Tag: Brock Wright

Notre Dame in NFL – Lions Tight End Brock Wright Through the Years

Who saw this big pay day coming a few short years ago? Good for Brock!

While at Notre Dame it was hard to envision tight end Brock Wright doing a whole lot in the NFL.  Wright had just one touchdown catch in 48 games, catching seven passes in total for all of 78-yards.

Fast forward three years and Wright has earned a rather big NFL pay day with the Detroit Lions.  Wright, a restricted free agent following the 2023 season, signed an offer sheet with the San Francisco 49ers that the Lions matched.  That will pay him up to $12 million.

In three seasons with the Lions, Wright has hauled in 43 receptions for 424 yards and seven touchdowns.  Not bad for a young man who had trouble finding targets at Notre Dame.  Then again, seeing as Alize Mack, Cole Kmet, Tommy Tremble, and Michael Mayer were all playing the same position those days the lack of targets is easy to understand.

Check out the best photos of Brock Wright during his time at Notre Dame and with the Detroit Lions below.

Detroit Lions match the 49ers’ offer sheet for TE Brock Wright

Detroit Lions match the 49ers’ offer sheet for TE Brock Wright, ensuring Wright will be back in Detroit in 2024

The Lions have decided to keep one of their own by re-signing tight end Brock Wright to a three-year deal worth $12 million. It’s unclear what the terms were for the 49ers’ offer to Wright were, but the Lions were given five days to match or beat the offer, and they did just that.

Wright was undrafted in 2021 and has earned his way onto the Lions roster as a key member of the offense. In 2022, he had 18 receptions for 216 yards and four touchdowns. While there was regression in 2023 to only 13 receptions for 91 yards and a score, Wright is known to block in the Lions offense.

Last season he earned a 45.9 run-blocking grade on PFF (65th out of 76 tight ends) but his 64.0 pass-blocking grade was best on the team for the position. Wright may not be a needle mover with elite athleticism or highlight-reel catches, but he’s the type of player that this Lions regime is all about — a hardworking football player who grinds and gets after it every game. Can’t ask for much more than that as the team is all about competing for every opportunity.

NFL Free Agency: Former Notre Dame Tight Set For Big Pay Day

Big pay day coming for a former Notre Dame tight end…

Former Notre Dame tight end Brock Wright might have caught just one touchdown reception during his college career but is set to get paid in NFL free agency.

Wright, who has played for the Detroit Lions since signing with them as an undrafted free agent following the 2021 NFL draft, has signed an offer sheet with the San Francisco 49ers.

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Wright’s offer sheet is for three years and $12 million.  The Lions now have five days to match the 49ers offer or lose him and get no compensation in return.

Wright has hauled in 43 receptions and seven touchdowns in seven years in Detroit. Stay tuned to see if the Lions match what the 49ers offered.

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Details emerge on offer sheet 49ers offered restricted free agent TE Brock Wright

Here’s the offer sheet the #49ers signed TE Brock Wright to:

The details on the 49ers’ offer sheet for Lions restricted free agent tight end Brock Wright emerged Saturday via ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Wright’s deal with San Francisco is for three years, and is worth up to $12 million with $6 million guaranteed. Detroit has five days to match the offer after tendering him at the right of first refusal level, which would have paid Wright $2,985,000 this season.

For the Lions, matching will simply be about value. They have more than $26 million in cap space according to Over the Cap, so adding Wright on a contract worth $4 million annually shouldn’t be an issue. It’ll simply be about whether they want to pay a backup TE that kind of money.

It would make sense for the Lions to try and bring him back, even with Sam LaPorta coming off a sensational rookie season. Wright has never been a regular starter in Detroit, but he never played fewer than 44 percent of their offensive snaps in the three seasons he was there.

That’s the same reason the 49ers are willing to pay him after letting TE Charlie Woerner walk in free agency. Wright is a multifaceted contributor in ways the 49ers haven’t really had behind TE George Kittle.

