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Trey Burton

Jaguars Work Out TE Trey Burton

September 23rd, 2021 at 4:54pm CST by Ben Levine

James O’Shaughnessy is out for at least a few weeks, and the Jaguars are starting to look for some additional depth at tight end. The team worked out free agent Trey Burton today, reports ESPN’s Field Yates (via Twitter).

[RELATED: Jaguars Place TE James O’Shaughnessy On IR]

After starting five games in four seasons with the Eagles, Burton had a breakout campaign with the Bears in 2018, finishing with 54 receptions for 569 yards and six touchdowns. However, he only hauled in 14 receptions in 2019, leading to his release. The veteran caught on with the Colts in 2020, finishing with 28 receptions for 250 yards and three scores.

Burton does have some connection to the organization. The former undrafted free agent played under current Jags coach Urban Meyer at Florida.

O’Shaughnessy suffered a high ankle sprain last weekend, and he landed on IR this week. The 29-year-old was the only tight end on the roster with multiple receptions, so it makes sense that the team is eyeing some reinforcement at the position. Otherwise, the team is hoping that one of Chris Manhertz, Jacob Hollister, or fifth-round pick Luke Farrell will step up in the starter’s absence.

Colts Activate Trey Burton From IR

October 3rd, 2020 at 3:01pm CST by Sam Robinson

Trey Burton will don a Colts game uniform for the first time Sunday. The Colts activated the tight end from IR Saturday and moved Michael Pittman Jr. to the injured list.

Indianapolis signed Burton this offseason but saw him run into more injury trouble. A calf strain during camp resulted in the former Eagles and Bears tight end missing the Colts’ first three games.

The seventh-year pass catcher dealt with injuries last season, leading to his Chicago stay ending after two years. He underwent sports hernia surgery in 2019 and ended up on IR during the season because of a calf malady. Burton caught just 14 passes for 84 yards last season. However, in 16 Bears games in 2018, the former “Philly Special” passer caught 54 passes for 569 yards and six touchdowns. Burton will join Jack Doyle and the emerging Mo Alie-Cox in Indianapolis’ suddenly crowded tight end corps.

The Colts will need their tight end group healthy; their receiving corps has absorbed some key losses. Pittman underwent surgery after developing compartment syndrome in his calf. The surgery went well, however, and the rookie wideout could be back when eligible (Week 8, following the Colts’ Week 7 bye). For the next two games, however, Philip Rivers will be down Pittman and slot target Parris Campbell. The latter will likely miss more time than Pittman, having suffered MCL and PCL damage.

Colts’ Trey Burton Suffers Calf Strain

August 29th, 2020 at 2:27pm CST by Sam Robinson

Trey Burton‘s attempt at a rebound season may be on hold for a bit. The recent Colts addition suffered a calf strain Saturday, Frank Reich confirmed.

The former Eagles and Bears tight end will miss time, with Reich categorizing him as week-to-week. Burton did not put any weight on his injured leg upon being helped off the field, Stephen Holder of The Athletic tweets.

This marks a familiar bad break for the seventh-year veteran. Burton’s Bears tenure ended early because of injuries, with a calf malady ending his 2019 season. Burton also underwent surgery for a sports hernia issue last year.

After a 569-yard, six-touchdown debut in Chicago in 2018, Burton amassed just 84 yards in eight games in his second Bears season. The Bears released him in April. He signed with the Colts on a one-year deal for the veteran minimum soon after.

Burton, who played for Reich in Philadelphia, profiles as the Colts’ No. 2 tight end. The team did not bring back Eric Ebron but has longtime staple Jack Doyle in place as a starter. The Colts also have Mo Alie-Cox on their active/PUP list, so Burton’s setback may require a stopgap tight end signing at the very least.

Jets, Falcons, Rams, Bears To Gain Cap Room Via Post-June 1 Cuts

June 1st, 2020 at 10:07am CST by Zachary Links

The Bears, Falcons, Jets, and Rams will gain additional cap space starting Tuesday, as Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter) notes. The extra flexibility comes from the following releases that have been designated as post-June 1 cuts: 

Players released after June 1 can have their remaining cap charge spread out across two seasons, rather than one. These four players were released earlier this year, but designated as post-June 1 cuts to smooth out the dead money.

