The Detroit Lions released tight end Jesse James on Thursday night, according to a report from ESPN.
James, 26, played the past two seasons with the Lions after spending his first four seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. His production slipped in Detroit, where he caught 14 passes for 129 yards and two touchdowns in 16 games (seven starts) last season.
In 88 career games (54 starts), James has 150 catches for 1,460 yards and 11 touchdowns.
The Steelers drafted James in the fifth round (No. 160 overall) out of Penn State in 2015.
James was set to enter the third season of a four-year, $22.6 million deal with Detroit. His cap hit for 2021 would have been $6.429 million; instead, the Lions will absorb $4.287 million in dead cap money.
