Notable Cuts As NFL Teams Finalise Their 2026 53-man Rosters
Make us preferred on GoogleNFL teams have finalised their initial 53-man rosters. Hundreds of players find themselves out of a job, with many hoping their NFL journeys will continue as members of practice squads. But for the bulk of the players released, the next few weeks will be a trying time. A dream may have died, and next steps will need to be considered.
Here is a look at the most well-known players who have been released by their prospective 2026 employers heading into Week 1. Not all of these players were or are fantasy studs. But while actionable information is the prime goal, who doesn’t enjoy a game of “Remember THAT guy?”
Arizona Cardinals
Ihmir Smith-Marsette, once a popular sleeper candidate on the Minnesota Vikings, didn’t make the Cardinals' final roster. Smith-Marsette hasn’t caught a pass since 2023.
Atlanta Falcons
No notable transactions.
Baltimore Ravens
The second coming of Chris Moore as a Raven didn’t come to much. The special teams ace, who spent the first five seasons of his career on the team, returned in July. But he didn’t make the final 53-man roster.
Buffalo Bills
Dante Pettis signed for the Bills late in the summer and lasted just about a month on the roster. He didn’t make the 53-man squad. Mecole Hardman, who played twice for the Bills in 2025, also won’t be part of their journey moving forward. The former second-round pick of the Chiefs hasn’t caught a regular-season touchdown for anyone since 2022. The Bills released wide receiver Trent Sherfield. The former Cardinal posted 417 yards for the Dolphins in 2022, but has only 22 receptions since then.
The Bills released Frank Gore Jr., son of their former running back Frank Gore Sr. Jr. played in the Bills' two playoff games in 2025, catching his lone target for 6 yards against the Jaguars.
Carolina Panthers
The Panthers cut David Moore as part of their final 53-man roster cull. Moore played for the Panthers in 2024 and 2025, catching 33 balls for 356 yards and three touchdowns. But only one catch and five of the yards came last season.
Chicago Bears
Scotty Miller failed to catch on in the Windy City as the Bears cut the former Tampa Bay Buccaneer. Miller had 501 yards for the Bucs during their 2020 Super Bowl season, but has only 515 in his last five seasons combined. He spent the 2025 season with the Steelers, catching nine passes for 62 yards.
Cincinnati Bengals
Josh Johnson’s hopes of earning a role as Joe Burrow’s backup with the Bengals have been dashed. The veteran who started two games for the Commanders last season was cut on Sunday. The Bengals released wide receiver Charlie Jones after three seasons with the club. Charlie Football caught just eight passes in his time as a Bengal, but did score two kickoff return touchdowns over the last two seasons.
Tight end C.J. Uzomah, who spent seven seasons with the Bengals after being taken in the fifth round of the 2015 NFL Draft, has retired from the NFL.
Cleveland Browns
The Browns released wide receiver Cedric Tillman after three seasons with the team. The former third-round draft pick appeared in 38 games for the team, catching 71 balls for 833 yards and five touchdowns. Tillman showed flashes of fantasy relevance in 2024, averaging 18.7 Half-PPR points per game between Weeks 7-9 with Jameis Winston at quarterback.
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys released Jaydon Blue ahead of his second season with the team. Blue rushed 38 times for 129 yards and a touchdown as a rookie while catching his only target for five yards.
The Cowboys released wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling, the NFL’s active leader in yards per reception. Valdes-Scantling averages 16.8 yards per catch in his career, though this mark was just 8.6 in 2025. Valdes-Scantling caught 14 passes for 120 yards and a touchdown in games for the 49ers and the Steelers last year. He’s never finished higher than WR50 in Half-PPR scoring in his career.
Denver Broncos
The Broncos released running back Jaleel McLaughlin. McLaughlin started his career with back-to-back 400-yard rushing seasons but only rushed 37 times in 2025 for 187 yards. He caught 31 balls as a rookie but only 28 in the last two seasons.
Hakeem Butler, a highly touted prospect heading into the 2019 NFL Draft, saw his hopes of landing on an NFL roster come to an end on August 25th. Butler will likely end his time in the pros with just a single target, earned as a member of the 2020 Eagles.
Detroit Lions
The Lions released wide receiver Greg Dortch. Dortch made some fantasy noise in his time, finishing as a weekly WR1 four times as a member of the Cardinals. But he never topped the 52 receptions or 467 yards he managed in 2022. The Lions released tight end Tyler Conklin. Conklin averaged 553 receiving yards per season between 2021 and 2024, finishing as a TE1 14 times in that span. But he was held to seven receptions for 101 scoreless yards with the Chargers a year ago.
Cedrick Wilson, who spent the 2025 season with the Dolphins, was cut by the Lions on the 26th of August. Wilson hasn’t topped 296 yards since 2021.
