Cutdown day brings a release of energy that has been building since the beginning of training camp, if not since the draft or even the beginning of free agency. Teams have been gathering information to make the best decisions for their final 53-man roster. Some of those decisions will surprise us; some will even surprise the team compared to what they thought when camp opened.
Because we are talking about the end of the roster in most cases, there aren't many big fantasy implications, but some butterfly wings are flapping that can become hurricanes by the end of the season. Let's also keep in mind that there will be ripples of moves leading up to next Thursday. By the team you read this article, subsequent moves may change the significance or even nullify the implications we explore below.
Let's also remember that getting cut tests the resolve of many of these players and puts what they have been working on for most of their lives in question. It's a tough day.
Note: This article will be updated for post-cutdown day transactions
Arizona
The Cardinals released QB Desmond Ridder and RB Michael Carter.
Why It Matters: Clayton Tune beats out Ridder to back up Kyler Murray even though the Cardinals traded Rondale Moore (who landed on injured reserve with a leg injury) for Ridder in the offseason. If Murray misses time this year, Tune will be relevant in superflex leagues. Carter sat in the final preseason game because head coach Jonathan Gannon said the team had "seen enough" of Carter. This could have been interpreted as positive - that he had secured a role - but ended up being negative. Third-round pick Trey Benson is the clear backup to James Conner - who seems to always miss at least a game or two due to injury - with 2023 UDFA Emari Demercado as the third running back.
Baltimore
Keaton Mitchell was placed on the PUP list.
Why It Matters: Fifth-round pick Rasheen Ali made the team as the #3 running back, but he wasn't a big factor this summer, so the team could look for another option in the backfield after 2023 UDFA Owen Wright - who most had making the team ahead of Ali - went down with a season-ending foot injury. Mitchell will cut into Justice Hill's playing time as a passing down/change of pace back when he returns, but Hill is rosterable in typical leagues as an injury-upside backup and desperation play in the meantime.
Cleveland
Nick Chubb was placed on the PUP list, and the Browns released RB D'Onta Foreman.
Why It Matters: Chubb going on the PUP isn't a surprise, but there was some hope that he might avoid it after working out on the side while being filmed by the team early in training camp. Chubb probably won't be trustworthy in lineups until midseason, but if he can mostly return to form, he'll be an RB2/Flex option. He's a no-brainer at ADP in leagues with IR slots and still worth taking as long as you have more than 5-6 bench slots. Jerome Ford will start and be worth an RB2/Flex lineup spot until Chubb is back, and Pierre Strong is the backup with the surprise release of Foreman. It's possible that Foreman was released in a procedural move and could be back with the team later this week, playing the short-yardage role to open the season.
Carolina
RB Jonathon Brooks (knee) was placed on the NFI list.
Why It Matters: We won't see Brooks until Week 5 at the earliest, and given the team's conservative approach to his return to play timeline after November 2023 ACL surgery, he won't be a true lead back when he returns as long as Chuba Hubbard is healthy and playing well. Brooks is a three-down back who combines top skills and traits and could be good enough to increase his role as soon as the Panthers see him in live game action, so as long as you have a long bench or IR slot, he's worth drafting at ADP. Hubbard has more value than expected to open the season.
The Panthers released WR Terrace Marshall Jr.
Why It Matters: Priority UDFA Jalen Coker made the team over Marshall, indicative of the sweeping roster changes that come with a new regime. Marshall reportedly had a good camp and should get interest from teams that graded him highly when the Panthers took him in the second round of the 2021 draft.
Dallas
The Cowboys signed RB Dalvin Cook to the practice squad.
Why It Matters: Cook didn't look like a back who had much to offer an NFL team last season. He's only at the bottom of the waiver wire watch list. Ezekiel Elliott actually looked sprier last season than Cook did, but Elliott hasn't exactly found the fountain of youth if camp and the preseason are any indication. It still looks like Rico Dowdle is the only back that could emerge to have consistent value in this backfield, but taking him over any number of rookie mystery boxes at running back in the late rounds is a tough sell.
