Tag: NFL Rosters

Chargers’ updated 53-man roster for the 2024 season

After cutting their roster to 53 players on Tuesday, the Chargers brought in three new players.

The Chargers set an initial 53-man roster on Tuesday, but that changed after the team made a few roster moves over the past couple of days.

Here is a look at the updated squad:

Offense

Quarterback (3): Justin Herbert, Taylor Heinicke, Easton Stick

Running back (4): Gus Edwards, J.K. Dobbins, Kimani Vidal, Hassan Haskins

Wide receiver (7): Josh Palmer, Ladd McConkey, Quentin Johnston, D.J. Chark, Derius Davis, Simi Fehoko, Brenden Rice

Tight end (3): Will Dissly, Hayden Hurst, Stone Smartt

Offensive line (9): Rashawn Slater, Zion Johnson, Bradley Bozeman, Trey Pipkins, Joe Alt, Brenden Jaimes, Jamaree Salyer, Jordan McFadden, Foster Sarell

Defense

Edge rusher (4): Khalil Mack, Joey Bosa, Tuli Tuipulotu, Bud Dupree

Interior defensive line (6): Poona Ford, Morgan Fox, Teair Tart, Scott Matlock, Otito Ogbonnia, Justin Eboigbe

Linebacker (4): Denzel Perryman, Junior Colson, Daiyan Henley, Troy Dye

Cornerback (6): Asante Samuel Jr., Kristian Fulton, Ja’Sir Taylor, Deane Leonard, Tarheeb Still, Cam Hart

Safety (4): Derwin James, Alohi Gilman, AJ Finley, Elijah Molden

Special teams

Specialists (3): K Cameron Dicker, P J.K. Scott, LS Josh Harris

Long list of undrafted rookie make 53-man rosters

Every year we see plenty of UDFA’s make an impression on their teams and make their final rosters.

A significant percentage of NFL rosters is made up of players who came into the league without being drafted. These are the players who go into the league with a chip on their shoulder and work their tails off to impress coaches and find a spot on their team.

These are players who fell through the cracks in the draft process or had enough concerns for teams to not use draft capital on them. NFL draft writer Ryan Fowler shared the full list of UDFAs who made their respective team’s final 53-man rosters.

  •  S Tyler Owens & TE Colson Yankoff (WSH)
  •  TE Dallin Holker, CB Rico Payton, WR Mason Tipton & P Matthew Hayball (NO)
  •  RB Blake Watson & OL Frank Crum (DEN)
  •  DB Beanie Bishop Jr (PIT)
  •  LB Joe Andreessen (BUF)
  •  DLs Eric Watts, Leonard Taylor & Braiden McGregor (NYJ)
  •  RB British Brooks (HOU)
  •  OL Javion Cohen (CLE)
  •  WR Xavier Weaver (ARI)
  •  TE Brevyn Spann-Ford (DAL)
  •  DB Dwight McGlothern, ED Gabriel Murphy (IR) & DL Taki Taimani (MIN)
  •  LB Maema Njongmeta (CIN)
  •  S Dell Pettus (NE)
  •  WR Isaiah Williams, DB Loren Strickland & LS Hogan Hatten (DET)
  •  LB Amari Gainer & WR Ramel Keyton (LV)
  •  WR Jalen Coker, iOL Andrew Raym & S Demani Richardson (CAR)
  •  OL Dalton Tucker (IND)
  •  DB Storm Duck & OL Andrew Meyer (MIA)
  •  S Chris Roland-Wallace & RB Carson Steele (KC)
  •  DB Josh Wallace, DB Charles Woods, DB Jaylen McCullough, LB Omar Speights
  •  LB Elias Neal (LAR)
  •  DL Elijah Chatman and OL Jake Kubas (NYG)
  •  OL Jalen Sundell (SEA)
  • TE David Martin-Robinson (TEN)

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Botched plays cost Quez Watkins spot on Steelers roster

Watkins struggled in the preseason and faced plenty of competition to make the team.

According to NFL reporter Matt Lombardo, the Pittsburgh Steelers are releasing wide receiver Quez Watkins. The Steelers and all 32 NFL teams have until the end of business on Tuesday to get their initial rosters down to 53.

Given the depth issues the Steelers have wide receiver, we wondered if the mistakes Watkins made in the preseason would cost him an opportunity. Watkins struggled in games but was typically reported to redeem himself at practice.

With Watkins out, this gives Dez Fitzpatrick an excellent shot to make the 53-man roster. Normally the Steelers keep five receivers on the active roster but could opt for six this year.

If the Steelers keep six receivers this year our prediction would be George Pickens, Van Jefferson, Calvin Austin III, Roman Wilson, Dez Fitzpatrick and Scotty Miller.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Steelers OT says for now he’s staying on the right

The Steelers are still trying to sort out the offensive tackle situation ahead of Week One.

The offensive tackle position battle for the Pittsburgh Steelers was supposed to be different than this. After drafting Troy Fautanu in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft, it was supposed to be him competing with Dan Moore Jr. with Broderick Jones moving to left tackle and the winner of Moore vs Fautanu being the right tackle.

Instead, Fautanu is hurt and the Steelers don’t know which side of the line Moore and Jones will be playing in Week One against the Atlanta Falcons.

Jones was asked where he thought he’d be playing versus Atlanta and he led off with a coy, “Gotta wait and see” but then followed it up that he has been working on the right and is preparing to be there in the first regular-season game.

Jones has had a rough go of it in the preseason. After a strong finish to his rookie campaign, Jones seems to have taken a step back, perhaps due to an elbow injury.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Texans release potential WR target for the Steelers

Houston released wide receiver Noah Brown.