Green Bay Packers
No notable transactions.
Houston Texans
The Texans released wide receivers Sterling Shepard and Zay Jones. Shepard caught 71 passes for 705 yards and two touchdowns for the Buccaneers over the last two seasons. But he hasn’t finished higher than WR32 in Half-PPR since 2018. Jones was the surprise WR26 in Half-PPR during the 2022 season. He caught 82 balls for 823 yards and five touchdowns for the Jaguars. But Jones has only 54 receptions and 588 yards since.
The Texans signed former Cowboy running back Deuce Vaughn on the 24th of August. But Vaughn didn’t even last a week on the roster, getting released on the 30th.
Indianapolis Colts
The Colts released wide receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine. He made some fantasy noise in 2024 thanks to his nine touchdown grabs on just 32 receptions. But he followed this up with 11 receptions for 89 scoreless yards with the Dolphins last year.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Nick Mullens was an almost immediate casualty of the trade for Quinn Ewers, with the former 49ers and Raiders quarterback released by the Jaguars. Mullens completed all three of his passes for the Jaguars in 2025.
Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs released quarterback Chris Oladokun. Oladokun appeared in three games and started two last season after Patrick Mahomes went down with his knee injury. He went 0-2 in those games, finishing his time with 235 yards and a touchdown. The Chiefs also released running back Emari Demercado. The former Cardinal rushed 44 times for 312 scoreless yards a year ago, adding another 101 yards on 13 receptions.
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders released tight end Albert Okwuegbunam. Okwuegbunam has just seven receptions since 2023 and hasn’t topped 95 yards in a season since 2022.
Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers released running back Jaret Patterson. The former Buffalo Bull carried the ball 41 times for 159 yards and a touchdown last season.
Los Angeles Rams
No notable transactions.
Miami Dolphins
The talent-poor Miami Dolphins decided they could live without wide receivers Jalen Reagor and Terrace Marshall. Reagor, a first-round bust for the Eagles from 2020, never topped the 396 yards he amassed as a rookie. He hasn’t caught a regular-season pass since 2024, and his last touchdown was in 2022. Marshall, a second-round pick for the Panthers in 2021, has 28 receptions for 490 yards and a touchdown in 2022. Since then, he has 22 catches for 180 yards. He hasn’t played since 2024.
Minnesota Vikings
No notable transactions.
New England Patriots
No notable transactions.
New Orleans Saints
The Saints ended the Zamir White experience after less than a week. The former Raiders running back rushed for 451 yards and a touchdown in 2023. But in the two seasons since, he has managed just 215 yards combined. The Saints also released Irish kicker Charlie Smyth, handing the kicking job to Daniel Carlson.
New York Giants
The Giants released wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins and Jalin Hyatt. Hodgins caught 33 passes for 351 yards and four touchdowns in 2022, but has caught just 33 passes for 357 yards and four touchdowns combined in the last three seasons. Hyatt was a third-round pick for the team back in 2023, but has caught just 36 passes for 470 scoreless yards during his time in blue.
New York Jets
The Jets made some quarterback moves as they finalised their 53-man roster. Bailey Zappe and Brady Cook were released at final cuts. Zappe is 4-5 as a starter in his career, with 12 touchdown passes and 14 interceptions. He hasn’t thrown a regular-season pass since 2024. Cook started four games for the Jets in 2025, losing all four, and tossed just two touchdowns against seven interceptions. Cade Klubnik is the primary backup behind Geno Smith.
Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles decided against a second go-round with Quez Watkins. The former sixth-round pick caught 98 passes for 1,249 yards and six touchdowns between 2020 and 2023. But he hasn’t played a regular season since. The Eagles also released running back Dameon Pierce and tight end Stone Smartt. Pierce rushed for 939 yards and four touchdowns as a rookie in 2022. But his 14 carries in 2025 gained just 36 yards. Smartt had 27 receptions for 263 yards and a touchdown in 2023 and 2024 with the Chargers. But in his sole season with the Jets in 2025, he caught just seven passes for 52 scoreless yards.
Pittsburgh Steelers
No notable transactions.
San Francisco 49ers
No notable transactions.
Seattle Seahawks
No notable transactions.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Buccaneers released quarterback Jake Browning. Browning went 0-3 as a starter for the Bengals in 2025, completing 64.8% of his passes with 771 yards, six touchdowns, and eight interceptions. Jalon Daniels has won the backup quarterback role.
Tennessee Titans
The Titans went QB-culling, releasing Hendon Hooker and Will Levis. Hooker has nine career pass attempts but none since 2024. Levis went 5-16 as the starting quarterback between 2023 and 2024. He passed for 3,899 yards and 21 touchdowns. But he also tossed 16, often hilarious, interceptions.
Washington Commanders
No notable transactions.
