• James Bradberry: The Philadelphia Eagles safety was once a great cornerback, but his decline in play and transition to safety make him expendable during roster cutdowns.
• Tyler Huntley: The Cleveland Browns quarterback is stuck in a crowded position room, which could leave him off Cleveland's 53-man roster.
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Estimated reading time: 11 minutes
The 2024 NFL preseason wrapped up on Sunday, leaving a bit of a void in the live-action landscape until the regular season starts on Sept. 5. In the meantime, though, there will be no shortage of frenzied moves as teams whittle their rosters all the way down to 53 players.
Between veterans on the fringe and underwhelming high-round players of only a few years ago, here are 10 players who may no longer call their current team home by Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET.
S James Bradberry, Philadelphia Eagles
Bradberry was one of the better corners in the NFL a couple of years ago. In 2022, his 77.1 coverage grade ranked ninth among those at his position to play 1,000 or more snaps. However, Bradberry played nowhere near that level last season (54.4 overall grade) and has since transitioned to safety in 2024.
The 31-year-old didn’t fare well in his debut at the position in the preseason, finishing with a 42.1 overall grade in 55 total snaps. Considering that the Eagles have C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Reed Blankenship, the injured Sydney Brown and potentially even rookie Cooper DeJean at safety, it might be only a matter of time before Philadelphia moves on from the 31-year-old, who has just two years left on his contract.
QB Tyler Huntley, Cleveland Browns
Huntley joined the Browns after spending his first four pro seasons serving as Lamar Jackson’s backup in Baltimore. He even made the Pro Bowl in 2022. However, he finds himself entrenched in an extremely crowded quarterback room in Cleveland — and possibly on the outside looking in.
The dual-threat quarterback was OK in his first action with the Browns, posting a 66.4 overall and 64.7 passing grade. Yet both of those marks trailed second-year Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who’s even younger and arguably has a higher upside.
It feels like a guarantee that the Browns will hold on to Jameis Winston given the uncertainty surrounding Deshaun Watson’s health (and playing level), but retaining both Huntley and Thompson-Robinson seems improbable. Cleveland might be able to receive more via trade for the UCLA product, but it’s equally tempting to keep him — thus forcing Huntley out.
RB Dameon Pierce, Houston Texans
DeMeco Ryans and the Texans have several real quandaries to figure out, and one of the foremost includes which running backs to keep behind Joe Mixon. Despite accruing over 900 rushing yards in his rookie season, Pierce’s time in H-Town might already be up.
Pierce’s 54.4 rushing grade this preseason trailed other backup Houston runners, including Cam Akers, J.J. Taylor, Dare Ogunbowale, British Brooks and Jawhar Jordan. On top of that, Pierce — as the bell cow — ended 2023 with the fourth-lowest rushing grade (64.0) and second-worst yards after contact per carry mark (2.25) among runners with at least 100 carries.
Houston OC Bobby Slowik will certainly want to keep running the ball with regularity as a complement to C.J. Stroud and the Texans’ deadly passing attack. Even then, the 24-year-old Pierce could already be onto a new home.
ILB Jamin Davis, Washington Commanders
Head coach Dan Quinn and general manager Adam Peters are still trying to shape the Commanders’ roster as their own, which means parting with some inherited players that haven’t panned out (see: Jahan Dotson). Davis, a first-round pick in 2021, could be next in line.
The 25-year-old enjoyed his best season yet as a professional last year, earning a 67.6 overall grade with a strong 77.6 mark. At the same time, the team brought in nine-time Pro-Bowler Bobby Wagner to man the middle of its defense for 2024 and appears to have transitioned Davis to edge rusher.
Davis’ role on Washington’s defense isn’t immediately clear. Quinn seems to prioritize those with familiarity in Dallas as well as the most breakthrough talent, like rookie Mike Sainristil. The Commanders already declined Davis’ fifth-year option earlier this offseason, and it wouldn’t be a shock to outright cut ties.
WR Robert Woods, Houston Texans
If the Texans were loaded with a surplus of talent at running back, wide receiver offers that much more of a conundrum. Nico Collins, Stefon Diggs and Tank Dell are locks, and given the promise that John Metchie III flashed, Woods’ clock in Houston may be ticking.
