Today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
Cleveland Browns
Denver Broncos
Houston Texans
New Orleans Saints
Seattle Seahawks
Broncos fullback Andy Janovich is out for the season after suffering a dislocated elbow, according to Mike Klis of 9News. Janovich left Denver’s game earlier today against the Vikings. The Broncos burst out to an unexpected lead, but Minnesota eventually mounted a successful comeback, dropping Denver to 3-7 on the season.
Denver placed Janovich on IR and signed tight end Orson Charles to take his roster spot. The latter was with the Broncos in training camp but did not make the team. He was set to play for the XFL’s Washington Defenders, having been picked in the fourth round of the league’s recent draft. While those plans may not be scuttled, with XFL 2.0 not set to start until February, Charles will first receive another NFL opportunity.
A 2012 fourth-round Bengals pick, Charles has also played for the Saints, Lions, Chiefs and Browns. While he has never recorded an NFL carry, he will now be in line to take over as the Broncos’ fullback.
While the fullback position was thought to be on its last legs a few years ago, players like Janovich have led to a resurgence in the position’s value as an all-around offensive weapon. Unlike 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk, Janovich is not an exceptional athlete who offers substantial value catching passes out of the backfield. Instead, Janovich follows the traditional mold of players at his position as a strong blocker in both the running and passing game. While only catching four receptions on the season, Janovich consistently plays in around 30% of the team’s snaps when healthy.
Just over a month ago, Janovich agreed to a three-year, $5.7 MM contract extension with the team and remains in their long-term plans. However, with young quarterback Brandon Allen under center, the team will have to look for a short-term solution to help the team’s backfield.
Today’s NFL workout updates, all courtesy of Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle:
Baltimore Ravens
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
Jacksonville Jaguars
Miami Dolphins
New England Patriots
New Orleans Saints
San Francisco 49ers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Washington Redskins
The Denver Broncos made a slew of moves today to get down to 53 players. Notably, the team will place rookie second-round quarterback Drew Lock on injured reserve, meaning he’ll have to miss at least the first eight games of the season as he recovers from his thumb injury. The team cut journeyman Kevin Hogan and UDFA Brett Rypien, leaving them without a quarterback behind Joe Flacco. GM John Elway has said they’ll sign a veteran to backup Flacco for now, and we’ve already heard they’re interested in Brian Hoyer.
There weren’t too many surprises that we didn’t already know of. Brendan Langley, a 2017 third-round pick, failed to make the team. He was drafted as a cornerback, but switched to receiver earlier this offseason after he didn’t pan out on defense.
Here’s the full list of other moves:
Waived:
FB George Aston
T Quinn Bailey
WR Trinity Benson
OL Jake Brendel
WR Fred Brown
LB Jamal Carter
WR Steven Dunbar Jr.
OLB Ahmad Gooden
RB Devontae Jackson
CB Trey Johnson
G/C Sam Jones
OL Tyler Jones
T John Leglue
DL Deyon Sizer
CB Linden Stephens
The Broncos have signed fullback/tight end Orson Charles, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Denver is dealing with injuries at both the fullback and tight end positions, so Charles will help the club’s depth. Undrafted free agent Austin Fort is out for the year after suffering a torn ACL earlier this month, first-round tight end Noah Fant suffered a mild ankle sprain in the Broncos’ Week 2 preseason game, and fullback Andy Janovich won’t return until late September at the earliest after sustaining a pectoral injury.
Charles, 28, appeared in 13 games and made two starts for the Browns in 2018. He saw action on 173 offensive plays, the most snaps he’d played since his rookie campaign with the Bengals in 2012. Charles, originally a fourth-round pick, also chipped in on 265 special teams snaps.
Cleveland had re-signed Charles in April, but released him earlier this month after landing former Cowboys tight end Rico Gathers.
The Browns have signed TE Rico Gathers, as Mark Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com reports (via Twitter). In a related move, the club has waived FB/TE Orson Charles.
The Cowboys waived Gathers last week, and Cleveland is taking a low-risk gamble on Gathers’ athletic upside. Dallas selected the former Baylor basketball player in the sixth round of the 2016 draft, but Gathers spent his entire rookie campaign on the practice squad and the entirety of his second professional season on IR.
He finally saw regular season action last year, and though he appeared in 15 games (four starts), he caught only three passes for 45 yards. With Jason Witten back on the team and fellow tight ends Blake Jarwin and Dalton Schultz ahead of Gathers on the depth chart, the Cowboys decided to cut ties.
But the Browns have very little depth behind starter David Njoku. Though Gathers will be suspended for the first week of the season due to a violation of the league’s substance abuse policy, he should have a chance to earn meaningful playing time in Cleveland.
Charles, 28, appeared in 13 games and made two starts for the Browns in 2018. He saw action on 173 offensive plays, the most snaps he had played since his rookie campaign with the Bengals in 2012
Orson Charles will spend another year in Cleveland, as the Browns have announced they’ve re-signed the veteran fullback/tight end.
Charles, 28, appeared in 13 games and made two starts for the Browns in 2018. He saw action on 173 offensive plays, the most snaps he’d played since his rookie campaign with the Bengals in 2012. Charles, originally a fourth-round pick, also chipped in on 265 special teams snaps.
Charles spent the first few seasons of his career with Hue Jackson as his position coach in Cincinnati, then followed Jackson to Cleveland in 2018 (with stops in New Orleans, Detroit, and Kansas City in between). Jackson, of course, is no longer with the Browns, but Cleveland’s decision-makers have still opted to bring Charles back for another season.
The Browns have added star wideout Odell Beckham Jr. and former Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt to an offense that already included weapons like Nick Chubb, Jarvis Landry, Antonio Callaway, Rashard Higgins, and David Njoku, so Charles probably won’t see much action on offense unless injuries strike.
Here is the latest news involving restricted free agents and exclusive-rights free agents, with updates coming throughout the day:
Tendered:
Non-tendered:
Tendered at second-round level:
Tendered at original-round level:
Non-tendered:
Today’s minor moves:
Cleveland Browns
Today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
Cleveland Browns
Jacksonville Jaguars
Oakland Raiders
Seattle Seahawks