For these teams, a chunk of this money will go towards funding the incoming rookie class. However, there will still be some room left over for summer upgrades, thanks to the top-51 rule. In the case of the Falcons, they’ll have about $8.25MM to spend, as Kevin Knight of The Falcoholic notes.

The additional space could jumpstart talks for June’s best remaining free agents, a group that includes defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, cornerback Logan Ryan, and guard Larry Warford. The Jets probably won’t go for Clowney, but they’ve shown serious interest in Ryan and Warford would make some sense for them if they want to upgrade over Brian Winters.

Colts Sign TE Trey Burton

April 22nd, 2020 at 5:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

Trey Burton has found a landing spot after his Bears release. The former Eagles tight end agreed to terms with the Colts on Wednesday, according to his agency (Twitter link).

This will reunite Burton with Frank Reich, who was the Eagles’ offensive coordinator during the tight end’s final years in Philadelphia. This will be a Colts-friendly deal, with Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reporting (via Twitter) Burton agreed to a veteran-minimum contract. However, Burton still has $4MM coming to him by virtue of his 2018 Bears pact.

Burton, 28, will not be asked to be Indianapolis’ clear No. 1 tight end the way he was in Chicago. Although the Colts let Eric Ebron defect to the Steelers, they still employ Jack Doyle. Burton will be in position to be an auxiliary weapon for Philip Rivers.

The passer on the Eagles’ “Philly Special” play in Super Bowl LII performed fairly well in 2018, suiting up for 16 games and hauling in a career-high 569 yards and six touchdown receptions. Last season, though, injuries hampered Burton. He only recorded 84 yards in eight games. Burton underwent hernia surgery during the 2019 offseason and went on IR after a calf injury.

The Colts will still head into the draft in need of a T.Y. Hilton complement at wide receiver, but this Burton agreement stands to make tight end a lower priority. Indianapolis also rosters Mo Alie-Cox and ex-Steelers blocking tight end Xavier Grimble.

Bears To Release TE Trey Burton

April 17th, 2020 at 4:23pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bears are cutting Trey Burton, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). With that, Burton will hit free agency and try to hook on with another team. 

The 28-year-old (29 in October) joined the Bears on a four-year, $32MM deal in 2018. However, thanks to the structure and cash flow of the deal, it was more like a two-year pact. Ultimately, that’s how the Bears treated it. Burton will be designated as a post-June 1 cut saving the Bears roughly $2.8MM in cap space (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Adam Jahns). There’s also offset language in his deal. If another teams signs Burton, the Bears will owe him less than his $4MM guaranteed sum.

Burton spent the majority of his career as a backup for Eagles, sitting behind star Zach Ertz. Over his last two Philly seasons, Burton averaged 30 receptions, 288 yards, and three touchdowns per campaign. Those weren’t eye-popping totals, but the advanced stats showed that he was extremely efficient. In his final season with the Birds, Football Outsiders ranked Burton No. 3 in DVOA among TEs, demonstrating his per-play value.

In Chicago, Burton didn’t break out the way the Bears and many fantasy owners hoped. Burton had 54 catches for 569 yards and six touchdowns in 2018. Last year, a calf injury shut him down in November. He finished out his season with 14 receptions for 84 yards and zero touchdowns.

With Burton gone, the Bears figure to be on the hunt for tight ends in the draft.

Bears To Place TE Trey Burton On IR

November 16th, 2019 at 1:54pm CST by Sam Robinson

Trey Burton‘s second Bears season has not gone well, and it will end with the tight end on IR. The Bears will shuttle the sixth-year player to their IR list, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter).

Burton is battling a calf injury that kept him out of practice this week. The Bears will promote linebacker James Vaughters from their practice squad to take the open roster spot. Burton missed Bears offseason activities due to sports hernia surgery but was ready by Week 1.

