Tag: Jesse James

Every Penn State player on an NFL opening day roster in 2022

Here is every former Penn State plater on an NFL roster to start the new NFL season in 2022.

The start of a new season in the National Football League is here and there will be a good amount of Penn State flavor throughout the league this season. Penn State will have the eighth most players on an NFL opening day roster this season with 34 players appearing on an NFL team’s 53-man roster to start the season (plus two additional players on injured reserve and another on the physically unable to perform list). In all, Penn State claims 44 players are on NFL rosters to start the year with the inclusion of practice squad players.

That includes nine players who were on the Penn State roster in 2021, including wide receiver [autotag]Jahan Dotson[/autotag], defensive end [autotag]Arnold Ebiketie[/autotag], and safety [autotag]Jaquan Brisker[/autotag]. Dotson is one of four Penn State players on the Washington Commanders, the most of any NFL franchise to start the season.

Former kicker [autotag]Robbie Gould[/autotag] continues to be the elder statesman of the Nittany Lions football family in the NFL. Gould, of the San Francisco 49ers, is entering his 19th season in the NFL.

Here is a look at every Penn State player on either an NFL team’s 53-man roster or practice squad at the start of the 2022 season.

Jesse James: What the Browns are getting in their new TE

Our Jeff Risdon covered James in Detroit and offers his insight on the new Browns TE

There is a new tight end in Cleveland after the Browns signed veteran free agent Jesse James. The 28-year-old James inked a one-year deal to join the Browns tight end party, one that has seen quite a bit of transactional action in the last few months.

James comes to Cleveland after spending the 2021 season on the Chicago Bears. The Browns are his fourth NFL stop, following stints in Pittsburgh and Detroit as well.

I had the fortune to cover James in his two seasons (2019-2020) with the Lions, as well as watching several of his Bears and Steelers games over the years. Notice I did not say “good” fortune…

What the Browns are getting in Jesse James

James was a fifth-round pick by the Steelers in the 2015 NFL draft out of Penn State. At 6-foot-7 and 261 pounds, he’s a big target with some natural power and base strength to his game.

He climbed the ladder quickly to become the top tight end for the Steelers, starting on their 2016 squad that advanced to the AFC Championship game. His role diminished in 2018 with Vance McDonald’s arrival in Pittsburgh, and James subsequently cashed in as a free agent with the Lions.

His time in Detroit was almost immediately a failure. From the very first practice, his decided lack of athleticism was readily evident. He had always looked a little sluggish in getting off the line in Pittsburgh, but seeing James in drills and reps with the likes of Logan Thomas and T.J. Hockenson — the relative lack of twitch and quickness was plainly obvious. Change of direction and burst out of a cut are effectively nonexistent.

James proceeded to have two underwhelming seasons as the No. 2 TE in Detroit. He caught 30 passes in those two seasons, the same amount he did in his final year in Pittsburgh. His one shining moment came in the third game of 2020 when he dusted then-rookie Cardinals LB Isaiah Simmons for a red zone TD reception.

Both the Lions and Bears primarily deployed James as an inline TE, and in a blocking capacity he does offer something to the Browns. In pass protection, James has proven to be aware and capable of steering an edge rusher around the outside. He tends to play too tall in the run game and does not have the agility or quickness to make reach blocks.

James is a departure from the Browns typical tight end. He’s physically incapable of doing the receiving duties that David Njoku and Harrison Bryant can. He’s slower and more methodical in movement than Austin Hooper was in his Cleveland days. As a No. 3 tight end, he can play as a pass blocking specialist and in short-yardage packages where he can leak out after a chip block. Based on his last four seasons, that’s about all James offers the Browns.

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Video: First look at TE Jesse James catching a pass as a Brown

Our first look at James in a Browns uniform today:

The Cleveland Browns addition of TE Jesse James became official Monday morning after visiting the team last week. James has had an interesting career in the NFL starting out with the Pittsburgh Steelers and last with the Chicago Bears.

With the Steelers, James had a quality stretch of three years with over 30 catches and 300 yards. He had eight touchdown receptions during that three-year span as well. He signed a four-year, $22 million deal with the Detroit Lions with the hopes of building on those numbers.

Unfortunately, he lasted only two seasons catching a combined 30 passes for just 271 yards and two touchdowns.

In Cleveland, James is the third tight end with much lower expectations. He’ll need to be able to block and make catches when given a chance. Beyond that, not much is expected of him.

Monday, we got our first look at James catching a pass for the Browns:

Unlike training camp, media is not allowed to provide video of practice after individual drills so we are left with some of these to help us get excited for the season.

Browns make 4 moves: Confirm two signings, waive two

Two signings were made official to the 53-man roster and two players were waived to make room:

The Cleveland Browns had a busy weekend with moves just becoming official on Monday through the NFL’s official transaction document.

Two moves discussed over the weekend became official as the team signed OL Joe Haeg and TE Jesse James to the 53-man roster. James and Haeg both visited with the team earlier in the week.

Haeg gives the team some depth at tackle with Jack Conklin recovering from his major knee injury last year. James gives the Browns a third tight end behind David Njoku and Harrison Bryant.

Brad Stainbrook of The OBR had the initial report on James’ signing on Friday.

To make room for Haeg and James, Cleveland released OL Drew Forbes and LB Jordan Kunaszyk.

Forbes was the team’s sixth-round draft pick in 2019. He’s only played in three games with the Browns since being drafted.

Kunaszyk was added to the training camp roster late but was an important part of special teams leading to him making the initial 53-man roster.

