Tag: Austin Bryant

State of the Roster: Can 49ers defensive end depth step up?

Our State of the Roster continues with a look at a 49ers defensive end group that’s full of question marks.

With 49ers OTAs in full swing, we’re taking a position-by-position look at the team’s roster to figure out the strengths, weaknesses, potential dark horses to make the team and other nuggets about the players who will be competing for jobs on the 53-man roster.

It’s impossible to say whether the 49ers have enough in their defensive end room entering training camp. Their group of DEs all come with significant question marks as defensive line coach Kris Kocurek aims to work his magic again on underutilized pass rushers still trying to find their way in the NFL.

While San Francisco doesn’t have any sure things at DE behind Nick Bosa, there’s plenty of reason for optimism. Players like Samson Ebukam, Charles Omenihu, Kerry Hyder and Arden Key have all experienced breakout success while playing on the 49ers’ defensive line. There’s a chance the club sees similar results with this year’s DE group (non-Bosa division). That’s what they’re banking on, anyway.

There could be changes coming depending on how the team feels about its DEs once training camp starts, but lets look at what the 90-man roster looks like at that spot heading into camp:

Former Lions EDGE Austin Bryant signs with the 49ers

Former Lions EDGE Austin Bryant signs with the 49ers as a free agent

After taking a free agent visit with the San Francisco 49ers, former Lions EDGE Austin Bryant agreed to sign with the NFC West team. Bryant signed with the 49ers on a one-year contract, according to numerous reports.

A 2019 fourth-round draft pick out of Clemson, Bryant never really caught on in Detroit. He started six games in four seasons, five of them in 2021. In 33 total games with the Lions, Bryant logged 65 total tackles and 4.5 sacks.

The Lions made no real effort to re-sign Bryant as a free agent in 2023.

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Report: 49ers to sign DE Austin Bryant

The #49ers are signing DE Austin Bryant following his visit.

Free agent defensive end Austin Bryant’s visit with the 49ers went well enough to earn the four-year veteran a contract. NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero on Wednesday reported Bryant agreed to a one-year deal with San Francisco.

Injuries limited Bryant to just 10 games across his first two seasons with Detroit after they took him in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL draft.

He played in 14 games and posted a career-best 4.5 sacks in 2021, but didn’t record a sack last year while playing in only nine games.

Bryant, 26, put up 17.0 sacks in his final two seasons with Clemson where he played for four years. He joins fellow Clemson DE Clelin Ferrell as veterans looking to revamp their careers on San Francisco’s defensive line.

At 6-5, 260 pounds, Bryant has the size to play multiple spots on the 49ers’ front. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him in a hybrid role where he rushes from the edge and the interior like Arden Key and Charles Omenihu have both done recently for San Francisco and defensive line coach Kris Kocurek.

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49ers host free agent edge rusher Austin Bryant on visit

The #49ers are hosting a veteran DE on a visit as they look to find some depth on the edges.

Defensive end remains one of the areas the 49ers can bolster their depth. They lost DEs Samson Ebukam, Charles Omenihu and Jordan Willis in free agency while adding only Clelin Ferrell. Now they’re hosting free agent DE Austin Bryant on a visit according to NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero.

Bryant, 26, was a fourth-round pick of the Lions in 2019 after a strong college career at Clemson where he posted 17.0 sacks over his final two seasons.

Injuries derailed his first two seasons and he played just 10 unproductive games over those years. In 2021 he posted 4.5 sacks in 14 games, but his sack total fell back to 0.0 in 2022 where he played in only nine games.

Update

Bryant signed with the 49ers.

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NFL free agency: Rumors and reports on the remaining Lions on the market

NFL free agency: Rumors and reports concerning the Lions from 2022 who remain available in free agency

The Detroit Lions currently have 13 unrestricted free agents that are free to sign with other teams.

As news floods in about all of the trades, signings, and visits around the league, it’s hard to keep track of where these former Lions are headed next.

EDGE Austin Bryant‘s name has not appeared in any headlines as of yet. The 2019 fourth-round pick was benched last season in favor of Julian Okwara and rookie James Houston.

Wide receiver DJ Chark has drawn interest from several teams, including the Cleveland Browns, New York Giants and Carolina Panthers. While he is still expected to test the market, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reported that there is a chance that Chark returns as a Lion in 2023.

Cornerback Mike Hughes is reported to have a visit scheduled with the Atlanta Falcons. The versatile cornerback had six starts for the Lions at both the outside and nickel positions.

Running back Justin Jackson has not garnered any interest so far in free agency. He did well as Detroit’s third running back last season.

Offensive lineman Tommy Kraemer is another exclusive-rights free agent who the Lions opted not to bring back. He was sidelined with a back injury for the entirety of the 2022 season, so his health may be a factor into why he has not re-signed. As an undrafted rookie in 2021, he provided reliable depth for the interior offensive line.

Safety C.J. Moore excitedly rejoined the Lions mid-season after spending some time with the Houston Texans. He was the heart and soul of Detroit’s special teams unit and will likely be looking for that role elsewhere. He recently met with the New England Patriots, who recent signed fellow former Lions special teamer Chris Board.

Cornerback Amani Oruwariye was once thought to be a sure starter for the Lions. Instead, he rode the bench for most of 2022 and entered free agency without any suitors. He has not been linked to any teams yet in free agency.