The best case scenario for the 49ers is Wright’s offer sheet isn’t matched by Detroit and they have their veteran TE. The worst case scenario is they match and the Lions have to pay a couple million dollars more for a TE they tried to get back on the cheap.

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Details of Brock Wright’s offer with the 49ers

Details of Brock Wright’s offer with the 49ers that the Lions restricted free agent signed

Tight end Brock Wright has signed a contract with the San Francisco 49ers as a restricted free agent. Now the Detroit Lions must decide whether to match the deal or lose Wright for no compensation.

Per Dave Birkett, Wright signed a three-year contract worth $12 million with the 49ers. That’s a significant raise from the $2.9 million RFA tender offer the Lions placed on Wright. Because the Lions used an original round tender on Wright, who joined Detroit as an undrafted free agent in 2021, they won’t get any draft pick recompense for not matching San Francisco’s offer.

Detroit now has five days to match the deal. The $4 million per year average is a pretty hefty price tag for Wright, who caught 13 passes for 91 yards and a touchdown in 2023 as Sam LaPorta’s primary backup. However, Wright is a trusted blocker and sure-handed receiver–albeit a low-volume one.

The Lions do have James Mitchell and Shane Zylstra as reserve tight ends behind LaPorta. Neither has proven to be as steady as Wright yet in their young careers. Detroit has the available cap room to absorb the higher offer for Wright if the Lions so choose.

Adding TE Brock Wright would dramatically change 49ers draft needs

The #49ers may be able to cross something off their NFL draft needs.

The 49ers made an intriguing free agency play by signing Lions restricted free agent TE Brock Wright to an offer sheet. It was a signal that the team not only recognizes its obvious need on their TE depth chart. but that they’re also hopeful to fill it with a veteran they trust to take TE2 snaps right away. Doing so would alter their needs in this year’s draft, where adding a TE was relatively high on the priority list.

San Francisco is in a little bit of a strange spot with their tight end room. George Kittle is coming off an All-Pro campaign and didn’t shown a ton of signs of slowing down in his Age 30 season. They don’t really need a starter, so typically they’d be able to wait later in the draft to find a player they like.

However, with only 2023 third-round pick Cameron Latu and 2023 seventh-round pick Brayden Willis on the roster, it stands to reason San Francisco might want to find a player they trust more to take between 25-30 percent of the snaps in 2024. That’s where a higher draft pick would come in, since an earlier selection could net them a more pro-ready prospect.

Wright changes the calculus on all of that if the 49ers are able to secure him in restricted free agency.

With Wright backing up Kittle, the 49ers’ need at TE in the draft only goes as far as they believe (or don’t believe) Latu and Willis can develop into contributors. Given that Latu didn’t play his rookie year because of an injury and Willis played only sparingly on offense, it stands to reason San Francisco would give them both opportunities to compete in their second seasons. Wright’s experience and production as a blocker and pass catcher would open the door for the 49ers to give that duo some runway they may not have without a veteran above them on the depth chart.

If the Lions choose to match San Francisco’s offer sheet for Wright, it would make sense for the 49ers to head back into the free agent TE market. If they don’t go the free agent route though, we can put TE right back up near the top of the 49ers’ positional needs heading into the 2024 draft.

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49ers dip into RFA market for tight end help

The #49ers are taking a little bit different route to find TE depth.

The 49ers are taking an unusual route to try and find tight end help. NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport on Friday reported San Francisco signed Lions restricted free agent TE Brock Wright to an offer sheet. Detroit now has five days to match the offer.

Detroit only placed a right of first refusal tender on Wright which means the 49ers won’t owe the Lions any draft compensation if the Lions choose not to match. It’s unclear what the terms of San Francisco’s offer sheet is.

Wright signed with the Lions as an undrafted free agent following the 2021 draft. He played in 41 games with 19 starts across three seasons in Detroit, posting 43 catches for 424 yards and seven touchdowns.

