Tag: Malcom Brown

Report: Saints expected to release DT Malcom Brown

The New Orleans Saints expect to free up about $5 million in cap space by releasing nose tackle Malcom Brown in a salary cap-minded move.

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NFL insider Josina Anderson reported Friday that the New Orleans Saints intend to terminate their contract with starting nose tackle Malcom Brown, saving nearly $5 million against the salary cap. This wasn’t entirely unexpected; Brown’s name popped up in trade talks recently, but between teams over-valuing their draft picks and under-valuing good run defenders like Brown, it was probably difficult for the Saints to cut a deal.

Still, it’s a tougher loss than it appears on the surface. Brown was a force in the middle of the Saints defensive line, and the unit noticeably stepped back when he wasn’t available against the Philadelphia Eagles (snapping their 55-game streak of games played without allowing a 100-yard rusher). It won’t be easy to replace him, and the problem is compounded if veteran defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins leaves in free agency.

That’s not to say the Saints don’t have options. David Onyemata has developed into one of the sport’s better interior defenders. Young backups Shy Tuttle and Malcolm Roach have earned more minutes. But moving on from both Brown and Rankins in the same offseason creates a void of experience that no one on the roster is positioned well to replace.

Brown initially signed a three-year, $15 million contract with the Saints as a New England Patriots free agent back in 2019. He appeared in 29 regular season games and 3 playoff games, all starts. Just 27 years old, it shouldn’t take long for him to land on his feet.

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Should Bengals call Saints about a Malcom Brown trade?

Should the Cincinnati Bengals try to strike a trade with the New Orleans Saints?

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Defensive tackle is quietly one of those areas the Cincinnati Bengals will need to address this offseason.

The team could do this through free agency and the draft, of course. That, or they could leverage some assets and acquire a proven player on a known, affordable contract via trade wiht a team in need.

And the New Orleans Saints might just be that team.

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the cap-starved Saints have had defensive tackle Malcom Brown in trade conversations recently.

That’s an alluring name from a Bengals perspective. He’s 27, had a strong season last year at a 72.9 Pro Football Focus grade and is locked down under contract for 2021 at a meager $6.5 million cap hit.

While D.J. Reader looks good in the comeback videos he’s posting, the Bengals will likely cut Geno Atkins for cap savings and still faces questions on the interior with guys like Renell Wren and Josh Tupou.

Given the fact everyone seems to know the Saints are desperate to clear cap and could just end up cutting Brown, a trade here wouldn’t cost the Bengals too much — but it would give them some security at a needy position.

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Should Bengals call Saints about a Malcom Brown trade?

Should the Cincinnati Bengals try to strike a trade with the New Orleans Saints?

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Defensive tackle is quietly one of those areas the Cincinnati Bengals will need to address this offseason.

The team could do this through free agency and the draft, of course. That, or they could leverage some assets and acquire a proven player on a known, affordable contract via trade wiht a team in need.

And the New Orleans Saints might just be that team.

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the cap-starved Saints have had defensive tackle Malcom Brown in trade conversations recently.

That’s an alluring name from a Bengals perspective. He’s 27, had a strong season last year at a 72.9 Pro Football Focus grade and is locked down under contract for 2021 at a meager $6.5 million cap hit.

While D.J. Reader looks good in the comeback videos he’s posting, the Bengals will likely cut Geno Atkins for cap savings and still faces questions on the interior with guys like Renell Wren and Josh Tupou.

Given the fact everyone seems to know the Saints are desperate to clear cap and could just end up cutting Brown, a trade here wouldn’t cost the Bengals too much — but it would give them some security at a needy position.

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Report: Saints have discussed trading nose tackle Malcom Brown

The New Orleans Saints have reportedly had trade conversations surrounding nose tackle Malcom Brown, a two-time Super Bowl champion.

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While speculation on Russell Wilson has been all the rage in New Orleans, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports one name the Saints have discussed moving: nose tackle Malcom Brown. Entering the final year of his contract with $5 million in savings should he be cut or traded, it makes sense for New Orleans to explore all opportunities.

Brown, a two-time Super Bowl champion with the New England Patriots, has been a great anchor in the middle of the Saints defense since signing a three-year, $15 million contract with them in 2019. It’s no accident that their yearslong streak of games played without surrendering 100-plus rushing yards to a single runner was snapped during his absence last season.

But run-stopping nose tackles like him are less valuable than pass rushers, and the Saints have found success in adding undrafted rookies like Shy Tuttle and Malcolm Roach in recent years. After signing David Onyemata to a long-term contract extension last summer, they probably want to rely on more cheap talent next to him in the middle of the defense.

Still, losing Brown would hurt. Especially if the Saints also see Sheldon Rankins walk away in free agency. That would leave Onyemata and Tuttle as the only defensive tackles to play more than 300 snaps last year. Maybe the Saints could fill that void by adding a highly-valued rookie like Levi Onwuzurike, who we picked in a recent seven-round mock draft.

Trades can be agreed to now, but nothing is official until the start of the new league year on March 17. It’s unclear exactly what New Orleans could gain in a trade for Brown, but maybe they can find someone willing to swap a conditional fifth-round pick for him — that’s what the Detroit Lions traded the New York Giants for nose tackle Damon Harrison in 2018. The Saints currently don’t have a fifth round pick; it’s expected to convey this year as part of the Kwon Alexander trade.

