Tag: James Burgess

49ers agree to terms with journeyman LB James Burgess

James Burgess is set to sign with the 49ers and add some depth to their LB corps in camp.

The San Francisco 49ers are adding some depth to their linebacking corps. ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Friday reported veteran free agent LB James Burgess has agreed to a one-year deal to join the 49ers.

Burgess landed in the league in 2016 as an undrafted free agent with the Dolphins. He debuted in 2017 with the Browns and spent two seasons in Cleveland before bouncing to the Jets in 2019 and then Green Bay last year.

He’s been at least a part-time starter and special teams contributor at all of his stops. He started nine of 14 games he played in 2017, two of three games in 2018, all 10 the following year, and then didn’t play at all defensively for the Packers a season ago.

With limited linebacker depth, the 49ers are likely looking for players to help fill out their camp roster, although Burgess’ ability to play special teams could put him in the mix to make the club if another veteran like Nate Gerry struggles.

Burgess has played in 31 games with 21 starts in his career. He’s racked up 166 tackles, 21 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, one interception and a pair of forced fumbles.

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49ers signing former Packers LB James Burgess

Free agent linebacker James Burgess, who played for the Packers last season, is signing with the 49ers.

The San Francisco 49ers are signing one of the Green Bay Packers’ last remaining free agents.

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the 49ers and linebacker James Burgess have agreed to a one-year deal.

Burgess appeared in four games with the Packers last season, tallying three tackles over 51 special teams snaps. He did not play a single snap on defense.

The Packers signed Burgess off the Atlanta Falcons’ practice squad in late October of last year. He played in games against the Minnesota Vikings, San Francisco 49ers, Jacksonville Jaguars and Indianapolis Colts before going on season-ending injured reserve in late November.

Burgess, 27, had an expiring contract following the 2020 season. He has played in 31 career games since joining the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2017.

Burgess is the ninth free agent for the Packers to sign with a new team this offseason, joining Corey Linsley, Christian Kirksey, Tim Boyle, Jamaal Williams, Montravius Adams, Lane Taylor, Raven Greene and Parry Nickerson.

Among the Packers’ remaining free agents are Tyler Ervin and Damon Harrison.

Report: Packers adding LB James Burgess off Falcons practice squad

The Packers are plucking a veteran inside linebacker off the Falcons practice squad.

The Green Bay Packers are making an addition at inside linebacker.

According to Field Yates of ESPN, the Packers will sign linebacker James Burgess off of the Atlanta Falcons’ practice squad.

Burgess, an undrafted free agent out of Louisville in 2017, has played in 27 career regular-season games, including 10 with the New York Jets last season. He has 163 tackles, 21 tackles for losses, eight pass breakups, 4.5 sacks, eight quarterback hits and two forced fumbles in his NFL career.

The Packers will be Burgess’ eighth NFL team. He was signed to the Falcons practice squad last Tuesday.

Mike Pettine’s defense remains thin at inside linebacker. Christian Kirksey is on injured reserve, Kamal Martin has yet to be activated from injured reserve and Krys Barnes briefly left Sunday’s loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Packers have an open roster spot and will not have to make a corresponding move.

As a starter in New York last season, Burgess tallied 80 tackles, eight tackles for losses and an interception. As a rookie in Cleveland in 2017, he produced 75 tackles, four sacks and 12 tackles for losses.

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The 4 biggest surprises from a weekend of Jets roster moves

Jets Wire breaks down four surprising moves the Jets made during cut weekend.

The Jets were busy at work over the weekend, cutting down their 80-man training camp roster to 53 with the regular season less than a week away.

Throughout the weekend, Adam Gase and Joe Douglas had 27 tough decisions to make. Some were easy, while others likely took hours of deliberation. Some were also downright head-scratching.

With that being said, here are four of the biggest surprises from New York’s weekend of roster moves.

Cutting Jonotthan Harrison

Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

In three years with the Jets, Jonotthan Harrison served as nothing but a reliable offensive lineman who produced when his number was called. That was not enough to save his job, though, as he was among New York’s first round of cuts on Friday night.

The decision to cut Harrison leaves the Jets without a true reserve center and down a leader, one Sam Darnold pinpointed as an invaluable presence in the locker room.

“For the last 2½ years, for lack of a better term, he’s been kind of like an older brother to me, showing me the ropes,” Darnold told ESPN’s Rich Cimini. “It’s been fun, man, watching him come to work every day. He works harder than anyone I know. Jon is an incredible human being, a great leader and a great friend. He understands how much of a business football is. That’s how we both have to look at it, but it does suck.”

New York will undoubtedly miss Harrison on and off the field. It’s tough to argue against Joe Douglas’ reasoning when it comes to offensive line personnel, but this decision is one that leaves plenty of questions.

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Report: Jets cut LB James Burgess

The Jets’ first cut of the weekend is notable but no surprise. LB James Burgess did not make New York’s initial 53-man roster, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. He was cut Friday, a day ahead of Saturday’s 4 p.m. deadline. A backup linebacker, …

The Jets’ first cut of the weekend is notable but no surprise.

LB James Burgess did not make New York’s initial 53-man roster, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. He was cut Friday, a day ahead of Saturday’s 4 p.m. deadline.

A backup linebacker, Burgess has been cut nine times now in his NFL career, but he’s always found another opportunity. He re-signed with the Jets on a one-year deal this past offseason after initially joining the team as a waiver claim last May. Burgess stepped up when injuries plagued the Jets’ linebackers in 2019, recording 80 tackles, half a sack, one interception, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. The 26-year-old started 10 games.

Burgess exceeded expectations last year, but there was a numbers crunch at inside linebacker this summer. Burgess was getting reps behind Neville Hewitt, Blake Cashman and Avery Williamson in camp. Burgess also missed some time on the COVID-19 list. He was activated on Aug. 13.

