Eagles ‘make a change,’ releasing punter Arryn Siposs and signing ex-Jet Braden Mann

After two seasons and two weeks, the Arryn Siposs era has come to an end for the Eagles, at least for now.

The Eagles released the 30-year-old punter from the practice squad on Monday morning, just two games into the season. Siposs, who hails from Melbourne, Australia, averaged 43.4 yards overall and 38.4 net yards on eight punts in two games, which are his career lows in each category. In a corresponding move, the Eagles signed former New York Jets punter Braden Mann to the practice squad.

Siposs came into training camp looking to move on from his botched punt in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl LVII, which was his first game in eight weeks coming off an ankle injury. While he beat out his competition in Ty Zentner during camp, Siposs did not make the initial 53-man roster. However, the Eagles signed him to the practice squad after cut-down day and had elevated him to the active roster for the first two weeks of the season.

“We thought that Arryn did a good job in training camp and was growing. So we felt like we were ready to go into the season with Arryn in there,” coach Nick Sirianni said Monday. “After two weeks, we decided we wanted to make a change.”

In his 32-game stint with the Eagles, Siposs averaged 44.6 yards per punt (38.7 net yards). He saw just one of his punts get blocked, which happened to be the play on which he suffered his ankle injury in the Eagles’ Week 14 victory over the New York Giants last season.

Mann, 25, spent the last three seasons with the Jets, who selected him in the sixth round in the 2020 draft out of Texas A&M. During his junior year at Texas A&M in 2018, Mann set NCAA records for the highest punting average in a game (60.8 yards at Alabama) and most punts of 60 or more yards in a season (14).

The Houston native played in 43 games with the Jets, averaging 45.4 yards overall and 39.3 net yards. In his rookie season in 2020 when the Jets went 2-14, Mann racked up the most punts (82) and punting yards in the league (3,598).

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The Jets waived Mann on April 13 and the Pittsburgh Steelers claimed him four days later. Mann lost the starting job in training camp to Pressley Harvin and was released on Aug. 30.

Sirianni said that the Eagles kept tabs on Mann and had watched his tape, deciding to bring him in for a workout. In that setting, they were impressed with what they saw in Mann.

“We liked his punts when he was here and his [placekicking] holds and everything,” Sirianni said. “So we were confident in the decision for that to happen now. We’ve got a little bit of a longer week to make sure the operation is clean. That’s why it is the way it is right now.”

The Eagles have a full week to help Mann get acclimated to his new unit before they hit the road to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sept. 25 on Monday Night Football.

While the players were not at the NovaCare Complex on Monday, Sirianni said that two of the Eagles’ injured starters who missed Thursday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings with rib injuries — running back Kenny Gainwell and safety Reed Blankenship — have a “chance to play this week” against the Bucs.

Both players were hurt in Week 1 against the New England Patriots and would have been nonparticipants in practice last week, but the Eagles held walk-throughs instead on the short week.

“We’ll see, though,” Sirianni said. “It’s a little bit too early for me to say, again, with them being out of the building today. I’ll have more information for you once they get back in. But again, we feel good that everyone’s got a chance to play this week.”

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Sirianni initially indicated that cornerback James Bradberry (concussion) was part of the group that could play against the Bucs. However, he backtracked and said that he was unable to comment on Bradberry’s status given that he is in the concussion protocol. There is no league rule that says club personnel are restricted from publicly commenting on the injury statuses of players in the concussion protocol.

Regardless, league sources told The Inquirer this weekend that Bradberry is on track to return to action on Monday. Bradberry also was hurt in Week 1 and must clear all five phases of the concussion protocol before he can play in a game.