Defensive lineman Phil Taylor has found a new home after signing a contract with the Denver Broncos, the team announced on Monday.
Broncos sign defensive lineman Phil Taylor
Taylor was a first-round pick by the Browns back in 2011.
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The sixth-year player was released by the Cleveland Browns during the first wave of roster cuts last season. Taylor had been playing well, but multiple injuries caused the Browns to go in a different direction. The Browns did reach an injury settlement with Taylor and agreed to pay him $966,529 (the three-week prorated amount of his $5.477 million base salary for 2015).
Taylor played in just five games in 2014 after undergoing two knee surgeries, including one in November that landed him on the season-ending injured reserve list. He missed much of the Browns’ offseason program rehabbing from the latter surgery and had been slowly working his way back before the team released him.
Several teams had expressed interest in signing Taylor following his release. The Pittsburgh Steelers were one of those teams and brought him in for a visit, but ultimately decided to pass because they determined that his right knee required more surgery.
The Broncos brought Taylor in for a tryout in Week 16 of last season, but ultimately did not sign him. The big man out of Baylor stayed on the open market and now the Broncos have brought him in, likely as insurance given the high profile pending free agents the team has, including defensive lineman Malik Jackson and linebackers Von Miller and Danny Trevathan.
Taylor was the Browns' first-round pick in 2011 -- as part of the infamous Julio Jones/Falcons/Browns mega trade before that year's draft -- but injuries prevented him from reaching his full potential. He missed a total of 20 games in his first four seasons, compiling just seven sacks and 109 tackles during in his time in Cleveland. Taylor's best season was his rookie campaign when he started all 16 games and finished with 4.0 sacks, 59 tackles and one forced fumble.
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