Tag: James Proche

Browns extend PR/WR James Proche on one-year deal

Another wide receiver returns to the 90-man roster.

The Cleveland Browns are bringing back wide receiver and return specialist James Proche on a one-year deal (according to The Athletic’s Zac Jackson) as the second week of free agency is underway.

After being signed off of the Baltimore Ravens’ practice squad a year ago due to injuries in the wide receiver room and the trade of Donovan Peoples-Jones, Proche saw his action on special teams. This is likely where he has the best track to make the roster again in 2024, but his pathway is quite murky.

Proche enters the offseason as a longshot to make the roster after the addition of running back Nyheim Hines. With experience working with both offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey and special teams coordinator Bubba Ventrone, Hines is a proven weapon who likely gets the nod as the return specialist in 2024.

This does, however, give Proche a streamlined opportunity to land on the practice squad and on the shortlist to be called up for three gameday elevations. For now, Proche hangs around on the 90-man roster with a chance to compete this summer.

Browns elevating WR James Proche from the practice squad vs. Cardinals

The Browns have elevated one against the Cardinals

The Cleveland Browns are elevating one player from the practice squad to the active roster as they get set to take on the Arizona Cardinals at home tomorrow. Newly-signed wide receiver James Proche will get his first opportunity in a Browns’ uniform tomorrow as they look to advance to 5-3 on the season.

Proche, originally a sixth round pick of the Baltimore Ravens in 2020, was on their active roster for three seasons. He has caught 25 passes for 278 yards in three seasons in the NFL. Proche also has a ton of experience as a punt returner in the NFL, an area the Browns are looking to fill after trading away Donovan Peoples-Jones.

Wide receiver David Bell is also out in this game against the Cardinals, so the Browns are looking to fill a void left by both Peoples-Jones and the Purdue product. Rookie wideout Cedric Tillman will see a massive increase in his role this week, but Proche has the opportunity to see the field.

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Browns add Kenyan Drake among a flurry of practice squad roster moves

Cleveland has re-arranged their practice squad

The Cleveland Browns, on the day of the trade deadline, have been quite busy. However, none of it has anything to do with making a trade. Instead, the Browns have made a flurry of moves to their practice squad roster, including the addition of veteran running back Kenyan Drake. The former Alabama running back was in Cleveland for a workout last week, and now finally lands on the practice squad a few days later.

Drake teased his signing to the Browns this morning on Twitter, but now the news is officially official. While the Browns have been busy reconstructing their practice squad, do not discount general manager Andrew Berry from making a trade before the 4 PM deadline today. The team is rumored to be interested in bringing back quarterback Jacoby Brissett, as well as dipping their toes in the wide receiver market.

For now, however, here are all of the moves the Browns made to their practice squad today.

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Former Ravens’ WR James Proche is signing to Browns practice squad

Former Ravens’ WR James Proche is signing to Browns practice squad ahead of Week 9

James Proche is back in the AFC North, landing on the Cleveland Browns practice squad, Jeremy Fowler reports.

The 26-year-old Proche was a sixth-round pick of the Baltimore Ravens in the 2020 NFL draft and had spent his entire three-year career with the team before being released as a part of final cuts back in August.

In 43 career NFL games, Proche has 25 receptions for 278 yards while excelling as a special teams standout, returning 27 punts for 222 yards and two kickoffs for 22 yards.

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Browns bring TE Devin Asiasi, WR Shi Smith, and more in for workouts on Friday

The Browns hosted 6 for workouts yesterday.

As they do every week, the Cleveland Browns brought in six players for a workout on the heels of their Week 3 matchup against the Tennessee Titans. The headliners of this week’s batch of tryouts are tight end Devin Asiasi and wide receiver Shi Smith.

Asiasi, of course, is a former third round selection of the New England Patriots. He lasted less than two years in New England before he was released and signed by the Cincinnati Bengals. Asiasi managed to rack up just five yards on two catches in 2022 for the Browns’ little brother.

Smith is the other interesting name, as a former sixth round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft of the Carolina Panthers after an illustrious career with the South Carolina Gamecocks. Appearing in all 17 games for the Panthers a year ago, Smith racked up 296 yards and two touchdowns on 22 catches.

Here is the full list of players the Browns had in for a workout on Friday as they look to continue to find bottom of the roster and practice squad-worthy players.

Giants working out James Proche, Andre Roberts

The New York Giants are working out wide receivers, James Proche and Andre Roberts, on Tuesday in East Rutherford.

The New York Giants will hold their weekly workouts on Tuesday and wide receiver James Proche will be among the group in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler was the first to report Proche’s workout.

The 26-year-old Proche was a sixth-round pick of the Baltimore Ravens in the 2020 NFL draft and had spent his entire three-year career with the team before being released as a part of final cuts.

In 43 career games, Proche has hauled in 25 receptions for 278 yards and 14 first downs. He also sees a lot of action in special teams, returning 27 punts for 222 yards and two kickoffs for 22 yards.

