Ex-Cal LB Jordan Kunaszyk, LB Devante Downs, RB Patrick Laird, TE Richard Rodgers Among NFL Cuts
Former Cal linebacker Jordan Kunaszyk, ex-Cal running back Patrick Laird, ex-Golden Bears linebacker Devante Downs, former Golden Bears wide receiver Trevor Davis, onetime Cal tight end Richard Rodgers II, former Cal quarterback Davis Webb and ex-Cal wideout Jordan Veasy were among the players released by their NFL teams on Tuesday.
NFL teams needed to reduce their rosters to 53 players by Tuesday afternoon.
The most surprising transaction involving former Cal players was the decision by the New York Giants to waive Downs, who started the Giants' season-opening game last year and started eight games in 2020.
---Click here for a story on former Cal players who made their teams' 53-man rosters---
Kunaszyk was one of the last cuts by Washington, according to Ben Standig of The Athletic.
Laird, who was on the Dolphins' regular-season roster each of the past two seasons, was let go by Miami, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald
The Philadelphia Eagles kept four tight ends, but Rodgers was not one of them as he was released by the Eagles.
Also Tuesday, the Atlanta Falcons released Davis. Technically he was terminated as a vested veteran.
And the Houston Texans are releasing Veasy, according to NFL reporter Aaron Wilson.
The Buffalo Bills released Webb after the Bill decided to keep just two quarterbacks on the roster
Kunaszyk, Laird, Veasy, Rodgers, Downs and Davis can try to sign with another team or they may be asked to sign with practice squads.
---The Giants' decision to waive Downs came as a surprise. New York kept 10 linebackers, but they did not retain Downs, who played 16 games for New York last year and that included the first eight starts of his NFL career. He recorded 33 tackles and was on the field for 613 plays on defense and special teams combined in 2020.
He did not start the Giants' final preseason game this year, but he was on the field for 35 defensive plays and 11 special-teams plays and finished with a team-high-tying six tackles.
---Rodgers' release was not surprising until the Eagles' 53-man roster showed that four tight ends are on the team for the opener. Rodgers was Philadelphia's No. 3 tight end all of last season, when he started four games and had 24 catches for 345 yards and two touchdowns.
Rodgers was in the starting lineup for Philadelphia’s final preseason game against the Jets. He played 17 offensive plays and six special-teams plays, but no passes were thrown his way.
Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert are the Eagles' top two tight ends, and of course they were on the 53-man roster. But Tyree Jackson, a converted quarterback who is out with a back injury, and Jack Stoll were also kept at the tight end position.
It's unclear whether the 29-year-old Rodgers will try to sign with another team.
---Webb seemed to be battling Jake Fromm for the No. 3 quarterback position in preseason, but it didn't matter as the Bills only kept two quarterbacks -- starter Josh Allen and former Bears starter Mitch Trubisky.
Webb has been a valued member of the Bills' practice squad in the past so he might join that group again. He has been activated for several regular-season games, but has never played in a regular-season game.
---Davis signed with the Falcons in early August, but he was never given much of a chance to make the regular-season roster. He played 10 offensive plays and one special teams plays in Atlanta's final preseason game. He did not have any passes thrown his way and was not given an opportunity to return a punt or kickoff. His skills as a return specialist figured to be one of the reasons he might make an NFL's team's roster.
A fifth-round pick in the 2016 NFL draft, Davis has played in 43 NFL regular-season games, but did not play last season. Davis has 16 career receptions, 59 punt returns and 58 kickoff returns in NFL regular-season games.
---Laird was the odd man out after the Dolphins loaded their roster with running backs in the offseason. In Miami's final preseason game, he played 21 offensive plays and 16 special-teams plays. He had one rushing attempt for 2 yards and had three catches for 28 yards.
Signed as an undrafted free agent by the Dolphins in 2019, Laird started four games as a rookie and totaled 168 rushing yards an 23 receptions in 2019. He added 72 rushing yards and 10 receptions in 2020.
He might sign with a team looking for a reliable running back who can catch passes.
---Veasy signed with the Texans on July 29 and was a fourth-string wide receiver on the Texans’ depth chart heading into the final weekend of preseason.
Veasy had a team high three receptions for 21 yards and a touchdown in Houston’s final preseason game against the Buccaneers on Saturday, He has yet to make a regular-season NFL roster.
---Kunaszyk had a big game in Washington’s final preseason game this past weekend against the Baltimore Ravens. Kunaszyk was in the starting lineup for that game and had a game-high 10 tackles, including six solo stops.
He played 51 defensive plays and 10 special-teams plays in that game, giving Washington head coach Ron Rivera, an All-America linebacker at Cal, a long look at him.
He was playing outside linebacker for Washington after being an inside linebacker at Cal.
Kunaszyk was not taken in the 2019 draft and signed as an undrafted free agent by the Carolina Panthers, whose head coach at the time was Rivera.
Kunaszyk made the Panthers’ 53-man roster and played in nine regular-season games that season.
He was released by the Panthers before the start of the 2020 season, and signed with the Washington practice squad when Rivera was Washington’s hed coach. He was elevated to the Washington active roster in November and played in six games.
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Cover photo of Jordan Kunaszyk by Scott Taetsch, USA TODAY Sports
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