James

Burgess Jr.

Entering his fifth year in the league, the Niners will be Burgess’ fourth team. Burgess, drafted in 2017 by the Browns, has functioned mostly as a special teamer over the past three seasons. He’ll likely to a special teams contributor in San Francisco too. Pro Football Focus graded the 49ers special teams as the tenth worst in the NFL last year.

Burgess was the Jets’ starting middle linebacker for the final 10 games last season after C.J. Mosley was sent to I.R. for good. He was re-signed to a one-year deal in March, but evidently the Jets weren’t impressed with his camp. The Jets have Avery Williamson, Patrick Onwuasor, and Neville Hewitt as options inside.

Burgess was DC Gregg Williams’ starting middle linebacker the final 10 weeks of last season, but he was given poor marks for both his run defense and pass coverage over at Pro Football Focus. The Jets hope to get C.J. Mosley back to his previous form from injury this year. Burgess will ideally be a depth piece.

26-year-old Burgess ended 2019 as the Jets’ starting middle linebacker. He was claimed off the scrap heap early in the year. Burgess will hunt for reserve/special teams work.

Burgess was among the Jets’ final cuts. He was limited to three appearances due to injuries in 2018. Even after trading for Kiko Alonso, the Saints could use Burgess as depth.

What it really means is the Browns are sending Burgess to injured reserve after he suffered a hamstring injury against the Chargers. It’s a shame for a player who would have seen first-team reps in Joe Schobert’s (hamstring) absence. A third-year UDFA, Burgess had played 76 snaps so far this season after a shaky 2017.

Burgess and Thomas are the only players inactive that have played double-digit snaps so far on the season as the Browns enter Week 5 with a healthy roster.

Burgess (6'0/229) started for three-plus years at U of L, finishing his senior season as a third-team All-ACC pick on the strength of 9.5 tackles for loss, two fumble recoveries, and an interception. Burgess was evaluated by some NFL teams as a safety prospect, and his measurables are indeed that of a linebacker/strong safety ‘tweener with 4.61/4.65 speed and average agility. Ultimately, Burgess looks the part of an NFL special teamer.