The NFL’s preseason began with Thursday’s Hall of Fame Game, and the regular season is only a month away. Teams will spend the coming weeks honing their rosters and preparing for cutdown day on August 30.
While the preseason goal is, in theory, to identify the best 53 players to carry into the regular season, the cutdown process is rarely that simple. Every year, good, even starting-caliber players, end up on the cut pile or the trade market because of factors like scheme fit, salary cap constraints, offseason regime changes, and, sometimes, a simple desire to create opportunities for other players.
In most cases, a team would prefer to go the trade route rather than outright releasing a player who will have value to another team.
Here, you’ll find a look at one player on each team’s roster who should be made available before the end of August due to one or more of the aforementioned factors.