Tarell Brown to Patriots: Latest Contract Details, Comments and Reaction

Tarell Brown is unemployed no longer. The 30-year-old cornerback signed a one-year deal with the New England Patriots, per Dianna Marie Russini of ESPN. ESPN's Adam Schefter confirmed the report, while Ben Volin of the Boston Globe reported the length of the deal. 

Brown was most recently a member of the Oakland Raiders, moving across the San Francisco Bay following seven years with the San Francisco 49ers. In 14 games in 2014, he made 55 total tackles and defended four passes.

Last year was the second season in a row that he failed to register an interception after picking off 11 passes between 2008 and 2012.

A few teams have kicked the tires on Brown with an eye toward signing him but failed to pull the trigger. He visited the Patriots in May. In June, he revealed on SiriusXM NFL Radio that a quartet of teams were interested in his services, per Fox Sports' Alex Marvez:

Obviously, there are reasons he remained without a team for so long.

After calling the 49ers' contract offer last year a "slap in the face," per Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio, Brown was a disappointment in his lone campaign with the Raiders. You would've expected him to play with a chip on his shoulder following his departure from San Francisco, but that just didn't happen.

In addition, he's not getting any younger, and there are questions about how good he'll be in 2015 after he suffered a foot injury that necessitated surgery last year.

However, Pat Thorman of Pro Football Focus liked the signing:

Although Brown has plenty of starting experience, New England will likely want him to remain more of a situational option. He's also a known commodity should the team be pressed into starting him in the event of injury or ineffectiveness by the guys ahead of him on the depth chart.