Kadarius Toney and Caleb Farley, 1st-rounders from 2021, let go on NFL roster cutdown day
AP Pro Football Writer
Kansas City receiver Kadarius Toney and Tennessee cornerback Caleb Farley, both first-round picks in the 2021 NFL draft, were among the cuts Tuesday as teams trimmed their rosters for the regular season.
Toney, who figured to be on the roster bubble, was on his second team since the New York Giants drafted him 20th overall three years ago. The Titans took Farley two picks later.
Teams had to cut their rosters to 53 players from the training camp maximum of 90. Toney, Farley and hundreds of others will be eligible to return on practice squads that allow up to 17 players, including a spot allocated for the International Player Pathway Program.
Miami receiver Odell Beckham Jr. will begin the season on the physically unable to perform list, meaning he’ll miss at least the first four games. Beckham has not seen the field with the Dolphins since signing a one-year contract in May.
San Francisco’s initial roster is missing a big piece with holdout All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams remaining on the reserve/did not report list as he seeks a new deal. Star receiver Brandon Aiyuk is on the roster but has refused to practice unless he gets a new contract or is traded.
Injuries shortened both of Toney’s first two seasons, and he was traded to the Chiefs during his second year with the Giants. The 25-year-old never displayed his dynamic playmaking skills consistently, but did have a big role in the first of the two Super Bowl rings he got with the Chiefs.
In a three-minute span in the fourth quarter of Kansas City’s 38-35 win over Philadelphia in Super Bowl 57, Toney made two monumental plays. First, he caught a 5-yard TD pass that gave the Chiefs a 28-27 lead. Then, he returned a punt 65 yards to the Eagles 5-yard line to set up another TD.
But Toney couldn’t build off that success. He struggled last season, was inactive from Week 15 through the playoffs and sat out when the Chiefs finished their repeat against San Francisco.
Kansas City added veteran wideout Marquise “Hollywood” Brown and drafted Xavier Worthy in the first round to go with Rashee Rice. The Chiefs also have Skyy Moore, Mecole Hardman and Justin Watson.
The Titans drafted Farley out of Virginia Tech after he was the first player from a major college to opt out of the 2020 season because of the pandemic. Farley was drafted weeks after a second surgery to repair a back injury from college.
Farley started just twice as injuries limited him to 12 games over his first two seasons. Farley had another back procedure in 2023.
The 25-year-old never played last season. The Titans kept him on the physically unable to perform list after his father was killed last August in an explosion that destroyed Farley’s home in North Carolina.
Arizona released quarterback Desmond Ridder, which means Clayton Tune will be Kyler Murray’s backup. Ridder started 13 games for Atlanta last season before being traded to the Cardinals in the offseason.
Jacksonville released eight-year veteran quarterback C.J. Beathard with an injury designation, presumably clearing the way for Mac Jones to back up Trevor Lawrence. Jones started 42 games over the past three seasons with New England after the Patriots drafted him in the first round in 2021.
Receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster was cut by the Chiefs after re-signing with them following his release by the Patriots this month.
The Cowboys put CeeDee Lamb on the commissioner exempt list a day after the All-Pro receiver agreed to a $136 million, four-year contract extension that ended his preseason-long holdout. Lamb signed the contract Tuesday.
The move allowed the Cowboys to put offensive lineman Chuma Edoga on the 53-man roster for a day. Lamb would take the place of Edoga, who could return from injured reserve sooner than four weeks.
Seattle had outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu on the active roster, a sign the Seahawks believe the three-year starter can be ready in fewer than four games. Nwosu injured a knee in the preseason finale.
The New York Jets waived safety Jaylen Key, who was “Mr. Irrelevant” as the last pick in the draft. The former UAB and Alabama standout had a solid training camp, but was buried on the depth chart behind starters Chuck Clark and Tony Adams and veteran reserve Ashtyn Davis.
The Minnesota Vikings kept recovering tight end T.J. Hockenson on the physically unable to perform list, meaning the two-time Pro Bowler must miss at least the first four games. Hockenson is working through the final stage of his rehabilitation after tearing an ACL against Detroit last Dec. 24.
The Vikings waived safety Lewis Cine, the final pick of the first round two years ago in the first draft directed by general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah.
Cine badly broke his leg on special teams in a game early in his rookie year and never made much traction on the depth chart last season. He played a total of 10 defensive snaps in two seasons.
Denver let go of receiver Tim Patrick, whose TD in the second preseason game was his first in 974 days. Patrick, who sustained season-ending injuries at start of training camp in 2022 and ’23, had a solid summer but was victim of the Broncos’ depth at his position.
As expected, Cleveland placed star running back Nick Chubb on the physically unable to perform list as he continues to recover from two surgeries last year. The club is optimistic Chubb will play this season.
The Browns released running back D’Onta Foreman, who overcame a scary neck injury in training camp. With Nyheim Hines on the non-football injury list, the Browns currently have only Jerome Ford and Pierre Strong Jr. at running back.
Washington released veteran receiver Martavis Bryant, who is in his second season of trying to end a long hiatus from the NFL.
The oft-suspended 32-year-old, who last played in the NFL in 2018, spent most of last season on Dallas’ practice squad and could land in the same place with the Commanders, who signed him Aug. 13.
For the second season in a row, the Saints are making a change at punter, and again, they’re going with an Australian rookie. This time it’s 27-year-old Matthew Hayball taking over for 31-year-old Lou Hedley, who surprisingly won the job a year earlier.
The Buffalo Bills released receiver K.J. Hamler, their primary preseason returner, and filled the hole on special teams by acquiring defensive back Brandon Codrington in a trade with the AFC East rival Jets. The teams swapped late-round picks in next year’s draft.
The Bills already began assembling their practice squad by agreeing to sign former Dolphins quarterback Mike White, a person with direct knowledge of the move confirmed to The Associated Press. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the agreement, first reported by ESPN.com, had not yet been announced by the team.
The 28-year-old White, who was released by Miami on Sunday, appeared in six games as a backup last year. He spent the previous two seasons with the Jets, where he combined to have a 2-5 record. White provides Buffalo a third quarterback, and a level of insurance with primary backup Mitchell Trubisky nursing a knee injury.
Safety Ronnie Harrison (Colts), linebacker Deion Jones (Bills), running backs Matt Breida (49ers), Joshua Kelley (Giants) and Boston Scott (Rams), quarterbacks Ben DiNucci (Bills), Matt Corral (Vikings) and Ian Book (Chiefs), wide receivers Sterling Shepard (Buccaneers) and Greg Ward (Colts) and defensive back Terrell Edmunds (Jaguars) also were cut.
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AP Staff Writers Mark Anderson, Tim Booth David Brandt, Fred Goodall, Brett Martel, Steve Megargee, Paul Newberry, Dave Skretta, Mitch Stacy, Alanis Thames, John Wawrow, Stephen Whyno and Tom Withers and AP Pro Football Writers Dave Campbell, Josh Dubow, Mark Long, Rob Maaddi, Arnie Stapleton, Teresa M. Walker and Dennis Waszak Jr. contributed to this report.
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