After catching 54 passes for 569 yards and six touchdowns in his Chicago debut season, Burton will close his 2019 slate with 14 receptions for 84 yards and no scores. Still, Burton’s 84 yards lead all Bears tight ends. This has obviously been a trouble spot for an offense that has fallen well off its 2018 performance level. Adam Shaheen, a 2017 second-round pick, has just nine grabs for 74 yards in eight games.

Burton’s four-year, $32MM contract runs through the 2021 season. It calls for a $7.5MM dead-money charge, with barely $1MM in cap savings, were the Bears to cut Burton after this season. It’s likely the ex-Philly Special passer will be back next season in an attempt to bounce back from essentially a lost year. But tight end will likely be a need for the Bears, whose 2017 Dion Sims addition also did not work out.

NFC North Notes: Bears, Vikings, Flowers

July 22nd, 2019 at 9:17pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Bears have made some splashy trades since Ryan Pace replaced Phil Emery as GM in 2015. Deals that brought Khalil Mack and Mitch Trubisky to Chicago required major assets to complete. Fourth-year starter Cody Whitehair and second-round tight end Adam Shaheen also forced the Bears to surrender multiple mid-round picks. In a detailed piece by The Athletic’s Adam Jahns (subscription required), Pace summarized his aggressiveness on these fronts.

“I think if you sit on your hands and you say, ‘Oh, this player is definitely going to get to us,’ and he goes right before you and you had conviction on him — not just you but the scouts and the coaches – and you wait on it, you don’t know what’s going to happen,” Pace said. “If you have a guy or a group of guys, be aggressive and make it happen.

“I don’t want to undervalue any of these mid-round picks. We’ve shown a lot examples of us hitting on those players. But I know if we’re ever in a situation where, ‘Hey, we’re doing a little too much here,’ we can police ourselves on that. But as long as it’s a fair deal and we’re getting a player that we all have conviction on, then we’ll do it.”

As teams break for camp, here is more from the NFC North:

  • A knee injury Ha Ha Clinton-Dix suffered during Chicago’s offseason program resulted in the recently signed safety beginning his first Bears camp on the active/PUP list. The former Packers and Redskins defender has not missed a game since the 2014 season.
  • However, the Bears received good news on Trey Burton. The team’s second-year tight end starter has been cleared for camp work. The “Philly Special” quarterback underwent sports hernia surgery this offseason.
  • Although Alexander Mattison is the assumed next man up if Dalvin Cook again goes down with an injury, Mike Zimmer cautioned about anointing the third-round pick too soon. The sixth-year Vikings coach (via the Minneapolis Star Tribune’s Ben Goessling) singled out third-year UDFA C.J. Ham as a player who stands to play more on passing downs, in front of Mattison, due to pass-protection skills. Backs often begin their NFL careers limited at this skill, so the 26-year-old Ham (31 touches in two seasons, when Latavius Murray played behind Cook) may function as a stopgap while Mattison is groomed.
  • The Lions‘ top offseason expense, Trey Flowers will not begin camp with the bulk of his teammates. The four-year Patriots pass rusher will start his first Lions camp on their active/PUP list. Flowers underwent shoulder surgery before signing with the Lions, but Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press notes the $18MM-per-year defensive end is expected to be ready by Week 1.

Extra Points: Montgomery, Bears, Miller, XFL

June 28th, 2019 at 9:38pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Bears drafted running back David Montgomery in the third round back in April, not long after they traded away Jordan Howard. Montgomery has the opportunity to earn a large role this offseason, and so far it sounds like he’s been seizing it. Per Adam Jahns of The Athletic, Montgomery was lighting up the Bears’ OTAs and minicamp. Jahns writes that the Iowa State product “led the rookies, if not the entire team, in highlights made during the offseason program.”

Montgomery was somewhat of a bruising runner at Iowa State, so there was some concern coming out of college about how he’d fare in the passing game. That hasn’t been an issue so far, as Jahns writes that he “excelled in running routes and catching passes,” and that he “looked like a problem for the Bears’ defense.” Per Jahns, Montgomery has both teammates and coaches excited. Tarik Cohen will play his usual role, but he’s never going to be able to handle a full allotment of snaps with his frame. It’s early, but it sounds like Montgomery could take over a featured role as a rookie.

