AFC Notes: Derrick Henry, Mike Vrabel, Bengals, Browns, Ravens

Bengals

Bengals HC Zac Taylor commented on QB Joe Burrow‘s recovery and said he expects the starter to be back for the beginning of the offseason program.

“It’s positive,” Taylor said, via Brady Henderson of ESPN.com. “It’s right on schedule, and so we’re encouraged with everything we thought it was going to be and where he’s going to fit into our offseason.”

• Taylor touched on how he expects to handle the team on the field pending the trade request from WR Tee Higgins: “We think he’s our best chance to help us win a Super Bowl. I’ve enjoyed working with Tee the last four years, I expect this year to be no different.” (Kelsey Conway)
• The Bengals signed OT Trent Brown to a one-year, $4.75. million contract with $2 million guaranteed all coming from his signing bonus. Brown can also earn up to $2 million in per-game roster bonuses. (Over The Cap)

Browns

Browns HC Kevin Stefanski expressed his enthusiasm in adding former Titans HC Mike Vrabel to the staff.

“I’ll let ‘Vrabes’ kind speak for his perspective,” Stefanski said, via PFT. “From my perspective, we’re very excited to get ‘Vrabes’ up there. I can tell you, just having him and throwing a Browns sweatshirt on him was a big deal for me. Get the kid back up into Northeast Ohio. … When he didn’t have a head coaching job this last cycle, I made sure that he knew that we would love to get him up there in some capacity. So that was really the beginning of that conversation. We had him up there last week, did a great job. He’s a resource. He’s a resource for me. He’s a resource for [G.M.] Andrew [Berry], and I’m very, very excited to have him.”

Ravens

Ravens’ new RB Derrick Henry said signing with Baltimore was a “no-brainer” decision and feels the organization’s physical reputation fits him well. 

“It really was a no-brainer for me. This is where I knew where I wanted to be. I love the style [and] the physicality that they play with on all three phases. I feel like it fits my style of play as well. And it really was a no-brainer – [we were] just trying to figure out the business side of things. [I’m] glad we were able to get it figured out,” Henry said, via RavensWire. 

Henry is excited to play alongside Lamar Jackson and be an added weapon to their offense. 

“[Lamar Jackson]’s so dynamic in how he plays, and his playmaking ability, especially me seeing it going against these guys for a little while now. So, [I’m] excited to play with him. He had a great year this year, [and he] did a lot of great things. We have a lot of great guys in the offense, and I just want to be an added piece to this offense to help them do better than they did last year. And right now, [I’m] just trying to focus on coming earning respect from my teammates,” Henry said, via RavensWire.