Last week, we highlighted 10 notable former Gators who were firmly on the bubble for roster cuts in the NFL. As the NFL preseason came to an end, teams spent the weekend trimming to their initial 53-man rosters, which meant virtually every team needed to cut 30+ players.
With rosters now whittled down, let’s look at who among those 10 survived cut day and who will need to try and find an alternative pathway. Note that a player who is “waived” is someone who has played for fewer than four seasons, and they will go through the waiver process. A player who is “released” has four or more seasons under their belt and is immediately considered a free agent.
Fate of 10 former Gators decided on NFL Cut Day
Kyle Trask - Carolina Panthers - Released
Since getting drafted by Tampa Bay in the 2nd round, Kyle Trask has just never been able to lock down a full-time backup role in NFL. He signed late with the Panthers, and even though he didn’t play poorly in the preseason, he was never going to crack their rotation.
Stone Forsythe - Carolina Panthers - Made the team
The initial projections had Stone Forsythe on the outside looking in, and he struggled in Carolina’s first two preseason games. He was a bit better towards the end, and his ability to play both left and right tackle helped secure his spot on the 53-man roster.
Kaiir Elam - Kansas City Chiefs - Released
The former 1st-round pick with Buffalo didn’t necessarily hae a “bad” preseason and according Pro Football Focus, he was only targeted twice and only gave up one reception. But it was going to be a struggle for him to crack the secondary rotation in Kansas City, and the Chiefs have released him.
Zachary Carter - Arizona Cardinals - Reserved list
Carter got hurt in the preseason opener and hasn’t seen the field since. For now, the Cardinals are placing him on the Injured Reserve/Designated to Return list.
Dameon Pierce - Philadelphia Eagles - Released
Injuries hurt his chances this preseason and even though he had a strong showing in Philadelphia’s finale it wasn’t enough to be kept around by the Eagles.
Amari Burney - Jacksonville Jaguars - Waived
By pure metrics, Burney had a very solid preseason and he ended with a strong showing in Jacksonville’s finale. Burney was credited with three QB pressures and a sack against Tampa Bay. It wasn’t enough, though, and he was waived.
Graham Mertz - Houston Texans - Injured reserve
We highlighted Mertz last week more so as a situation to keep an eye on once he does get healthy from his torn ACL. He won’t play this year and is going to rehab, but one has to wonder if he’ll still be kept around once recovered.
Trikweze Bridges - Dallas Cowboys - Waived
Since making the jump to the NFL, Bridges has struggled hard anytime he has gotten on the field. He did not have a good showing in any of his three games and he was waived.
Tyreak Sapp - Cleveland Browns - Waived
He didn’t get any sacks in the preseason, but he did get at least some pressure on opposing QBs. But Sapp’s journey was always going to be an uphill battle as a UDFA and he didn’t make enough of an impact to stay.
J. Michael Sturdivant - Green Bay Packers - Made the team
ESPN had Sturdivant on the outside looking in heading into the weekend, but he had a monster finale that impressed Green Bay’s staff enough to stick around on the 53-man roster to start the year.
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