Here’s more from around the league:

  • The Bears sound pleased with Montgomery’s development, and that isn’t the only good news Chicago fans are getting. In the same piece, Jahns reports that the team expects both tight end Trey Burton and receiver Anthony Miller to be ready for training camp. Burton underwent offseason sports hernia surgery, while Miller had surgery to repair a torn labrum. Both players had missed the team’s recent minicamp and OTAs. Burton’s first year in Chicago was a bit of a disappointment after the big contract that he signed, while Miller showed a lot of flashes in a rookie season that was limited by recurring shoulder issues. Both players could be in for a big 2019 if they can stay healthy.
  • The XFL has been gearing up for their first season back recently, holding a series of showcases across the country. A bunch of familiar names have popped up, and we have a new one tonight courtesy of Greg Auman of The Athletic (Twitter link). Tommy Streeter, a 2012 sixth-round pick of the Ravens, will participate in the XFL’s Tampa showcase on Saturday, Auman reports. Streeter won Super Bowl XLVII with Baltimore, although he was on injured reserve at the time. He was cut by the Ravens following his rookie season, and the receiver then had stops with the Bills, Buccaneers, Dolphins, and Jaguars. Most recently, the Miami product played in the CFL in 2016.
  • In case you missed it, 2017 Seahawks second-round pick Malik McDowell is facing charges of assault, resisting arrest, and operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

NFC North Notes: LaFleur, Vikings, Burton

June 1st, 2019 at 2:59pm CST by Sam Robinson

Matt LaFleur‘s hands-on approach in his first year as Packers HC will have to be tabled for a while. The torn Achilles LaFleur suffered this week will require immediate surgery, with Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com reporting he will go under the knife Sunday. The 39-year-old coach was active in his first weeks leading the Packers, taking on an “enormous” load. But with the recovery from this surgery necessitating a potential six-month timetable, LaFleur’s methods will have to change. The coach was overseeing practice from a golf cart this week. This will certainly mark an interesting period for the Packers, LaFleur managing Achilles rehab while going through his first year as a head coach.

“A couple weeks ago I kind of tweaked my calf on the other side,” LaFleur said, via Jim Owczarski of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “But this one, I knew immediately. It was way more forceful. I thought somebody hit me in the leg. I looked around and nobody’s by me. It’s just one of those deals. We’ll rebound. We’ll be back.”

Shifting to some of the players in the NFC North, here is the latest out of the division:

  • Kirk Cousins does not have any early retirement plans. In discussing the arrival of rookie center Garrett Bradbury, the second-year Vikings quarterback said he would like to play well into the 2020s. “I told him, ‘I’d like to work together for about the next decade,’ ” Cousins said, via Dane Mizutani of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. “I just tried to set that vision for him and say, ‘You be the guy here for the next decade and let’s not have to worry about having anybody else snap for the quarterback.” While it is uncertain if Cousins will be in Minnesota beyond 2020, the final year of his fully guaranteed deal, the soon-to-be 31-year-old passer would prefer he stay in the Twin Cities on what would be multiple additional contracts.
  • With Bradbury sliding in at center, Minnesota’s incumbent snapper will slide to guard. Pat Elflein has started 28 games at center since beginning his NFL career, but he said (via Mizutani) he is now working at left guard. Elflein last played guard at Ohio State. Elflein lining up on the left side would put free agent addition Josh Kline in line to start at right guard. Both will be adjusting to the Gary Kubiak–Rick Dennison zone-blocking scheme.
  • Trey Burton will not participate in the Bears‘ final OTA sessions next week or their mid-June minicamp. Chicago’s top tight end underwent sports hernia surgery, Matt Nagy said (via NBC 5’s Mike Berman, on Twitter). The Bears hope he will be ready by training camp. Burton played all 16 games for the Bears last season, reaching career-high marks in receptions, yards and touchdowns (54/569/6).
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