to the Baltimore Sun’s Aaron Wilson.

Jones, 29, ranked in the upper third of the league’s kickoff (28.8-yard average, one touchdown) and punt returners (12.5), while finishing fourth on the Ravens with 37 receptions for 455 yards (12.3) and two scores in 12 games. However, given the emergence of rookie Marlon Brown and the recyclable nature of return men, Jones will be considered an “unaffordable luxury” at his 2013 salary ($3MM base salary plus $1MM roster bonus). Wilson believes the Ravens would welcome Jones back at a discounted number, but there have been no talks to date.

If Jones does re-sign with the team, new offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak will likely have something to do with it. Kubiak was Jones’ head coach in Houston and said the two have a great relationship. “I don’t want to say I was like a father figure to him,” said Kubiak, “but he was like one of my children.”

Should Jones depart, the Ravens are expected to seek younger, cheaper alternatives at the receiver and kick returner positions.