Burgess proved he can be a dependable backup last season in New York, so chances are he will catch on quickly somewhere.

Report: Jets LB Avery Williamson agrees to restructured contract

Avery Williamson agreed to a restructured contract worth $3.5 million.

The Jets saved some money on Avery Williamson’s contract, and they did it without having to cut the linebacker.

According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Williamson agreed to a restructured deal worth $3.5 million with $1 million guaranteed. The contract can reach $5 million with incentives. Originally, Williamson’s 2020 base salary was worth $6.5 million.

The move saves the Jets $3.75 million in cap space. They had $31.5 million in cap space prior to the restructure.

Williamson just recently returned to practice and is primarily working with the second-team defense alongside James Burgess. He’ll see a few snaps here and there with the first-team defense, but the Jets seem to like the pairing of him and Burgess.

The 28-year-old linebacker is coming off a torn ACL that he suffered last preseason. Entering training camp, the expectation was that Williamson was going to be a cap casualty given the Jets’ depth at inside linebacker. However, when C.J. Mosley opted out due to COVID-19 concerns, it gave the Jets more of an incentive to keep Williamson.

Before the injury, Williamson was coming off the best season of his career in 2018. He recorded 116 total tackles, six pass breakups, three sacks, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and one interception in 16 games.

It remains to be seen what Williamson’s role will be with the Jets in 2020, but if he can produce even a fraction of those numbers, New York will gladly take that at a reduced cost.

Jets Injury Report: Jeff Smith hurts shoulder, Greg Van Roten limited on Saturday

Jets Injury report from practice on Aug. 29.

The Jets got even thinner at wide receiver on Saturday, as Jeff Smith left practice with a shoulder injury.

Smith injured his shoulder diving for a pass in 7-on-7 drills and promptly left the field with a trainer. He is set to undergo an MRI to determine the severity of the injury. If Smith is forced out of action for an extended period of time, he will be the latest Jets wideout forced to the sideline. Both Breshad Perriman (knee) and Denzel Mims (hamstring) missed practice and it remains to be seen when they will return.

Prior to his injury, Smith had been taking reps with New York’s first-team offense and was having a solid training camp. Undrafted free agent George Campbell stepped into his spot on Saturday and impressed with a touchdown reception from David Fales and a contested first down catch going up against Quincy Wilson.

Pierre Desir (hamstring), Tarell Basham (ankle) and Jabari Zuniga (quad) also missed practice. Rookie Bryce Hall, who was recently activated from the COVID-19 reserve list, did not practice and was placed on the active/non-football injury list as he works his way back from a gruesome ankle injury suffered in his senior year at Virginia.

Greg Van Roten practiced, but was limited due to an oblique injury suffered in practice on Wednesday. Brian Poole was also limited as he returns from dehydration, working exclusively on special teams. James Burgess returned after missing time because of a back injury.

Jets injury report: Breshad Perriman sits out practice with knee injury

Breshad Perriman was held out of Sunday’s practice due to a knee injury.

Add Breshad Perriman to the list of injured Jets wide receivers.

Perriman sat out of Sunday’s practice due to a knee injury. His knee swelled up a bit on Saturday, but the injury is not considered serious and the expectation is that he’ll be back on Monday.

RT Chuma Edoga didn’t finish practice, as he suffered a calf injury. Edoga is in a battle at right tackle with George Fant. Meanwhile, LB Patrick Onwuasor had tests done on his knee that revealed no torn ligaments. He’ll be out for an extended period of time.

WR Denzel Mims (hamstring), CB Brian Poole (dehydration), CB Pierre Desir (hamstring) LB James Burgess (back), Corbin Kaufusi (hamstring), RB Josh Adams (hamstring), S Mathias Farley (hamstring), OL Connor McDermott (knee), DL John Franklin Myers (groin) and DE Jabari Zuniga (quad) were all held out of practice once again. Poole had an extreme reaction to dehydration due to an undisclosed condition.

LB Avery Williamson said he felt good in his return to practice after being out for about a year with a torn ACL.

Jets injury report: Patrick Onwuasor among 3 new injuries

Patrick Onwuasor, Josh Adams and John Franklin Myers all suffered new injuries for the Jets.

The New York Jets announced three new injuries on Saturday.

Patrick Onwuasor (knee), Josh Adams (hamstring) and John Franklin Myers (groin) were all forced to leave practice early. Onwuasor hurt himself chasing down TE Ross Travis. He was able to walk off the field under his own power.

Denzel Mims (hamstring), Pierre Desir (hamstring), Brian Poole (dehydration), James Burgess (back) and Jabari Zuniga (quad) were all held out of practice again. The Jets are hoping Mims can start individual drills in the coming days. Meanwhile, the Jets are not rushing Poole back, as he is still dealing with dehydration issues. He had a similar problem last summer as well.

Avery Williamson (knee), Ryan Griffin (ankle) and Daniel Brown (NFI list) were all activated and participated in individual drills for the first time this training camp.

Jets injury report: Connor McDermott week-to-week with knee injury

Connor McDermott is week-to-week with a knee injury.

The Jets lucked out with an injury to one of their backup offensive lineman.

Connor McDermott had an MRI on his knee on Wednesday and is listed as week-to-week. McDermott left Tuesday’s practice after hurting his knee, but the injury is not as serious as initially feared.

As for Thursday’s practice, Mathias Farley (hamstring) and Jordan Willis (knee) both left practice early. It is unknown how severe both injuries are to Farley and Willis.

Denzel Mims (hamstring), Pierre Desir (hamstring), Brian Poole (dehydration), James Burgess Jr. (back) and Jabari Zuniga (quad) all didn’t practice on Thursday as well.