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9 under-the-radar free agent RBs who might fit for the Cardinals

These running backs would make nice complements to Chase Edmonds.

The Arizona Cardinals, if they do not re-sign Kenyan Drake, will likely look to free agency to sign a running back. The type of running back they sign will say a lot about what they think about Chase Edmonds, who enters his fourth season and has been one of the more dynamic offensive players on the team.

Head coach Kliff Kingsbury has been consistent about saying that he considers Edmonds a starting running back in the league. However, while he has been able to handle a full load in individual games, he has also dealt with injuries in games following the heavy workload.

The Cardinals could look to add a bell cow running back in free agency, but that will be expensive. What is more likely is a back who can share the load with Edmonds, giving Arizona a 1A and 1B at the position.

Here are some backs in free agency who could fit the profile.


NFL Wild Card Weekend: How former Longhorns performed

It was certainly a wild year in the NFL so no surprise that the playoffs would begin the same. Here is how the Texas Exes performed.

It has the name for a reason, wild card weekend in the NFL playoffs is always entertaining. The events that took place this year were completely different than what we have grown accustomed to with a total of six games on wild card weekend rather than two per conference. With more teams in the postseason, that means more opportunities for former Longhorns to chase the Lombardi Trophy.

Our Longhorns in the NFL playoff edition breaks down 11 of a possible 13 Texas Exes in the postseason. Of the possible 13 players, only seven remain after the wild card weekend festivities. The Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee Titans were eliminated after their opening game losses. Poona Ford, Quandre Diggs, Michael Dickson, Kenny Vaccaro, D’Onta Foreman and Geoff Swaim each witnessed their seasons come to an abrupt end.

The Los Angeles Rams, Baltimore Ravens, New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs will play another week — eight Longhorns remain between these four squads. As it moves to the divisional round, these Texas players still have a chance to appear in the Super Bowl.

List of former Texas Longhorns that will participate in the NFL playoffs

Take a look at this list of former Texas Longhorns who will participate in the wild card round of the NFL playoffs this weekend.

The NFL regular season is all wrapped up as this weekend will be the start of the wild card round of playoffs. There’s several former Longhorns suiting up to start their march towards the Lombardi Trophy. Here is a look at this weekend’s action. Continue reading “List of former Texas Longhorns that will participate in the NFL playoffs”

Saints vs. Panthers: Josh Hill, Marcus Williams DNP on initial Week 17 injury report

The first New Orleans Saints injury report for Week 17’s Carolina Panthers game has TE Josh Hill and FS Marcus Williams as non-participants.

The first New Orleans Saints injury report of Week 17 was mostly good news for the New Orleans Saints. Both of their starting guards, Nick Easton (concussion) and Andrus Peat (ankle) returned to practice fully, as did nose tackle Malcom Brown (calf). It’s especially positive to see Easton progressing after he’s missed so much time in the concussion protocol this season. Those sort of repetitive brain injuries can end careers.

That said, there are some areas of concern. Tight end Josh Hill (hand) and free safety Marcus Williams (ankle) both missed practice with injuries, as did nickel defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson, though he wasn’t given an injury designation to explain his absence. Stay tuned for an update on his status.

Your full initial Saints injury report before Week 17’s game with the Carolina Panthers:

Longhorns in the NFL: Week 12 recap and highlights

Week 12 of the NFL season isn’t technically over with the Pittsburgh-Baltimore game set for Wednesday. How the other former Horns performed?

The NFL’s Week 12 was a wild one. The Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens were set to kick off on Thanksgiving. That game was moved to Sunday. Then to Monday. Then to Tuesday. Then to Wednesday. Who knows if that game is going to take place before week 13 kicks off. The Ravens were also supposed to host the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday. That game is now kicking off on Tuesday, allegedly.

This week’s NFL action saw the Texas Longhorns’ all-time leading passer return to the football field. Due to an injury to New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones, Colt McCoy was thrust into action against the Cincinnati Bengals. He would lead them to a win to give them possession of first place in the NFC East.

The weekend also saw two players from the 2020 NFL Draft class have big contributions to their team. Collin Johnson showed by the Longhorns offense missed him this year and Brandon Jones recorded the first sack of his NFL career.

A look at the rest of the Texas exes:

Horns in the NFL: Texas Exes performances in Week 10

Another week of NFL football in the books, Longhorns Wire takes a look at how the Texas Exes performed in week 10.

Week 10 of the NFL season saw plenty of former Texas Longhorns in action over the three-day schedule. It started on Thursday night with the Tennessee Titans and the Indianapolis Colts. It all started with D’Onta Foreman catching the five-yard pass from Ryan Tannehill for the touchdown. However, the Titans didn’t have a whole lot else to celebrate on that night.

Another former running back would also get into the act on Sunday when Malcolm Brown of the Rams scored not once, but twice in the win over the Seahawks. That game also saw quite the performance from defensive tackle Poona Ford.

A look at each former Longhorn player in the NFL throughout Week 10 of the season.

More former College Wire players — NFL Week 10 Action:

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