While he’s capable of handling some of the blocking assignments required of 49ers second TEs, Wright is also capable of shouldering a heavier workload in the passing game. His career receiving stats are well north of former 49ers backup TE Charlie Woerner, who signed with the Falcons this offseason leaving a vacancy on the 49ers’ depth chart.

If the Lions match, we’ll likely see San Francisco look elsewhere for a veteran TE with only unproven commodities Cameron Latu and Brayden Willis on the roster behind George Kittle.

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49ers sign Lions tight end Brock Wright to restricted free agent offer sheet

The Lions can either match the 49ers offer or lose Wright without any compensation

It is not often that teams sign players to restricted free agent deals but they do happen. The first, and only one so far, of the 2024 free agency cycle has been completed with Lions tight end Brock Wright. The deal is for one-year, $2.985 million dollars on an original tender.

Signing with the Lions after going undrafted out of Notre Dame in the 2021 NFL Draft, Wright made his impact right away. In Ben Johnson’s offense he was able to be used on critical downs and was an extension of the offensive line with his blocking ability. He has been especially versatile as a blocker being able to seal off edges for outside runs or pull and be a lead blocker.

The Lions now have five days to decide if they will match the offer. If they do, Wright signs with them for the same deal. If they do not match the deal, the Lions will not receive any compensation for him leaving.

Lions officially tender James Houston among several transactions

Lions officially tender James Houston among several transactions to start the new NFL league year

The start of the new NFL league year commenced at 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday. The flip to 2024 means transactions that had been pending and long-reported are now able to be made official.

Such was the case for the Detroit Lions with a few deals that had been in the works. Among those were the qualifying tender offers for restricted and exclusive rights free agents on the roster.

MOst of these were already known, but the Lions made it official. They extended qualifying offers to just one of the six eligible restricted free agents. Tight end Brock Wright will be back in Detroit for $2.9 million.

The following restricted free agents are now on the open market and no longer under contractual control or compensation ties to the Lions:

  • CB Jerry Jacobs
  • CB Chase Lucas
  • LB Anthony Pittman
  • LS Scott Daly
  • DT Benito Jones
  • CB Khalil Dorsey

For exclusive rights free agents, or ERFAs, the Lions officially tendered five of the six eligible players. Most notable is EDGE James Houston, whose status had been kept quiet by all parties. Houston will play for the NFL league minimum for the Lions in 2024 and will become a restricted free agent following the season if he’s on the roster in some form for at least six games.

The trade for Carlton Davis and recent re-signings of RB Zonovan Knight, CB Emmanuel Moseley and TE Shane Zylstra were also made official on the league’s transaction wire.

Lions expected to extend high tender offer to restricted free agent Brock Wright

Lions expected to extend a right of first refusal tender offer to restricted free agent Brock Wright

One of the less taxing decisions for NFL teams in free agency is the fate of their restricted free agents. The team controls the players’ availability through tender offers and the ability to match any outside offers—if any other teams aren’t scared off by the initial tender offer.

One Lions restricted free agent who the team seems very intent on keeping is tight end Brock Wright. Per Over The Cap, Detroit will use the right of first refusal RFA tag on Wright.

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In effect, the right of first refusal tender means the Lions will pay Wright  $2.985 million for the 2024 season. He will then be an unrestricted free agent after the season, his fourth in the NFL. Another team can offer Wright more, and the Lions could choose to match that offer. Pro Football Network summarized it nicely,

If a player is tendered at the original round/right-of-first-refusal level and signs an offer sheet that his incumbent team declines to match, that club would be entitled to a draft choice equal to the round in which the player was selected. The team wouldn’t receive compensation if the player wasn’t drafted or was tendered at the lowest of the four levels.

It’s hard to see another team paying Wright $3 million for one season. The 25-year-old is coming off a broken arm that ended a season in which he caught 13 passes for 91 yards. In three seasons in Detroit since joining the Lions as an undrafted free agent from Notre Dame, Wright has caught 43 passes for 424 yards and seven touchdowns.