Browns Reach 53-Man Limit
After making a couple of trades, the Browns have made a boatload of cuts to reach the 53-man max. Here’s the breakdown:
Contract Terminated:
LB Ray-Ray Armstrong
P Britton Colquitt
DT Carl Davis
T Bryan Witzmann
Waived:
WR Dorian Baker
DT Brandin Bryant
TE Stephen Carlson
TE Seth DeValve
T Brian Fineanganofo
RB Trayone Gray
LB Willie Harvey
S J.T. Hassell
WR Ishmael Hyman
CB Robert Jackson
K Greg Joseph
CB Donnie Lewis Jr.
S Montrel Meander
WR Braxton Miller
RB A.J. Ouellette
DE Jarrell Owens
CB Lenzy Pipkins
DT Brian Price
DE Wyatt Ray
S Tigie Sankoh
T Brad Seaton
WR Damon Sheehy-Guiseppi
LB Anthony Stubbs
T Travis Vornkahl
LB Dedrick Young II
WR Derrick Willies
G Willie Wright
DE Anthony Zettel
Waived/Injured:
G Kyle Kalis (concussion)
FB Joe Kerridge (concussion)
IR:
CB Phillip Gaines (concussion)
Packers Trade Justin McCray To Browns
The Browns and Packers completed a trade just before the 53-man deadline. The Browns will acquire guard Justin McCray in exchange for a 2020 draft pick.
McCray has started in 13 of his career 25 regular season games. That includes five starts last year out of 12 appearances for the Packers.
McCray, 27, will help support the starting interior line, which is still not quite finalized. The Browns will start either incumbent Eric Kush or newcomer Wyatt Teller at the right guard spot. This week, head coach Freddie Kitchens indicated that competition is open.
“Eric is our right guard as we speak, but we haven’t even had Wyatt on the field yet,” Kitchens explained. “My first inkling would be to say yes, but we haven’t seen [Teller] on the field yet. We still have four practices to get through. We will see where it all goes. Even though training camp has ended, there is always competition. There is always going to be competition while I am here. I think you get the most out of everybody when you run it that way.”
49ers To Place Jerick McKinnon On IR
The 49ers will place Jerick McKinnon on injured reserve, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). At this moment, it’s unclear as to whether McKinnon could conceivably return during the season as an IR-DTR player.
San Francisco will, in fact, be without McKinnon for a second straight season. The 49ers are placing the running back on season-ending IR, Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets. 
McKinnon’s surgically-repaired knee flared up in recent days, setting him back significantly. It’s an unfortunate chain of events for the former Vikings rusher, who was unable to suit up for the Niners last year to break in his lucrative free agent contract.
The 49ers inked McKinnon to a four-year $30MM contract in 2018, but a torn ACL wiped out his first would-be season in SF. It was a huge disappointment for the team and player alike – McKinnon flashed serious potential in Minnesota and many expected him to bust out big plays in the 49ers’ offense.
In 2017, his final year with the Vikes, McKinnon enjoyed career highs in receptions (51) and receiving yards (421). With capable hands and the athleticism to break out of early tackles, McKinnon offered the ability to go for long-distance runs and serve as a security blanket for Jimmy Garoppolo. Both players were knocked out by injuries in 2018, and McKinnon’s sideline stint will extend into at least part of 2019.
Falcons Reach 53 Man Limit
The Falcons reached the 53-man limit by dropping a total of 35 players and placing quarterback Matt Simms on injured reserve. Along the way, the Falcons also cut some notable veterans.
Here’s the full rundown of the team’s cuts, including some previously reported moves:
S Parker Baldwin
LB Yurik Bethune
WR Christian Blake
RB Tony Brooks-James
LB Richie Brown (Waived/injured)
CB Taveze Calhoun (Waived/injured)
LB Bruce Carter (Released)
DT Stefan Charles (Released)
S Chris Cooper
LB Tre Crawford
TE Thomas Duarte
QB Danny Etling
OL Adam Gettis (Released)
TE Alex Gray (Waived/injured)
WR Devin Gray
WR Marcus Green
OL Sean Harlow
DE Austin Larkin
S Ronald Martin (Released)
LB Chase Middleton
DE Durrant Miles
C Chandler Miller
CB Jalen Myrick
CB Ryan Neal
DE Chris Odom
TE Logan Paulsen (Released)
LB Del’Shawn Phillips (Waived/injury settlement)
OT Jaelin Robinson
CB Jayson Stanley (Waived/injury settlement)
K Giorgio Tavecchio
DT Jacob Tuioti-Mariner
K Blair Walsh (Released)
OL John Wetzel (Released)
WR C.J. Worton
DT Justin Zimmer
Jaguars Reach 53-Man Limit
The Jaguars got down to 53. Here’s how:
Waived or released:
OL Ka’John Armstrong
WR Tyre Brady
TE Donnie Ernsberger
CB Tae Hayes
WR Quadree Henderson
RB Elijah Hood
DL Mike Hughes
DL Lyndon Johnson
TE Charles Jones
WR Raphael Leonard
WR Tre McBride
QB Alex McGough
CB Quenton Meeks
TE Carson Meier
S Joshua Moon
CB Picasso Nelson
S C.J. Reavis
CB Saivion Smith
OL Bunchy Stallings
LB Connor Strachan
DL Kalani Vakameilalo
WR Michael Walker
CB Brandon Watson
DL Andrew Williams
TE Ethan Wolf
Waived/injured:
OL Donnell Greene
RB Devante Mays
OL KC McDermott
OL Leonard Wester
Placed on IR:
OL Ben Ijalana
WR Terrelle Pryor
NFI:
LB Jake Ryan
Titans Reach 53-Man Limit
The Titans reached the 53-man limit on Saturday, mostly via cuts. They did, however, free up one roster spot by trading Taywan Taylor to the Browns.
