Pharoah Brown

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/12/24

Today’s minor moves:

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Patriots Place T Riley Reiff On IR

Riley Reiff made it through last season unscathed, but the veteran tackle will spend time on IR for the second time in three years. The Patriots shifted Reiff to IR on Monday and promoted tight end Pharaoh Brown from the practice squad.

The 12th-year blocker suffered a right leg injury in the Pats’ preseason finale. Although Reiff’s timetable is not known, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport notes the issue is not believed to be one that will end the veteran’s season. Still, this stands to affect the Patriots’ offensive line configuration to start the season.

Both tackle spots loomed as concerns for the Patriots this offseason, with perennial injury risk Trent Brown having missed time earlier this year. New England had also experienced issues at guard, with Michael Onwenu coming off the active/PUP list in late August. Cole Strange has also missed notable preseason time. Reiff now must miss at least four games. He will factor into the Pats’ IR-return mix; teams have eight such activations available in-season.

Reiff has only played tackle in games as a pro, but the former first-round pick was working at guard — a position he slid to at points in practice for the then-guard-limited Pats — when the injury occurred, Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald notes. Reiff signed a one-year, $5MM deal in March, coming over after spending 2022 in Chicago. A Bears backup to start last season, Reiff eventually replaced Larry Borom in the 3-14 team’s lineup and started 10 games.

The well-traveled blocker has not run into substantial injury problems over the course of his career, only missing more than four games in a season once. That came in 2021, when an ankle injury sidelined him for the Bengals’ final five games. Working as Cincinnati’s starting right tackle that year, Reiff did not return for the team’s Super Bowl LVI run. Reiff, 34, will begin this season having started 149 career games.

This development creates uncertainty for the Pats, who were connected to a bigger investment at the position than the ones they eventually made. Rumored to be eyeing one of the top right tackles, the Pats instead added Reiff and ex-Broncos swing tackle Calvin Anderson. The team has rookie Sidy Sow as an option, and Kyed notes Onwenu moving back to tackle — a position he played earlier in his career with the Patriots — could be an emergency avenue. That would create a right guard vacancy.

New England also has Tyrone Wheatley Jr. and recent trade acquisition Vederian Lowe on its 53-man roster. Wheatley has yet to suit up for an NFL game; Lowe played in four as a Vikings backup last season. Sow arrived this year as a fourth-round pick out of Eastern Michigan. Anderson is the most experienced Patriots backup tackle. The Broncos’ tackle issues led to Anderson starting a career-high seven games last season. He has made 12 career starts but spent much of training camp on the active/non-football illness list.

AFC South Notes: Clowney, Titans, Colts

Jadeveon Clowney has made two visits but remains a free agent. Following his Ravens meeting, the former No. 1 overall pick visited the Jaguars. Not only did the Jags let Clowney leave, Doug Pederson indicated (via NFL.com’s James Palmer) the well-traveled pass rusher left Jacksonville without a contract offer. Clowney, 30, did not exactly part ways with the Browns on good terms, clashing with the team’s coaching staff during his second season as Myles Garrett‘s top sidekick. Clowney has now played for four teams, and while a return to the AFC South would strengthen the Jags’ pass rush, no deal is imminent.

The Jags lost Arden Key, who signed with the Titans, but reunited with Dawuane Smoot, who is coming off a December Achilles tear. Key’s exit will place more pressure on last year’s No. 1 pick, Travon Walker, who finished with 3.5 sacks and 10 QB hits as a rookie. Josh Allen remains Jacksonville’s pass-rushing anchor, but more will be expected of Walker. Clowney played for $8MM in 2021 and $10MM last year. The Jaguars hold a $10MM cap-space lead on the Ravens, carrying $18.4MM to Baltimore’s $8.8MM.

Here is the latest from the AFC South:

