Titans host free-agent DE Tarell Basham

Veteran defensive end Tarell Basham is quickly back to work in trying to secure his spot on an NFL roster, spending the day in Tennessee on a free-agent visit, according to ESPN’s Field Yates. He’s been available for three days and has clearly been busy attempting to find his fourth NFL home.

This display of resiliency is nothing new for the 28-year-old. After disappointing as a third-round pick in Indianapolis, Basham was waived partway through only his sophomore season in the league. He was claimed the next day by the Jets but failed to produce much more over the next season-and-a-half. In his final year in New York, Basham decided to have a career year starting nine games for the Jets and recording career highs in sacks (3.5), tackles for loss (5.0) and quarterback hits (13).

He capitalized on that performance, signing a two-year, $5.5M contract to join the Cowboys. Basham rewarded Dallas with a season much like his last in New York matching his sack total and racking up three tackles for loss and 11 quarterback hits. His second year with the team hit a bit of a snag, though. A thigh injury in the fourth quarter of the team’s season-opening loss to the Buccaneers landed Basham on injured reserve. He would returned to the active roster after sitting out seven weeks, but played only eight more snaps as a Cowboy before being released earlier this week.

The Titans could certainly use the depth, as they have 15 players on IR. Basham likely wouldn’t start for Tennessee if signed to the team, but he could certainly provide some strong depth behind starting defensive ends Jeffery Simmons and DeMarcus Walker.

Here are few other workout rumors from around the NFL, starting with a former AFC North quarterback looking for a new home:

• Former Browns backup quarterback Joshua Dobbs
  worked out for the Broncos, according to Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network. The sixth-year quarterback out of Tennessee is looking to join the fourth NFL team of his career after being waived in order to make room for newly available Browns starting quarterback Deshaun Watson following his 11-game suspension. Also involved in the workout were wide receivers Javon McKinley, Malik Taylor and Connor Wedington.
• The Raiders also hosted a large workout, according to Wilson, with the most notable names being former Baylor running back Abram Smith and former Arizona quarterback-turned-NFL-receiver Khalil Tate. Smith had a breakout senior year for the Bears that saw him rush for 1,601 yards and 12 touchdowns. Smith originally signed as an undrafted free agent with the Saints, getting cut before the final roster deadlines. He’s auditioned for the Texans and Browns since then and was recently the No. 1 overall pick in the recent 2023 XFL Draft. Tate spent his rookie attempting to convert from quarterback to wide receiver for the Eagles before eventually getting waived just prior to his sophomore season. He had offseason stints with two separate teams in the Canadian Football League but did not appear in any games. Other participants in the workout were quarterback Nathan Rourke, wide receiver Jerreth Sterns, and defensive backs Daniel Isom and Nate Meadors.
• Free-agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. made the first in a tour of several visits, according to Wilson. The visit with the Giants reportedly lasted two days and involved a medical check early in the day and dinner with some players and coaches later on, according to Jordan Raanan of ESPN. His next stop is expected to be Buffalo before eventually heading to Dallas. As we reported recently, it is not uncommon that Beckham didn’t actually work out for New York. His visits with the Bills and Cowboys are expected to follow a similar structure of medical examination and sales pitch.