Denver
The Broncos released WR Tim Patrick and RB Samaje Perine.
Why It Matters: Patrick was playing as the #2 wide receiver with the starters in the preseason, but perhaps it was just to highlight him for a trade that never materialized. He'll join the Lions practice squad but should be able to work his way up to the active roster with a thin depth chart in Detroit. Any experienced player in an offense as good as Detroit's could have value if injuries open up playing time. Perine was also dangled in a trade, but no one wanted to give up draft capital in exchange for the right to pay Perine around $3 million to play for them this season.
Green Bay
RB AJ Dillon (neck) was placed on injured reserve.
Why It Matters: Emanuel Wilson will take his place on the depth chart and be the #2 behind Josh Jacobs, who gets a value bump simply because there's less experience behind him to open the season. Jacobs could be taken as early as the third round on this news and should emerge out of a 4th/5th round tier that included Joe Mixon, Ken Walker III, and Rachaad White. MarShawn Lloyd was rumored to be headed for injured reserve, so he may not be ready for significant action in Week 1. You'll need to be patient to reap any rewards from taking Lloyd. Wilson has been competent enough to have waiver wire value if Jacobs goes down early in the season.
Houston
WR Noah Brown was released.
Why It Matters: Brown was fantasy-relevant when Nico Collins was out last year and had proven chemistry with C.J. Stroud. The Texans signed Brown to a one-year, $4 million deal with three million guaranteed in the offseason, so it appeared they saw him as the #4 receiver - vital depth at an important decision. We can only assume that John Metchie III and Xavier Hutchinson showed enough growth to justify letting Brown go. Robert Woods is probably the top backup to Collins outside now, but Metchie and Hutchinson should be on your dynasty league radar.
Kansas City
The Chiefs released RB Deneric Prince and WR Kadarius Toney, and signed RB Samaje Perine.
Why It Matters: Clyde Edwards-Helaire entered camp as the presumptive backup to Isiah Pacheco, but he has been sidelined with PTSD, so Perine is probably the #2 back. The other name to know is Carson Steele, a UDFA RB/FB tweener out of UCLA who ran over would-be tacklers in some of the best highlights of the preseason. He could be valuable if Pacheco goes down and has the potential to get goal-line carries. Steele should be on your deep dynasty waiver wire watch list, if not as an immediate add, while Perine is rosterable, but not essential in redraft. Pacheco could lose some passing down snaps to Perine, but that could also help him stay healthy. His outlook is not greatly changed. Toney may still have a believer or two out there and could get a shot to prove two teams wrong for giving up on him.
LA Chargers
The Chargers claimed RB Hassan Haskins (Tennessee) on waivers.
Why It Matters: Haskins was a 2022 fourth-round pick, but he belonged to the previous regime and didn't fit the running back mold for the new regime. We should have seen this coming, as Haskins was a big-time workhorse for Jim Harbaugh at Michigan. Gus Edwards is the presumptive lead back, but J.K. Dobbins was good enough to win a spot coming off of an Achilles tear, and sixth-round pick Kimani Vidal might be the most promising of the bunch. This backfield could be a moving target as the season goes on.
LA Rams
TE Tyler Higbee (knee) was placed on the PUP list.
Why It Matters: Higbee's knee surgery came after the playoffs, so he could be out for longer than the first four weeks of the season - his minimum absence. The Rams signed Colby Parkinson in the offseason and treated him like an entrenched starter in the preseason, so he's the very late-round tight end to target if you want Higbee's replacement, but 2023 fourth-round pick Davis Allen will also play a role.
The Rams traded LB Ernest Jones IV and a 2026 sixth-round pick to the Titans for a 2026 fifth-round pick.
Why It Matters: Jones was a coveted linebacker in IDP leagues, but now it's not even clear he'll wear the green dot on his helmet as a defensive leader, with Kenneth Murray taking those duties for Tennessee all summer. Troy Reeder will probably wear the green dot for the Rams with Christian Rozeboom the other starter, but this move was probably precipitated by the emergence of UDFA LB Omar Speights out of LSU, who could become the leader of this linebacker group by the end of the season.