Cornerback Bobby Price was not tendered as a restricted free agent and is now free to sign with any team. He suffered a knee injury in 2022 and will likely need to wait until he’s cleared before signing with a team. Birkett also reported that Price will be in the Detroit area for a checkup on his knee.

Quarterback Nate Sudfeld was the lone backup for Jared Goff last season and now will test the free agent market. He also has no noteworthy news so far in free agency.

Offensive lineman Dan Skipper was a feel-good story for the Lions as he performed well as a starter in place of the injured Jonah Jackson. He is yet another free agent in Detroit who has not met with any teams in the past few days.

Linebacker Josh Woods was a team captain and special teams ace last season. He has no ties to any other teams at this time.

 

 

Lions officially re-sign CB Will Harris with the veteran salary benefit

Lions officially re-sign CB Will Harris with the veteran salary benefit, which allows the team to pay him more than his salary cap hit

The Detroit Lions have made the reported news official. The team has re-signed cornerback Will Harris to a one-year deal.

The terms of the deal are a little complicated. Harris re-signed with the Lions using a contractual device known as the veteran salary benefit. Basically, it allows the Lions to pay Harris the fully guaranteed $2.58 million contract for one year, but only count $1,317,500 against the Lions’ salary cap.

The best explanation for the veteran salary benefit comes from Russell Street Report,

The Veteran Salary Benefit (VSB) rule was created by the 2020 CBA and replaced the old Minimum Salary Benefit (MSB) Rule. These rules were put in place to allow veteran players to be signed to Cap-friendly deals instead of being replaced by cheaper, more Cap-friendly, younger players. The Veteran Salary Benefit allows veteran players to be signed to 1-year contracts with the applicable minimum salary (based on the player’s service time) and a small signing bonus ($152,500 in 2022), but only have to count that player at the salary level of a player with only 2 years of service time (plus the bonus).

In effect, Harris was able to sign for nearly double the amount that will be billed to the Lions’ salary cap accounting. Had he signed with another team, he wouldn’t have been able to get that benefit.

The Lions had two free agents who were eligible for the benefit, Harris and EDGE Austin Bryant. Because the Lions used it on Harris, Bryant is ineligible to get it. Bryant remains unsigned.

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Watch: Week 5 highlights from NFL Tigers

A bunch of former Clemson standouts balled out in Week 5 of the 2022 NFL season. Check out highlights from some NFL Tigers – including Mike Williams, Christian Wilkins, Dexter Lawrence, Austin Bryant, Isaiah Simmons, DeShawn Williams, Shaq Lawson, …

A bunch of former Clemson standouts balled out in Week 5 of the 2022 NFL season.

Check out highlights from some NFL Tigers — including Mike Williams, Christian Wilkins, Dexter Lawrence, Austin Bryant, Isaiah Simmons, DeShawn Williams, Shaq Lawson, Trevor Lawrence, Travis Etienne and Hunter Renfrow — in the following video from Clemson Football:

–Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images 

Dear Old Clemson is excited to announce a limited edition football and poster signed by Clemson’s Avengers.

Now there is a new way you can support Clemson student-athletes. Purchase collectibles from Dear Old Clemson and the proceeds with go to support Clemson student-athletes. Visit Dear Old Clemson to find out how you can help!

Lions vs Vikings: Best and Worst PFF grades from Week 3

Here are the Detroit Lions best and worst PFF performers for this Week 3 game against the Minnesota Vikings.

It is never easy losing against your division opponent, but what happened for the Detroit Lions at the end makes it hurt that much more, losing their second game against the Minnesota Vikings, 28-24.

The Lions looked to be in control, but after some heavily questionable playcalling, ill-timed injuries, and miscommunication, they felt that win slip through their fingers. It has been documented enough that Coach Dan Campbell wishes he would’ve made a different call at the end, so we don’t need to beat a dead horse while it’s down. The Lions will look to redeem themselves next week against the Seattle Seahawks in hopes they can rebound from this devastation.

Most of this week’s PFF grades fall right in line with the eye test, good and bad. So we will go ahead and highlight the best and the worst PFF performers for the Lions for Week 3 against the Vikings.

Secret Superstars for Week 2 of the 2022 NFL preseason

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar names the most impactful under-the-radar performers in Week 2 of the 2022 NFL preseason.

There are those who will tell you that preseason games don’t matter — they are useless to analyze, as you have starters going against starters in relatively vanilla schemes, or backups going against backups; most of whom won’t be playing in the NFL when the regular season starts.

When you peel back to the truth past that hyperbole, there’s a lot more to it than that. The story in the middle of that is a huge ball of players who are either trying to establish themselves as potential starters, or are trying to save their careers in short spaces of time. What you’re looking for is how people fit into teams and schemes, or not.

And that’s why preseason performances actually do matter — they set the tone for the regular season more often than you may think.

Here are our Secret Superstars for Week 2 of the full 2022 preseason — the guys who stood out above the rest. These are not recent first-round picks, or lead-pipe locks to make a roster; these are the guys fighting for every bit of starting opportunities.

Lions stock report after the 2nd preseason game

Which Detroit Lions players raised their stock in the 2nd preseason week and which saw their stock fall?

The second preseason game saw the Detroit Lions notch their first exhibition victory in a long time, a 27-26 win over the host Indianapolis Colts. Saturday’s game followed two days of intense joint practice sessions at the Colts training facility, physical practices that had the feel of something more than just practicing.

Several Lions helped themselves in the exhibition game and joint practices. Others did not.

Here’s who rose up and who sank in the second preseason week Detroit Lions roster stock report.