Who Should I Start? Mo Alie-Cox or Pharaoh Brown

Friday, February 23, 2:30 PM

The Athletic's James Boyd writes that Indianapolis Colts tight end Mo Alie-Cox is an easy target if the team wishes to create more salary cap space this offseason. He's entering the final year of a three-year, $17.6 million contract extension that he signed in 2022. Alie-Cox is due the last $5.9 million of that in 2024, but none of it is guaranteed. The 30-year-old is the team's best blocking tight end and has recorded at least three touchdowns in each of the last three seasons, but he's not getting any younger and is unlikely to develop into a true No. 1 pass-catching tight end at this point of his career. Both Will Mallory and third-year tight end Jelani Woods, who missed all of 2023 with hamstring issues, give the Colts more upside at the position amid their current youth movement. Alie-Cox hasn't been much more than a low-upside, touchdown-dependent TE2 option for fantasy managers in deep leagues.

Wednesday, March 13, 12:24 AM

Free-agent tight end Pharaoh Brown is signing a one-year, $3.2 million base-value deal with the Seattle Seahawks this week, according to a source. Brown can make a maximum of $3.9 million on incentives. He will give quarterback Geno Smith another veteran option in the passing game in 2024 after catching 15 passes for a career-high 208 yards and one touchdown in 17 games (11 starts) with the New England Patriots last season. The 29-year-old has just 64 receptions (88 targets) for 686 yards and three touchdowns in his six years in the NFL, so nobody is expecting Brown to become a very big part of Seattle's passing attack in 2024, especially while he plays second fiddle to primary pass-catching tight end Noah Fant. Brown had a career-high 23 receptions in 2021 with the Houston Texans.