Newcomer Tight End Might Play Sunday

November 10th, 2021

GM Jason Licht

Another former Bucco Bruce Arians guy has been signed by the Bucs.

It’s what Arians does. Heck, Joe is convinced the Bucs were a Ronald Jones sprained ankle away from Adrian Peterson showing up in Tampa.

The newest Buccaneers is tight end Darren Fells. The 35-year-old played four seasons for Arians in Arizona before moving on to Detroit, Cleveland, Houston and then back to Detroit this season.

The winless Lions let him go and now he’s on the Bucs’ practice squad. (Practice squads opened to veterans at the start of the COVID era.)

Fells has started 81 of his 109 career games, so he has a ton of experience. And it also lets you know he has/had talent. The former college basketball player was undrafted in 2013. He got his start with Seattle and quickly was with the Cardinals that same season, when Bucs general manager Jason Licht was still the No. 2 man in the Arizona front office.

ProFootballTalk.com reported that the Bucs plan to put Fells on the active roster for Sunday, which would mean Rob Gronkowski likely needs more time to heal.

22 Responses to “Newcomer Tight End Might Play Sunday”

  1. Medicated Pete Says:

    Bucs just want a guy to throw his body on the line & block, chip (help Donovan Smith this week)

  2. DoooshLaRue Says:

    Durable Donnie needs help?

    Blasphemy I say.

  3. Robert Says:

    ust why I voted TE for the draft next year. Gronk is hurting and OJ….well …he’s OJ.

  4. Señor Harry in Costa Rica Says:

    Your life must really suck when your #1 objective for each day and all day is to be the first poster on JBF. If that is so important, wouldn’t you have something more intelligent to post?

  5. Chris@Apple Roof Cleaning Tampa Says:

    Wow, what about OJ Howard ?
    His play must really suck for us to be signing another Tight End ?
    Brate has not played up to all the money we are paying him either.

  6. Swampbuc Says:

    Great pickup. Dude can block. He can still block. Love it.

  7. Slappy Says:

    Gronk suffered some pretty severe injuries and I wonder if they play him again in the regular season. It might make sense to let him heal as much as possible for the playoff run. Broken ribs, cracked ribs, punctured lung….

  8. SOEbuc Says:

    DooshLaRue

    “Durable Donnie needs help?

    Blasphemy I say.“

    They’re trying to get away from the penalties.

  9. Swampbuc Says:

    We get a thread about a new TE and some idiots continue to spread the false narrative about Donovan Smith. It’s OK, boys, everyone realize you actually know Jack and Sh!t about football, and ignore what management, coaches, teammates and those who make a living in the NFL have to say. Keep parroting your tripe, and eventually your IQs will achieve the goal — square root of a negative number,

  10. BigPoppaBuc Says:

    This is a great pickup. I think we’re going to see a stronger commitment to the run game in the second half of this season. More play action. Keep our defense fresh and off the field. Time for another run at the Lombardi, boys! Go Bucs!

  11. Craig Says:

    Between him and Brate we have a complete TE. Brate can’t block worth a schnitzel, but is a great TD machine.

    Fells could also be that hidden weapon, use him as a blocker till the end of the season and let him loose.

    Probably a good pick up.

  12. BuccoBrews Says:

    Relax Senor he’s medicated

  13. adam from ny Says:

    the problem with gronk is he really stretches and goes up for passes leaving his entire midsection open for a beating…

    if he plays soon, he and brady should work it out where he only makes cradle type catches for a while…

    meaning…keep the arms down and elbows sort of in, and guide the ball right into the numbers and hug it to make the catch…old school style…

    that way his arms protect his body…

    i think it has to be that way if he plays until about the 4th quarter of the season…

    gotta protect those gronkie babyback ribs

  14. adam from ny Says:

    haven’t heard much noise from yung tanner hudson out of san fran either…

    dude hardly plays over there

  15. TampabayDJ82 Says:

    BRATE seems to have forgotten how to catch a ball this year for some reason ! I’ve always been a fan of him , but he is the worst TE on the team this year. He dropped 2 touchdown passes and 2 other passes that would have been first downs in the Ram’s game !! I don’t think he’s been thrown to much since then

  16. adam from ny Says:

    i wouldn’t be all that surprised if he’s back in camp with us next year…

    the chance all of our first 3 tight ends returning is pretty much slim to none

  17. adam from ny Says:

    ^^^^^ but brate didn’t drop the trophy in the river, and that counts for something ^^^^^

    ha 🙂

  18. Walter Level Says:

    Arians let go TE Antony Auclair last year…a good blocker with good hands…

  19. Mike Johnson Says:

    Fells can play and he blocks too. I’m just wondering..when will OJ reach..his potential?

  20. Hoops Says:

    There was one pass in the end zone with two guys on Brate that he should have caught. The other passes weren’t catchable. Brady was off target with his throws to him. Just saying… look at the tape. As far as blocking goes, he’s improved throughout the years. For some reason there’s some Brate hate out there. I don’t get it. Arien’s doesn’t use his tight ends like other teams do, unless it’s Gronk. Brate would get a lot more reps and passes on other teams who do use their TEs effectively.

  21. E.V. Says:

    TRADE ATLANTA FOR PITTS GIVE THEM ALL OUR TIGHT ENDS AND SOME OF OUR BUTTERFINGER RUNNING BACKS AND SOME CASH AND THEN I GUARANTEE YOU GUYS THAT WE DEFINITELY WILL GO TO SUPERBOWL AND WIN IT ALL!!! OJ HE’S SCARED TO BREAK A FINGERNAIL. ROHO HE CAN’T SEEM TO GO WITH THE FLOW HE CAN JUST BLOW. HE SEEMS LIKE A WHINER CRYBABY TOO. PLAOFF LENNY YOU CAN SEE HE PLAYS WITH HEART AND ROHO IS JEALOUS OF LENNY YOU CAN SEE. ALSO Y NOT GIVE KEYSHAN VAUGH MORE WHEN WE GOT A BIG LEAD AMD WITH THE STARTING OFFENSIVE LINE AND SEE WHAT HE CAN DO. BUT ROHO THOUGHT HE WAS GONNA BE THE MAN THIS YEAR BECAUSE HE WAD 7 YARDS SHORT OF 1000 YARDS LAST YEAR. HE GOT A LITTLE LUCKY LAST YEAR BUT LOOK AT THE WAY HE HOLDS THE BALL IT’S LIKE HE’S GONNA FUMBLE EVERY TIME HE RUNS WITH IT. YOU GOTTA LET OR TRADE THESE BUTTERFINGERS. CHANGE THE SUBJECT BUT IT SEEMS LIKE PRETTY BOY TREVOR LAWRENCE IS SO WORRIED ABOUT HIS HAIR BEING OUT OF PLACE THAN HE IS ABOUT PLAYING FOOTBALL. MAYBE GIVE HIM A POCKET MIRROR AND JE COULD BE GOOD… LOL

  22. brooks Says:

    When we start pulling guys off the practice squad and putting them in live games right away we’re in trouble