NFL teams trim their rosters from 90 to 53 players.
The first Tuesday after the final NFL Preseason game is always a tough one in league circles. It’s the annual NFL cut down day where teams must reduce their rosters from the 90-man units they had during offseason and training camp to the 53-man rosters they’ll take into the regular season.
That means roughly 1,000 players will lose their jobs on this day, and while some will latch onto other teams or sign with practice squads, that isn’t the case with all.
For many of these players, this will mark the ends of their football careers, whether they just don’t get another opportunity or are simply burned out from the process.
Buffalo Bills: RB Frank Gore Jr., DT Gable Stevenson
Gore is, obviously, the son of Frank Gore, who ranks third all-time in rushing yards and played in 2019 with the Bills. The younger Gore was an undrafted rookie, so he was facing an uphill battle to make the team, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if the team his father made his name with—the San Francisco 49ers—gives Gore Jr., at least, a roster tryout.
As for Stevenson, he was an amateur wrestler who won an Olympic gold medal and two NCAA championships. He was trying to convert his freestyle wrestling skills to the gridiron, despite never playing football before, and clearly the Bills didn’t see enough progression.
New England Patriots: QB Bailey Zappe
Zappe was the quarterback that Patriots fans clamored for anytime Mac Jones struggled, and the former started eight games over the last two years. But he had more interceptions than touchdowns and has now been cut for the second straight year on NFL cut day.
Last year, Zappe would re-sign with New England’s practice squad and then join their roster, but that’s unlikely to happen this year after the team invested a first-round pick on quarterback Drake Maye.
Cleveland Browns: RB D’Onta Foreman
Foreman’s stint on his fourth team in four years didn’t last long after he had signed with Cleveland in April. He’s a proven running back with over 2,000 yards from scrimmage over the last two seasons, and his release is even more surprising considering the status of Browns RB Nick Chubb.
Recovering from a knee injury, Chubb is slated to start the year on the PUP list, thus missing the first four games, but Cleveland still didn’t see a need for the veteran Foreman.
Houston Texans: WR Noah Brown
Last season, Brown had back-to-back games where he went over 150 receiving yards in each. However, the wide receiver depth of the Texans was just too much after trading for Stefon Diggs, and the six-year veteran is now looking for a job.
Indianapolis Colts: QB Kedon Slovis
Slovis was a first-team All-Pac-12 selection early in his college career at USC, but his passer efficiency rating decreased every year in college. That led to him going undrafted, though he seemingly landed in a good spot in Indianapolis, considering its quarterbacks are the injury-prone Anthony Richardson and the nearly 40-year-old Joe Flacco.
Kedon Slovis #17 of the Indianapolis Colts carries the ball during the second half of a preseason game against the Denver Broncos at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind., on Aug. 11, 2024. Emilee Chinn/Getty Images
Slovis was well-traveled in college, going from USC to Pittsburgh to BYU, and it appears Indianapolis will just be another short stop.
Jacksonville Jaguars: QB C.J. Beathard, S Terrell Edmunds, S Adrian Amos
Beathard started and won a game for the Jags a year ago, but with them acquiring Mac Jones to back up Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville deemed the 31-year-old expendable.
The releases of Edmunds and Amos say a lot about the confidence the Jaguars have in their current safeties. Edmunds was a former first-round pick who is still in his prime at 27 years old, while Amos has started 125 games in his career and has 10 career regular season interceptions and three more postseason picks.
Tennessee Titans: CB Caleb Farley
It’s rare to see a first-round pick who doesn’t get to play out his four-year rookie contract, but that’s the case with Farley. He was drafted in the first round just two years ago but had struggles staying on the field, playing just 12 total games over two seasons.
Those struggles are a continuation from his college days—which raised a red flag when entering the 2022 NFL Draft—as Farley missed the entire 2017 college season due to a torn ACL and then opted out of the entire 2020 college season due to the pandemic.
Kansas City Chiefs: WR Kadarius Toney
The writing may have been on the wall for the 2021 first-rounder in Toney when the Chiefs signed JuJu Smith-Schuster on Monday. Toney struggled with drops while in Kansas City, but he’ll enter waivers as a two-time Super Bowl champion.
Philadelphia Eagles: WR Parris Campbell, WR John Ross
Campbell was signed as the Eagles’ apparent No. 3 wide receiver, but after the team traded for former first rounder, Jahan Dotson, Campbell lost his job.
Meanwhile, Ross is a former first-round pick himself who set the NFL Combine 40-yard-dash record of 4.22 seconds. However, he struggled to translate that speed into production, hasn’t played an NFL snap since 2021, and is now a street free agent again.
Washington Commanders: QB Sam Hartman, WR Martavis Bryant
After a long college career in which he produced the fourth-most total offense in FBS history, Hartman latched onto Washington as an undrafted free agent. However, it appears Jayden Daniels will be the only rookie quarterback on the Commanders roster.
Sam Hartman, #11 of the Washington Commanders, spins a football on his finger before the preseason game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. on Aug. 10, 2024. Mitchell Leff/Getty Images
As for Bryant, he was trying to make a comeback after not playing an NFL snap since 2018. That comeback journey will now have to continue outside of the nation’s capital.
Minnesota Vikings: QB Matt Corral, TE N’Keal Harry, TE Robert Tonyan
Corral was drafted in the third round by Carolina in 2022, but he’s yet to play in an NFL game. He was the No. 94 overall draft pick and is the earliest draft pick from that class not to suit up for a game yet.
Harry was a 2019 first-round pick by New England, who vastly underperformed as a wide receiver and was attempting to transition to tight end.
While the jury is still out on that transition, he’ll have to look for another suitor, as will veteran Tonyan. No tight end had more than his 11 receiving touchdowns in 2020, but he’s combined for just four touchdowns since then.
New Orleans Saints: RB James Robinson, S Johnathan Abram
Robinson made a name for himself in 2020 by becoming the fourth rookie running back in NFL history to rush for 1,000 yards. However, injuries have gotten the best of him recently as he’s become a journeyman, with the Saints representing his sixth team since 2022.
Abram is another player who has been besieged by injuries as he’s yet to make an impact since being a first-round pick in 2019.
Arizona Cardinals: QB Desmond Ridder
A 13-game starter with the Falcons last year, Ridder was traded to Arizona in the offseason to presumably serve as Kyler Murray’s backup. The Cardinals are clearly going in another direction, but 24-year-olds with starting quarterback experience shouldn’t have any shortage of future opportunities.
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