Among the more notable cuts – quarterback Logan Woodside, running back Jeremy McNichols, and offensive lineman Corey Levin.
Here’s the complete rundown of the Titans’ Saturday slashing:
Waived/released:
OL Hroniss Grasu
OL Austin Pasztor
TE Ryan Hewitt
DB Kenneth Durden
DB D’Andre Payne
DB JoJo Tillery
DB Michael Jordan
DB Kareem Orr
DB LaDarius Wiley
DL Chris Nelson
DL Braxton Hoyett
DL Frank Herron
DL Amani Bledsoe
LB Derick Roberson
LB Ukeme Eligwe
LB Quart’e Sapp
LB LaTroy Lewis
LB Eric Cotton
OL A.T. Hall
OL Aaron Stinnie
OL Corey Levin
OL Tyler Marz
P Austin Barnard
QB Logan Woodside
RB Akeem Hunt
RB Jeremy McNichols
RB Alex Barnes
TE Parker Hesse
WR DeAngelo Yancey
WR Anthony Ratliff-Williams
WR Papi White
WR Cody Hollister
WR Tanner McEvoy
Reserve/NFI:
DL Jeffery Simmons
Suspended:
LT Taylor Lewan
Titans Trade Taywan Taylor To Browns
The Titans traded wide receiver Taywan Taylor to the Browns for a 2020 draft pick, per a club announcement. Paul Kuharsky of PaulKuharsky.com tweets that it will be an unconditional seventh-rounder. Taylor, a 2017 third-round draft pick, was inconsistent on the whole, but he did flash, at times.
The Western Kentucky product boasts speed and big-play ability, making him an intriguing addition in Cleveland. There’s no shortage of talented targets for Baker Mayfield, but Taylor represents another fun downfield threat.
Even without Taylor, the Titans still boast a WR group featuring Corey Davis, Adam Humphries, Tajae Sharpe, and A.J. Brown.
Reactions To Bills Cutting LeSean McCoy
On Saturday, the Bills released longtime starter LeSean McCoy. There have been rumblings about the running back’s job security for a while, but GM Brandon Beane says it wasn’t an easy call.
“This allows Devin more opportunities to show what he can do for the team,” said Beane. “We believe in LeSean and still believe he can play, but you can’t look at every decision in a vaccum. After the draft Devin was a guy we were excited about, but some guys transition faster and some guys transition slower. That’s one of the decisions. Who is ready in that running back group to contribute right away? And we just felt right now that Devin would be able to help us along with the other guys that we’re keeping.”
Here’s more on Buffalo and Shady:
- The Texans, Chargers, Cowboys, Chiefs, and Raiders are teams to watch in the McCoy chase, Mike Florio of PFT (on Twitter) opines. The Texans would make a ton of sense following Lamar Miller‘s injury, though they also have a capable back in Duke Johnson. The Chiefs, meanwhile, may or may not be all in with Damien Williams.
- The Bills did not ask McCoy to take a pay cut before dropping him, Florio (on Twitter) hears.
- Beane does not fault McCoy for his lack of production in 2018. “Last year, I don’t fault LeSean. Our offense didn’t get into a rhythm. You can put a lot of that on me,” Beane said.
- Beane added that the team gauged the trade market on McCoy, but not until very late in the process. The GM also indicated that he was concerned about how McCoy would react to being used in an RB-by-committee backfield.
Seahawks Release CB Jamar Taylor
The Seahawks are releasing veteran cornerback Jamar Taylor, as Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. Just days ago, he seemed to be the frontrunner for Seattle’s nickel job, so this was an unexpected cut.
In May, Taylor was brought on to potentially replace the departed Justin Coleman. The 2013 second-round pick was productive in his two Cleveland seasons, including a 2016 campaign where he had three interceptions and 13 passes defended. In 2017, he appeared in a career-high 16 games and finished with a career-high 62 tackles.
It’s yet another move on a busy day for the Seahawks. They, of course, acquired Jadeveon Clowney on Saturday morning.
Steelers Trade Jerald Hawkins To Bucs
The Buccaneers have acquired offensive tackle Jerald Hawkins from the Steelers (Twitter link via Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times). In the deal, the Bucs will swap positions with the Steelers in a late round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
Pittsburgh shipped Hawkins and a 2021 seventh-round pick to Tampa Bay in exchange for a 2021 sixth-round selection, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.
The deal amounts to a low-cost way to the Bucs to fortify their front five. Hawkins, a fourth-round pick in the 2016 draft, only has five career appearances and one start under his belt. Last year, he was slated to serve as Alejandro Villanueva‘s backup, but a quad tear wiped out his entire 2018 campaign.
Hawkins likely would have been cut by the Steelers, leaving his fate up to the waiver wire. Instead, he has secured a spot for Week 1, in a warm-weather destination. That’s not a terrible outcome for the Louisiana native and LSU product.