Roster Cutdown Day Rapid Reaction: Best New Available Players + Landing Spots
With the pre-season over, the day we have waited a long time for has come. Teams are all officially down to the 53 man rosters that they will for the most part keep into week 1. However, with so many cuts and movement, things are not final. In the coming days, players will sign with new teams or head to practice squads. This was just the first step in all the madness. We are going to talk about some of the best players left available from cuts and realistic landing spots for these players.
Cam Newton, Quarterback - Cut by the Patriots
The shocking cut of the day was undoubtedly Cam Newton. Everyone figured he would be their week 1 starter and beyond. Mac Jones, the rookie, impressed in the pre-season but many still believed he would sit and learn for a least a few weeks. That has appeared not to be the case. Newton was cut out of respect by the organization as they would rather him go pick his new team than sit on the bench behind Mac Jones. Newton is still just 32 and definitely has a good amount more of starting caliber play left in the tank. His mobility and big arm can be a factor somewhere.
Our top landing spot for Newton is the Washington Football Team. While Ryan Fitzpatrick is their unquestioned week 1 starter, who knows how good he will be. He is pretty old and could hit a wall at any moment. It would reunite Cam Newton with Ron Rivera who could have a top tier backup option to thrust into the starting lineup at anytime if things don't go to plan with Ryan Fitzpatrick. Other Landing Spots: Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans, Miami Dolphins
One of the biggest surprise cuts of the day was Miami letting go of stud linebacker Benardrick McKinney whom they just traded for from Houston a couple months back. Coming off his first Pro Bowl season (last year), McKinney is just 28 years old. He is a chess piece at the LB position and is going to have plenty of suitors.
A potential landing spot for McKinney could be the LB needy Las Vegas Raiders. They are aggressive in their pursuit of talent and McKinney could be a massive add this close to the new
season. Other Landing Spots: New York Jets, Seattle Seahawks, Houston Texans
Dez Fitzpatrick, Wide Receiver - Cut by Titans
A weird weird move by the Titans. After trading multiple draft choices to move up and take Fitzpatrick in the 4th round of this year's NFL draft, the team has cut him before he ever played a single regular season down for the team. You almost never see a top 5 round rookie get cut in their first off-season, let alone one who you traded up to get. Fitzpatrick obviously is very young with a ton of talent and upside. There is going to be a line of interested teams.
It really could be anyone who ends up signing Fitzpatrick but if we had to throw out a random guess we say the Baltimore Ravens because they could always use more pass catching and Lamar Jackson has the Louisville connection with Fitzpatrick. Other Landing Spots: Detroit Lions, Las Vegas Raiders, many more...
John Brown wanted out of Vegas after signing with them earlier in the off-season, and he got his wish. The Raiders cut John Brown leaving them a bit thin at the WR position. The journeyman vet Brown now is going to get to pick his next team likely out of a plethora of options. His deep speed and reliable hands are going to be an asset for a team looking to beef up their WR core right before the new season.
Again, many teams could get Brown here, but we are going to predict the Detroit Lions to be the ones to pick him up in the end. After the surprising cut of Breshad Perriman for Detroit earlier, it is clear that they are going to try and find a WR on waivers. John Brown could be that guy. He is surehanded like we said earlier and could give Jared Goff a Robert Woods like weapon on a weak offense. Other Landing Spots: Seattle Seahawks, Baltimore Ravens, Green Bay Packers, etc.
Tanner Hudson, Tight End - Cut by Buccaneers
Not as big of a name as the others we've mentioned so far, but a high upside player who just came available thanks to the Bucs is Tanner Hudson. Hudson seemed like a longshot to make the Bucs roster as the team already employed the likes of Gronk, OJ Howard, and Cameron Brate, but with his stellar pre-season play, Hudson looked like he might just make that final roster. That was not the case for the big but speedy tight end as he hits waivers. If no one claims him, the Bucs will sigh in relief as they can get him back on the practice squad. I think someone is going to take a chance on Hudson. The TE position is thin in the NFL and with an intriguing talent like Hudson available, I expect to see teams go after it.
A landing spot we like for Hudson is the Minnesota Vikings. With the recent news of Irv Smith Jr. set to miss some time, the team is really without a viable starting TE option right now. Tanner Hudson could be a quick plug and play answer at the position. It would be an intriguing short term answer with super high upside. Low risk/high reward type pickup here. Other Landing Spots: Buffalo Bills, Arizona Cardinals, New York Jets, etc.
Sheldrick Redwine, Defensive Back - Cut by Browns
Another more under the radar name, but if you know NFL football, you know that Redwine has been an underrated talent so far in his young career with the Browns. A bit of a surprising cut there from Cleveland. They will definitely hope to get him back on the practice squad but there also will probably be a great deal of interest from other squads in him. Redwine has showed off great coverage skills and a knack for ball hawking. A secondary needy team will be overjoyed to add him.
A potential landing spot for Redwine could be with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The AFC North teams love to add each other's former players and I'm sure the team would not mind getting even richer at the safety spot.
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