Tag: Raiders cuts

Former CFL star lights up Raiders preseason finale, ‘moved the needle’ in bid to make roster

‘He’s got some juice, right?’ Raiders head coach as this former CFL star lit up Raiders preseason finale.

There are a lot of decisions to be made over the next few days with the cutdown deadline looming. One player who gave the Raiders coaches a lot to think about was Tyreik McCallister.

The 5-11, 180-pounder spent the past two seasons on and off the Broncos’ offseason roster and practice squad.

In between, he spent a season in the CFL with the Hamilton Tigercats where he averaged 25.3 yards per kick return on 41 returns with 426 yards of offense and two touchdowns.

This past January he was signed to a reserve/future contract and coming into camp was seen as a longshot to make the roster. His shot got a lot shorter tonight.

First up, he took a punt in the second quarter and went took it 81 yards for a touchdown.

Then later in the game, he made an outstanding adjustment on a pass over the middle that was behind him to come back, pluck it out of the air and score with it. The defender had no idea what happened or how he did it.

 

“He’s got some juice, right?” said head coach Antonio Pierce after the game. “Came from the CFL and played running back, never played wide receiver, you can see that transition into the offseason program.”

“We’ve been seeing it in practice, but today he took it to another level. Took one to the crib and a hell of a catch and adjustment on the reception. And even just covering kicks. He moved the needle tonight.”

Even with his eye popping plays in this game, McAllister has some guys ahead of him who could make it difficult for him to sneak onto the roster. Namely Tre Tucker and DJ Turner, both of whom have already earned their spots and both of whom also return punts.

But you never know what can happen. At very least, the Raiders may see the value in keeping him around on the practice squad.

Raiders to release DT Jerry Tillery

Raiders to release DT Jerry Tillery

The house cleaning in underway in Las Vegas. Hours after the news of the expected cut of QB Brian Hoyer, comes another unsurprising cut. That of defensive tackle Jerry Tillery.

The former first round pick was signed by the Raiders midway through the 2022 season after being cut by the Chargers under GM Tom Telesco. Despite a largely underwhelming final eight games with his new team, they brought him back for another season on a two-year deal.

He didn’t make much of an impression last season which was the first of his two-year deal, and now he’s once again headed for unemployment. This time under (checks notes) GM Tom Telesco.

Tillery’s release brings with it $2.3 million in cap savings with $1.87 million in dead money.

Tillery’s release means the Raiders have none of their primary DT rotation under contract for next season. Bilal Nichols, John Jenkins, and Adam Butler are all set to become free agents. It’s a position that was due an overhaul and is in much need of in infusion of talent.

5 potential Raiders offseason cuts

5 potential Raiders offseason cuts and cap ramifications

There is a bit of house cleaning that needs to happen this offseason for the Raiders. Currently they have around $38.8 million in cap space. That lands them at 12th most in the league. But they can do better. 

Cuts aren’t always about cap savings, to be clear. But sometimes it’s either the main reason for the cut or a nice byproduct. Should they make all five of the cuts below, the Raiders would save an additional $13.86 million to bring their space under the cap to $52.64 million. That would jump them up to 8th in the league as it currently stands.

Raiders cut 5 players from offseason roster

Housecleaning: Raiders cut 5 from offseason roster

Since the beginning of free agency, the Raiders have been busy adding players. Some 18 new free agents have been signed along with two players acquired in trades. Today, they tidied up the roster, cutting five players who had been on the offseason roster prior to the start of free agency.

The team officially waived S Jordan Brown, DT P.J. Johnson and T William Sweet and released S Natrell Jamerson, and WR Javon Wims. All of whom had been signed to reserve/future contracts back in January. Now they’re the odd men out.

Wims is cut following the additions of Davante Adams via trade with the Packers and the free agent additions of Mack Hollins and Demarcus Robinson.

Sweet was released following the re-signing of Brandon Parker and Jermaine Eluemunor.

Johnson spent the latter part of last season on the practice squad. The team overhauled their DT group with the additions of Bilal Nichols, Andrew Billings, Kyle Peko, and Vernon Butler.

Brown and Jamerson exit just a day after the team added Duron Harmon to a safety group that has everyone returning.

Raiders potential 2022 offseason cuts and cap casualties

The Raiders are currently sitting at a shade over $20 million in cap space. Here are seven players whose cuts would offer them them some relief.

Over the next month or so the Raiders have a lot of decisions to make with regard to their roster. Who to keep and who to cut are among the first concerns. I detailed who should be their priority to re-sign recently. Now let’s look at the players who could be cut.

The Raiders currently have a shade over $20 million to spend under a projected $208 million salary cap in 2022. And they have the aforementioned re-signings to deal with along with extensions to think about for the likes of Maxx Crosby, Hunter Renfrow, and Trayvon Mullen. And then of course there’s the matter of adding outside free agents.

For those purposes, I have listed seven players whose cuts would net the Raiders an additional $17.6 million without factoring in post-June 1st designations as that money wouldn’t become available until after June 1 anyway. As much as another $10 million could be freed up with June 1 designations.