The 32-year-old was solid in August, notching a 74.7 receiving grade and a 77.1 overall grade while playing with Houston’s backup offense. However, Woods’ production has taken a downward turn since 2021, as he ended the 2022 and 2023 seasons both under a 70.0 overall grade.
Considering the youth of Metchie, Xavier Hutchinson and others, Woods — a free agent at the end of the year — could soon be searching for his fifth career organization, and third in three years.
WR Skyy Moore, Kansas City Chiefs
After being the 54th overall player — and 13th receiver — off the board in 2022, Moore has thoroughly disappointed in his NFL career thus far. The 23-year-old was decent as a rookie but regressed big time in 2023, ending the year with a 54.8 overall grade and a 53.5 passer rating when targeted.
The Chiefs knew they needed to upgrade their receiving corps after winning Super Bowl 57, and general manager Brent Veach did just that by signing Hollywood Brown and drafting Xavier Worthy. Even with Brown’s and Rashee Rice’s statuses for Week 1 in question, Moore finds himself battling with the likes of Justin Watson, new signee JuJu Smith-Schuster, Justyn Ross and Mecole Hardman. If it’s any indication, Moore’s preseason (32 snaps, zero targets) didn’t do many favors to indicate he should be back for another year in Kansas City, either.
S Lewis Cine, Minnesota Vikings
Quite frankly, Cine’s NFL arc has been a very confounding one.
The Georgia safety was a first-round pick in 2022 but has only played 128 NFL snaps in two years, with 10 — yes, really — coming on defense.
Having a scary leg fracture as a rookie didn’t help, but Cine didn’t seem to find his footing in Year 1 with Brian Flores calling signals in Minnesota. Listed as a third-string option at the position behind Harrison Smith, Cam Bynum, Josh Metellus and Theo Jackson, the Vikings don’t appear to have any legitimate intentions of playing Cine on defense, even in his third season — probably making it time to end the experiment.
CB Kaiir Elam, Buffalo Bills
Another 2022 first-round defensive back who hasn’t lived up to the billing.
Elam, the 23rd overall selection only two years ago, has actually played a pretty substantial amount (780 snaps in two years) but only appeared in three games for Buffalo in 2023. So far, Elam hasn’t been the lockdown option many expected, finishing with a coverage grade no higher than 66.0 in each of his pro seasons.
The Bills’ corner situation appears solid with Rasul Douglas back in the fold, plus Christian Benford and excellent slot man Taron Johnson. Sixth-round rookie Daequan Hardy has also played well in the preseason with a 77.6 coverage grade and three pass breakups. The Bills could certainly look to trade Elam, who still might possess some value but definitely needs to make strides in Year 3.
RB Elijah Mitchell, San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers don’t need to worry enormously about running back given the do-it-all presence of Christian McCaffrey, but the team does have a decision to make at RB2. Consequently, Mitchell — with the team since 2021 — could be a cut victim.
The former sixth-round pick has been serviceable as McCaffrey’s backup, posting 71.5-plus rushing grades in each of his three seasons. The problem for Mitchell, though, is that Jordan Mason was fantastic in the preseason. The 2022 UDFA finished second among all preseason rushers with a staggering 86.3 rushing grade, with three of his 14 carries going for 10 or more yards.
Kyle Shanahan will unquestionably lean heavily on McCaffrey, leaving little room for both Mitchell and Mason. It’s possible that San Francisco could favor the hot hand in the slightly younger Mason, forcing out Mitchell in the process.
S Richie Grant, Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons closed one of few major roster gaps by signing two-time Pro Bowl safety Justin Simmons last week, a continuation of seemingly endless spending from owner Arthur Blank this offseason. While the move gave Atlanta maybe the best safety duo in football via Jessie Bates III and Simmons, it also squeezed Grant.
The 26-year-old had fans coming into the league in 2021 but hasn’t excelled thus far, with two of his three seasons culminating in an overall grade below 59.0.
Atlanta could theoretically hold onto Grant as depth, but given both his pedigree as a former 40th overall pick and his expiring contract, it may be more shrewd to try to deal the safety.
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