The Pittsburgh Steelers front office needs to be watching the transactions wire closely over the next several hours. Teams are jettisoning players that the Steelers might want to roll the dice on at several positions of need.

One such player is wide receiver Noah Brown. According to multiple reports, the Houston Texans are releasing him. He’s a guy who needs to be on the Steelers’ radar.

Brown started seven games for Houston last season and finished with 33 receptions for an impressive 567 yards. He took advantage of mismatches and did a great job as the Texans’ No. 3 option among receivers.

For the Steelers, Brown could be a quality depth piece on the outside to allow George Pickens to move inside to the slot and take advantage of coverages.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Every former Auburn player on an NFL 53-man roster after cut-down day

There are 24 total former Auburn players on NFL rosters as it stands.

NFL cut-down day is always brutal, but fear not, Tigers fans — plenty of former Auburn players survived and will represent the Plains in the NFL every Sunday.

As Auburn Undercover writer Nathan King points out, you may not see some familiar names on this list. Players that could end up on practice squads (like Zakoby McClain) and players that are injured and will be on IR (like Smoke Monday) will not appear on this list — it is only for every Tiger that finds themselves on a final 53-man roster and is not injured or on a team’s practice squad.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at all 24 players on NFL rosters that used to be Auburn Tigers in their college days:

Every undrafted free agent that made an NFL roster heading into 2020

Check out the list of undrafted free agents that made an active 53-man roster heading into the 2020 NFL season

In any year, it’s an uphill battle for undrafted free agents to make the initial 53-man roster for their respective NFL team. It’s even more difficult to accomplish during a pandemic, without the benefit of OTAs, minicamps and preseason games.

But that hasn’t kept a long list of those undrafted hopefuls from accomplishing that feat this year.

This year’s group features players from college football programs both big and small, across all positions, and many with the opportunity to make an impact for their team from Day 1. Check out the list recently compiled by What’s On Draft’s Mark Jarvis and shared by Draft Countdown’s Scott Wright:

The journey is just beginning for these players, but they’ve got one challenge checked off their to-do list heading into their first NFL season.

[vertical-gallery id=623098]

The eleven thinnest rosters in the NFL

Depth, or a lack thereof, might mean more in the 2020 NFL season given COVID-19. What teams face questions about roster depth?

Football fans across the planet are hopeful that a 2020 season will take shape, one way or another. However, in a COVID-19 world, what that season looks like, if it happens at all, remains to be seen.

One thing that the global pandemic might do to NFL teams is test their depth. As we learn of reports from college teams, and even NFL franchises, of players testing positive for COVID-19 and facing mandatory quarantine times, we can only speculate about what could happen in a potential 2020 season. What happens if some teams face an outbreak? What teams are ready to contend with the loss of players during such a situation?

That might test the depth of NFL rosters in the season ahead.

It is certainly a dark topic to consider, but one that we are forced to confront in this new world.

NFL seasons are often struggles of attrition, and some rosters are deeper than others. Given these facts, what teams might face an uphill climb if their depth is tested?

11. Atlanta Falcons

(Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports)

Last year the Atlanta Falcons rode a strong second half to a 7-9 finish, which sounds disappointing until you consider the team started the 2019 campaign with a 1-7 record. Many of their flaws were on the defensive side of the ball, and their first two draft picks in 2020 reflected that fact, as they added cornerback A.J. Terrell from Clemson and defensive lineman Marlon Davidson from Auburn.

Injuries also took their toll in 2019 on both sides of the ball. Atlanta lost one of their two first-round picks from 2019 on the offensive line, when Chris Lindstrom was placed on Injured Reserve prior to their Week 2 meeting against the Philadelphia Eagles. They also lost safety Keanu Neal for the season prior to their Week 4 outing against the Tennessee Titans. Losing top-flight players is one way to test a team’s depth, and the record speaks for itself with the Falcons.

Offseason additions such as Hayden Hurst and Todd Gurley (who also has a checkered injury history) have bolstered the roster somewhat, and they still have Julio Jones, one of the game’s most dangerous receivers. But if they run into injury problems like they faced in 2019, that might put some huge hurdles in their way in a division that seems a bit tougher than it did a season ago.

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6, Page 7, Page 8, Page 9, Page 10, Page 11

The eleven deepest rosters in the NFL

As we look ahead to the 2020 NFL season, what teams are best assembled to handle the attrition of an NFL season?

War metaphors when discussing the game of football leave many uneasy. But if there is a phrase that is suitable to what a team undergoes during an NFL calendar year, it is this one: The season is a war of attrition. Players suffer injuries on a weekly basis, and that will test the roster construction of even the best franchises.

What teams are best built to weather such storms? Here are the 11 deepest rosters in the league, along with a few teams that just missed the cut.

1. Baltimore Ravens

(AP Photo/Frank Victores)

Sure, the 2019 season did not end the way the Baltimore Ravens wanted it to. After winning the AFC North, securing the first overall seed in the conference and a first-round bye, the Ravens fell at home to the Tennessee Titans in the Divisional Round. Despite a 14-2 record and the presence of NFL MVP Lamar Jackson on the roster, they were relegated to watching the Super Bowl from their couches, like so many of us.

However, they remain an extremely deep roster and the moves the organization made this offseason only added to their depth. They addressed needs on both sides of the football, adding to the wide receiver room with Devin Duvernay and James Proche, giving them two solid slot options. They added to the front seven, drafting a pair of linebackers in Patrick Queen and Malik Harrison, and they also added up front, bringing in Calais Campbell and Derek Wolfe in free agency and then Justin Madubuike in the draft. This is an extremely solid, and deep, roster as the Ravens look to avenge their 2019 finish.

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6, Page 7, Page 8, Page 9, Page 10, Page 11