The NFL is all business for former Syracuse QB Kyle McCord joining his third team in two years

This past weekend began an intense period of roster transactions for all 32 NFL teams following the final preseason schedule of games, with Sunday's deadline for team's to reduce their rosters to 53 players, and begin assembling a practice squad.

Some 20 former Syracuse players dotted NFL rosters at different points of time this summer, some veterans (Matthew Bergeron of Atlanta) certain of their continued status in the league, while other young former 'Cuse players including a couple of rookies (Dan Villari of the L.A. Rams) saw their names on lists of waived or injured players Sunday, but could still find their way onto a maximum 17-player practice squad.

McCord took advantage of a starting opportunity in front of a supportive Lambeau Stadium crowd

In an excellent story written by our Miami Dolphins On SI colleague, and longtime 'Phins insider extraordinaire Alain Poupart, on the McCord acquisition (for a 2028 sixth-round draft choice going to Green Bay), it seems the Dolphins were certainly impressed by McCord's overall preseason performance.

Taking the statistic for what it is worth considering how many backup players compete in preseason games, McCord led all QB's with four touchdown passes, all coming in last week's Packers win over the Arizona Cardinals, a game in which McCord played in its entirety and led the Pack to a comeback down 11 points in a 42-38 victory.

It is a performance McCord, set to make just under the $885,000 minimum for players without an accrued season on an NFL roster, believes showed that he can compete and succeed at the highest level as a player.

"It's out of my control at this point," McCord told the media postgame last Thursday at Lambeau Field after his 22-for-35 passing night for 226 yards and the four TD tosses. "I did everything that I could've to make a case for myself. And so now we just wait and see."

McCord could be just a snap away from being the Dolphins number-one quarterback

It was a merry-go-round of changes in the quarterback room for the Dolphins the last two weeks. As the team enters the regular season having to play two consecutive road games out west against the Raiders and 49ers, the top three names on the QB depth chart look different than when Miami walked off the field following a defeat to Atlanta last Friday night, ending a winless preseason for a team that managed to score just 22 total points.

Former Liberty QB Malik Willis, now in his fifth NFL season, will be the Dolphins starter on September 13 in Las Vegas, but as of now, McCord is the only other "veteran" QB on the roster.

On Saturday, the Dolphins traded former Texas star QB Quinn Ewers to Jacksonville for the same sixth-round 2028 draft pick the 'Phins subsequently sent to Green Bay for McCord. The team also waived second-year QB Cam Miller (North Dakota State) on Sunday's roster deadline day, and are likely to place either Miller, or rookie quarterback Mark Gronkowski (Iowa) on their practice squad.

SUPPORT THE JUICE ONLINE

Follow us on Twitter @TheJuiceOnline, like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram @SUJuiceOnline and listen to our podcast.

Add us as a preferred source on Google