Head coach Sean McVay said RB Kyren Williams will be the team's punt returner.
Why It Matters: Does it matter? Maybe so, maybe not. McVay loves Williams, but the starting running back has missed significant time in each of his first two seasons. The team drafted Blake Corum in the third round, and he will be more than a mere backup. Williams can still get 65-70% of the work in this backfield - enough to justify his 2nd/3rd round ADP. He has only fallen slightly in drafts, so don't expect a big discount on Williams or a big price jump for Corum. We shouldn't be surprised if Corum turns this into a true committee. We also shouldn't be surprised if Williams is among the best values in his tier at running back.
Miami
The Dolphins placed WR Odell Beckham on the PUP list.
Why It Matters: The Dolphins only have four wide receivers on their initial 53-man roster. Braxton Berrios is one of the backups to Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, but the name to know here is sixth-round pick Malik Washington, who stood out as a receiver, returner, and runner in the preseason. He will be relevant in fantasy leagues if Hill or Waddle - who have already gotten dinged up in camp - miss time. The other fantasy angle here is that the team could be serious about following through on using De'Von Achane more as a receiver and not strictly from the backfield, which would be good for both his and Raheem Mostert's value, as well as Jaylen Wright's speculative value. Beckham is off our waiver wire radar until he is back on the field.
Minnesota
TE T.J. Hockenson was placed on the PUP list.
Why It Matters: Hockenson won't be available until Week at the earliest, but many have speculated that his return will come between Week 6 and Week 8. All of the team beat writers expect him to be a big part of the pass offense once he's back. So, since there are more viable late-round options at tight end than usual, stashing Hockenson and trying to make it with late-round/waiver-wire options until he's back is a reasonable strategy at tight end.
New England
WR Kendrick Bourne was placed on the PUP list.
Why It Matters: The Patriots passing game is a mess that might not yield one consistent fantasy option, but at least it's a less complicated mess going into the season. Bourne could become the #1 option when he returns and he is back up to speed, but who knows when that will be? If you want to take a shot here, 2023 sixth round pick Demario Douglas and this year's second round pick Ja'Lynn Polk are the two best candidates.
New Orleans
RB Kendre Miller (hamstring) was placed on injured reserve.
Why It Matters: Miller is in head coach Dennis Allen's doghouse and wasn't even a sure thing to make the roster. Whether this is good or bad for his dynasty stock is in the eye of the beholder. It might have been best for last year's third-round pick to get a fresh start with a new team, but the track record for third-round picks who were cut before their second season isn't pretty. Jamaal Williams and Taysom Hill will get carries behind Alvin Kamara as a Miller breakout seems like a remote possibility.
San Francisco
The 49ers placed RB Elijah Mitchell on season-ending injured reserve.
Why It Matters: 2022 UDFA Jordan Mason had a terrific preseason and will be the backup to Christian McCaffrey, who has missed most of camp and the preseason with a calf injury. This makes Mason a priority bench pick who should go in the 12th-15th round range of typical drafts. If you take McCaffrey #1, you should move Mason up in your rankings. Deebo Samuel also has some McCaffrey injury upside and lowers Mason's ceiling in the event McCaffrey misses time, so that helps the case to take Samuel at ADP, even with Brandon Aiyuk still a 49er while we wait for his situation to resolve.
OT Trent Williams continues to hold out and the two sides are reportedly "not close" on terms of a new deal.
Why It Matters: Williams is insisting on more guaranteed money, and as the most important player in the offense, he should. The 49ers' efficiency cratered without Williams and they don't have depth at offensive tackle to rely on if the holdout goes into the season. They also need to figure out the Aiyuk situation and Brock Purdy is due a big contract soon. The franchise has to make some hard choices, and it could hurt fantasy teams if not giving into Williams is the choice they make early in the season.
