The Denver Broncos agreed to terms with tight end Joel Dreessen on Friday, Executive Vice President of Football Operations John Elway announced.
Dreessen (6-foot-4, 245 pounds) is a seventh-year player who has seen time in 91 career games (34 starts) with the Texans (2007-11) and the Jets (2005), totaling 110 receptions for 1,364 yards (12.4 avg.) with 13 touchdowns. He also played in two playoff contests for Houston last season.
He started at least 10 games in each of the last three seasons with the Texans, averaging 30 receptions, 397 receiving yards and nearly four touchdowns per campaign over that span.
Originally selected by the Jets in the sixth round (198th overall) of the 2005 NFL Draft, Dreessen attended Colorado State University, where he was a two-time All-Mountain West Conference First Team honoree. He finished his Rams career with 123 receptions for 1,295 yards (10.5 avg.) and 10 touchdowns.
An all-state performer at Fort Morgan (Colo.) High School, Dreessen was born on July 26, 1982 in Ida Grove, Iowa.