  • Although the Titans made a promotion to fill their offensive coordinator job for the third straight occasion, Tim Kelly has made some changes. The team has pivoted to the type of offense Kelly and Bill O’Brien ran in Houston, rather than the version of the Sean McVay attack Matt LaFleur brought with him back in 2018, Albert Breer of SI.com notes. “There’s a touch more freedom in his offense,” Ryan Tannehill said of the Patriots-style attack. “Being able to make adjustments on the fly, make changes at the line of scrimmage, a little more freedom within the route trees.” The Titans dropped from 17th to 30th in total offense from 2021 to 2022, helping lead to Todd Downing‘s ouster.
  • Tennessee is once again dealing with issues staffing its right tackle position, with Nicholas Petit-Frere incurring a six-game gambling suspension. The Titans also released Jamarco Jones, who was competing for the temporary fill-in gig, early in training camp. July pickup Chris Hubbard has taken over as the frontrunner to replace Petit-Frere to start the season, The Athletic’s John Rexrode notes (subscription required). Hubbard, who spent the past five years in Cleveland, has not worked as a regular starter since 2019 and has only started one game over the past two seasons. The Titans will have four new O-line starters in Week 1, and with Aaron Brewer sliding from guard to center, the team will not have any 2022 O-line starter playing the same position to open the season.
  • As the Colts transition to another coaching staff, Mo Alie-Cox‘s Colts roster spot might not be secure. The veteran tight end is vying for a blocking role against offseason signing Pharaoh Brown, according to the Indianapolis Star’s Nate Atkins. The Colts have Jelani Woods as a roster lock and used a fifth-round pick on Will Mallory. While Atkins notes Alie-Cox should have the upper hand on Brown, the team has some decisions to make. Kylen Granson, a 2021 fourth-round pick, is also not assured of a job in Shane Steichen‘s offense. It would cost the Colts $2.4MM in dead money to release Alie-Cox, who has been with the team since 2017.
  • The Texans are hiring former Northwestern director of player personnel Jonny Kovach as a player personnel assistant, Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 notes. Multiple offers came Kovach’s way, per Wilson. Kovach had stayed on with the Big Ten program due to loyalty to Pat Fitzgerald. With Fitzgerald dismissed in the wake of the program’s hazing scandal, Kovach will make the jump to the pros.

Browns To Bring Back TE Pharaoh Brown

Pharaoh Brown went from being the Texans’ Week 1 tight end starter to becoming an early-October cut. But Brown’s previous employer intends to bring him back.

The Browns plan to sign the newly available tight end, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com tweets. The Cleveland native returned to his hometown Wednesday and will sign on for a second stint.

Brown, 28, played for the Browns in 2019 but had been with the Texans throughout the 2020s. The Browns initially brought in the Oregon alum during the final days of Hue Jackson‘s HC tenure in 2018, and he stayed on for the Freddie Kitchens one-off. The team waived him just ahead of Kevin Stefanski‘s first season at the helm but will circle back.

Houston ponied up $3MM to re-sign the sixth-year veteran this offseason but made some changes to its tight end group in the time since that deal came to pass. The Texans added O.J. Howard and brought back Jordan Akins in September, adding to a position group that includes 2021 fifth-rounder Brevin Jordan.

Not known much for his receiving skills, Brown has topped out at 23 receptions for 171 yards (in 2021). He snagged two touchdown receptions in 2020. Brown has seven catches for 72 yards this season. The former UDFA will rejoin David Njoku in Cleveland, though the rest of the team’s position group has changed since Brown was last with the team. The Browns have Harrison Bryant installed as their backup and Miller Forristall rounding out its tight end crew.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/16/20

Monday’s restricted free agent and exclusive rights free agent tender decisions will be posted below. Deals will be updated throughout the day.

RFAs

Tendered at original-round level:

Non-tendered:

ERFAs

Tendered:

Non-tendered:

  • Chiefs: TE David Wells

Browns Activate DB Terrance Mitchell From IR

Terrance Mitchell is back. The Browns announced that they’ve activated the defensive back from the injured reserve. To make room on the roster, the team placed TE Pharaoh Brown on the IR.

Mitchell signed a three-year, $12MM deal with the Browns this offseason, and he proceeded to start each of Cleveland’s first three games. The 26-year-old was productive during the early stretch of the season, compiling 19 tackles, three passes defended, two forced fumbles, and one interception. This followed a 2017 campaign where he established career-highs in tackles (53), passes defended (18) and interceptions (four) with the Chiefs.

Mitchell ended up fracturing his wrist in late September, landing him on the injured reserve. With the former seventh-rounder back on the active roster, he’ll be joining a cornerbacks corps that currently features T.J. Carrie, Denzel WardPhillip GainesTavierre Thomas, and Juston Burris.

Brown has split the season between the Browns’ active roster and practice squad, and he’s been listed as inactive for Cleveland’s past five games. The move now leaves the Browns with four tight ends in David Njoku, Darren FellsSeth Devalve, and Orson Charles.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/23/18

Today’s minor moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Oakland Raiders

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

NFL Workout Updates: 9/24/18

Today’s workout updates are below. There were some notable names, including veteran quarterback Landry Jones, who was released by the Steelers at final cuts.

Cleveland Browns

Indianapolis Colts

New England Patriots

New York Jets

Looks like the Browns are searching for defensive help, working out a slew of players on that side of the ball. Jones working out for the Patriots is interesting, as he isn’t really young enough to be seen as a developmental project, and Brian Hoyer is entrenched as Tom Brady‘s backup.

NFL Workout Updates: 9/17/18

Today’s workout updates, with all links going to NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s of Twitter account unless otherwise noted:

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

  • TE Nick O’Leary (link)

Tennessee Titans

Washington Redskins