Both Forbes and Kunaszyk could be brought back on the team’s practice squad if they clear waivers.

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Report: Browns sign TE Jesse James to 53-man roster

The third tight end is on the roster but is James good enough to stick around in that spot?

The Cleveland Browns have found their third tight end, at least for the moment. After only having two on their initial 53-man roster, the Browns brought back a couple to their practice squad but still had a need for a third that they believed could play.

They tried to claim Trevon Wesco but lost out on priority on the waiver wire.

Earlier this week, Cleveland brought Jesse James in for a workout to see how the big tight end was looking at this point in the year. GM Andrew Berry and HC Kevin Stefanski must have liked what they saw, or had no other options, as James is reportedly signing to the team’s main roster:

As of now, we don’t have the corresponding move for the James addition to the 53-man roster. With 10 offensive linemen, it could come from that group but nothing is certain at this point, especially with reports of the team signing Haeg.

The 6’7″ James has played seven years in the league compiling 157 receptions for 1,522 yards and 12 touchdowns. Much of that production came in three of his four seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

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Report: Browns work out TE Jesse James

James is a large tight end but his production has dropped off in the last few seasons:

The Cleveland Browns roster has a lot of talent and a lot of youth on it but looks a bit incomplete. A team that ran a lot of packages with two and three tight ends, that also sometimes included a fullback, only has two tight ends on their roster and no fullback.

With 10 offensive linemen, Cleveland may get creative when they need an extra blocker. With five talented running backs, the Browns can get very creative in the run and pass games.

That won’t stop GM Andrew Berry from trying to tinker with the roster. He already attempted to claim a blocking-style tight end but lost out due to waiver priority.

According to a report, another tight end was in for a workout:

The 6’7″ James was a fifth-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers back in 2015. After four years there, James played two years in Detroit before last year with the Chicago Bears.

James’ most productive seasons as a pass catcher came during his last three seasons with the Steelers where he caught 43, 39 and 30 passes. For his career, James has 1,522 yards receiving and 12 touchdowns.

If the workout went well, expect a report that James will be signed Friday. Otherwise, Berry will continue his search for a quality third tight end while relying on those on his practice squad.

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Bears 2022 NFL Draft preview: Where does Chicago stand at tight end?

We’re breaking down each position ahead of the 2022 NFL draft. Next up is TE, which may not be as big of a priority during the draft.

The Chicago Bears are coming off a disappointing 2021 season that ushered in the start of a new era with general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus. The hope is this Ryan-Matt duo will be able to guide the Bears  back to relevance.

With the NFL draft fast approaching, Poles still has plenty of work to do with the current roster, which features some glaring holes at positions of need. Positions like wide receiver, offensive line and defensive back remain huge concerns.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going position by position to break down where Chicago stands entering the 2022 NFL draft. It’s time to look at tight ends, a position that was bolstered last week and may not be as big of a priority during the draft.

Bears re-sign TE Jesper Horsted to 1-year deal

The Bears are bringing back a fan favorite as TE Jesper Horsted has signed a one-year deal as an exclusive rights free agent.

The Chicago Bears are bringing back a fan favorite as the team announced Monday afternoon they have signed tight end Jesper Horsted to a one-year deal as an exclusive rights free agent. He was tendered in early March.

Horsted enters his fourth season with the Bears after earning a spot on the team as an undrafted free agent in 2019 thanks to an impressive preseason performance.

The former Princeton standout had flashes of success his rookie year, catching eight passes for 87 yards and one touchdown. He was relegated to the practice squad in 2020, but worked his way back to the 53-man roster in 2021 after yet another strong preseason, playing behind Cole Kmet, Jimmy Graham, and Jesse James.

Last season, Horsted notched just six snaps on offense and caught two passes, both of which were touchdowns. He was the recipient of quarterback Justin Fields’ first touchdown pass of his career in the team’s Week 5 win against the Las Vegas Raiders. Much of his season was spent on special teams.

With Graham and James unlikely to return in 2022, however, Horsted stands to see more time on offense as the “U” tight end with Kmet at the “Y.” Listed at 6-foot-4 and 241 lbs, Horsted has shown he can be a problem for defenses and he might get to show that depending on the team’s plans at the position for the rest of the offseason.

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Bears 2022 free agency preview: A path for a Jesse James return is there

We’re taking a look at Bears pending free agents, recapping their 2021 season and looking ahead to the future. Next up: Jesse James.

Free agency is just around the corner, and Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles has plenty of work to do with this roster. There are some important decisions he has to make about who to add to the current roster and which pending free agents to retain heading into 2022.

Looking ahead to free agency, we’re breaking down every Bears free agent’s 2021 season, including the team’s need at the position and predicting whether they stay or go in free agency.

Up next is Jesse James, who wasn’t involved much on offense. But when he was utilized, he showed a solid connection with quarterback Justin Fields. With Cole Kmet the only tight end under contract, there’s path for a James return.

Bears 2022 free agency preview: Time’s up for Jimmy Graham

We’re taking a look at Bears pending free agents, recapping their 2021 season and looking ahead to the future. Next up: Jimmy Graham.

Free agency is just around the corner, and Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles has plenty of work to do with this roster. There are some important decisions he has to make about who to add to the current roster and which pending free agents to retain heading into 2022.

Looking ahead to free agency, we’re breaking down every Bears free agent’s 2021 season, including the team’s need at the position and predicting whether they stay or go in free agency.

Up next is Jimmy Graham who despite making one of the plays of the year, probably overstayed his welcome in Chicago and will more than likely be on his way out of town come March.