In addition to Porche, the Giants are also working out wide receiver Andre Roberts.

The 35-year-old Roberts was a third-round pick of the Arizona Cardinals in the 2010 NFL draft. He’s also played for the Washington Commanders, Detroit Lions, Atlanta Falcons, New York Jets, Buffalo Bills, Houston Texans, Los Angeles Chargers and Carolina Panthers.

Roberts is a prolific return man who’s been to three Pro Bowls and been named an All-Pro three times.

The Giants have needs along the offensive line, at cornerback and in the secondary, but don’t really have a glaring need at receiver. However, head coach Brian Daboll & Co. seem to be looking for an alternate option at returner after rookie running back Eric Gray fielded just one punt for seven yards on Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys.

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James Proche had the game-tying TD bounce off his fingertips in excruciating end for Ravens

What a brutal end for the Ravens.

James Proche will surely be seeing this ball bounce off his fingers in his nightmares for some time.

On Sunday, the Cincinnati Bengals bested the Baltimore Ravens 24-17 in the AFC Wild Card after a dramatic finish. The difference-maker came down to Sam Hubbard’s stunning 98-yard fumble recovery for the game-winning touchdown, but the Ravens still had hope on their final drive.

With eight seconds left and the Ravens on the Bengals 27-yard line, Tyler Huntley threw a Hail Mary into the end zone on the final play. The ball deflected off a mass of bodies and went right to Proche’s outstretched hands. Unfortunately, the ball bounced off Proche’s fingertips and fell to the ground as the clock hit zero.

Talk about a brutal way to end your playoff hopes. Sure, if Proche caught the ball and Baltimore tied things up, the Ravens still could have lost in overtime. And yet, it’s still agonizing to see a potential victory slip from your grasp like that.

What an effort from Proche but it just wasn’t to be.

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Ravens ST coordinator Chris Horton shares thoughts on replacing WR Devin Duvernay

Ravens special teams coordinator Chris Horton discussed the loss of wide receiver Devin Duvernay in the return game

The Baltimore Ravens are preparing for a Christmas Eve showdown with the Atlanta Falcons at M&T Bank Stadium.  On Tuesday, Ravens Pro Bowl returner/wide receiver Devin Duvernay was placed on injured reserve with a significant foot injury that he sustained in practice.  To take over return duties for Duvernay, a multitude of players could step in as the team looks for answers.

Special Teams Coordinator Chris Horton spoke to the media post-practice and talked about the return game with the absence of Duvernay. He talked about how big of a loss Duvernay is, but expressed his confidence in the other options on the roster.

“It’s huge. I think one of the things with us [is] Devin [Duvernay] was valuable for what we were doing, for what we have done over the past two years. So, we have guys, though. We have guys that will come in and fill that role. [I’m] very confident in all the guys that we have. As you guys have seen, throughout the course of the last couple weeks, we were starting to rotate some guys back there anyway. So, I’m not really concerned that much about that part of the game. The biggest thing for us is just to go out there and execute all 11. I think those plays will take care of themselves.”

Hopefully players such as running back Justice Hill and wide receiver James Proche II can step up and make an impact on special teams during the last three weeks of the regular season and hopefully into the playoffs. Whoever takes Duvernay’s spot will be vitally important, whether it be just one player or a committee.

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Ravens make four roster moves ahead of Week 13 vs. Broncos

The Ravens made four roster moves ahead of their Week 13 game against the Broncos

The Baltimore Ravens will take on the Denver Broncos in Week 13 of the 2022 season, looking to improve their record to 8-4 on the year. Baltimore lost a heartbreaking game to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 12, and will be looking to get back on track in a big way.

Ahead of the contest, Baltimore announced that they made four roster moves. They placed wide receiver Tylan Wallace on injured reserve, signed wide receiver Binjimen Victor to the 53-man roster, and elevated wide receiver DeSean Jackson and defensive back Ar’Darius Washington from their practice squad to their active roster.

Each player could be relied upon heavily to make an impact in Week 13 against Denver, especially with some of the injuries that the team is going through at the moment. The Broncos have a strong defense, so hopefully Jackson and Victor can loosen up the defense with his speed.

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Ravens release final injury report for Week 12 matchup vs. Jaguars

The Ravens released final injury report for Week 12 against the Jaguars

The Baltimore Ravens will travel to Florida to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 12. The trip will give them a chance to enjoy some warmth as opposed to the cold of Maryland, but regardless of weather, they’ll look to extend their winning streak to five games.

The final injury report of the week was released by the team, and has cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis and Ronnie Stanley as the only two players listed as out before game time. Baltimore head John Harbaugh mentioned that Stanley likely wasn’t going to make the game against Jacksonville after Friday’s practice.

Wide receiver Devin Duvernay and tight end Isaiah Likely popped up on the list for the first time this week and are listed as questionable. Wide receiver Demarcus Robinson returned to practice after missing Thursday’s practice with a hamstring injury, which is a good thing for a depleted wide receiver room that now has questions about Duvernay’s health.

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