NFL franchises tell us a lot when they cut their roster down to 53. Where do they feel like they have good depth, where do they feel like they're thin, which players surprisingly made an impact in camp, which players missed out on opportunities they could have been granted and more.
With that in mind, these are the top takeaways from this series of preseason roster cuts.
Colts, Vikings keep QB busts around
Anthony Richardson requested a trade out of Indianapolis earlier this offseason, but none ever came to fruition. The Colts granted permission for Richardson to seek said trade, but general manager Chris Ballard said they wouldn't deal him without a significant return on investment. That compensation apparently never materialized, and Indy held onto Richardson.
Richardson completed 21 of his 33 pass attempts for 249 yards, no touchdowns and an interception during his preseason appearances, while also rushing 10 times for 68 yards and a score. He looked more comfortable in the pocket than he had during his time as the starter, but it still looks like he's going to be the team's third quarterback behind Daniel Jones and Riley Leonard for now. Perhaps if some other team loses a quarterback in the final days before the start of the season, then he gets his trade, but otherwise, he'll be sticking it out for the final year of his rookie contract.
J.J. McCarthy, meanwhile, was in a quarterback "competition" with Kyler Murray at the start of training camp, but that was put to bed fairly quickly as the Vikes named Murray the starter early on. McCarthy reportedly struggled throughout camp, and he wasn't much better during the preseason games, completing just 9 of 17 passes for 115 scoreless yards. He also notably missed a wide-open receiver in the end zone.
The Vikings reportedly looked into trades for McCarthy in the final days leading into cutdown weekend, but couldn't find one that was agreeable. Given how poorly he played during his lone season as the starter and apparently during camp, that's probably not surprising. What is more surprising is that Minnesota kept him around rather than merely cutting its losses, but it would have incurred a $9.7 million dead cap charge to cut ties ($3.8 million more than if they kept him), which is probably why he stuck on the roster.
Five teams keep four QBs
Typically, NFL teams keep two or maybe three quarterbacks on their 53-man roster. You can only use so many roster spots at the position before you star having to go thin elsewhere, and since only one quarterback can be on the field at a time, most teams choose to go thin there rather than elsewhere.
Five teams this year swung WAY in the opposite direction. Each of the Falcons, Browns, Vikings, Eagles and Steelers chose to keep four quarterbacks on cutdown day.
- Falcons: Michael Penix Jr., Tua Tagovailoa, Cooper Rush, Jack Strand
- Browns: Deshaun Watson, Shedeur Sanders, Taylen Green, Dillon Gabriel
- Vikings: Kyler Murray, J.J. McCarthy, Carson Wentz, Max Brosmer
- Eagles: Jalen Hurts, Tanner McKee, Andy Dalton, Cole Payton
- Steelers: Aaron Rodgers, Mason Rudolph, Will Howard, Drew Allar
Atlanta has injury issues as Penix only recently returned to practice. Tagovailoa played so poorly in the preseason that he couldn't win a quarterback competition where there was no actual competition. Rush is a replacement-level backup. Strand flashed in preseason but isn't ready to be a starter yet.
The Browns engaged in some shenanigans with their QB room, sliding Gabriel onto injured reserve with a back issue after he played -- and fared far better than either Watson or Sanders did at any point during their own QB competition -- in their preseason finale just days ago, so he'll miss at least the first four games of the season.
Given how poorly McCarthy played last year, perhaps it's not surprising that the Vikings elected to go long at the position with several options behind their starter.
Philly keeping four quarterbacks is surprising, given how good the team feels about McKee as the backup. But Dalton is a solid veteran option and Payton was a mid-Day 3 draft pick this year, and we know Howie Roseman likes to keep the assembly line moving in the quarterback factory.
Pittsburgh is probably the least surprising team on this list. We knew Rodgers would be here, obviously, and Rudolph is more suited to being the primary backup than either Howard or Allar, whom the team drafted on Day 3 in each of the last two years.
Aaron Donald is back
One of the best defensive players in football history is returning to the field. Donald signed a one-year, $20 million contract to return to the Rams and play on the same defensive line as Myles Garrett. If Donald can recapture anything close to the form he showed the last time we saw him on the field (8 sacks, 16 tackles for loss, 23 quarterback hits, First Team All-Pro berth), this will be one of the most unblockable duos in recent memory. Quarterbacks everywhere should be very afraid.
The Rams were already the Super Bowl favorites after making big moves for Garrett, Trent McDuffie, Jaylen Watson and more this offseason to revamp their defense, and that status has only been solidified with the addition of Donald.
Nnamdi Madubuike is back
Madubuike suffered a serious neck injury last season, knocking him out for the final 15 games of the Ravens' season. There was a time when we didn't know if Madubuike would ever play again, but he returned to the fold for Baltimore's offseason program.
Madubuike has been taking things slowly in his recovery and only recently started hitting the sled in practice, for example, but Baltimore not putting him on either the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list or injured reserve is a good sign that he could potentially be available to the team sometime in the first few weeks of the season. For a team that desperately needs help up front to improve under first-year head coach Jesse Minter, Madubuike's return to the field would be a very welcome one.
Odell Beckham Jr. is back
John Harbaugh played coy when asked if Beckham had made the 53-man roster after the Giants' final preseason game, but the suspense didn't last long. OBJ caught seven passes during the preseason and was open several times for deep balls where the Giants either didn't see him or else overthrew the pass, or he could have had an even bigger stat line during the exhibition season.
It remains to be seen how much Beckham actually has left in the tank. He didn't play at all in 2025, and caught just nine passes for 55 scoreless yards across nine games with the Dolphins in 2024. He hasn't caught more than 44 pases or gained more than 537 yards in a season since 2019. That was seven years ago.
It's a feel-good story to see him back in New York, but expecting him to make much of an impact might be expecting too much.
Micah Parsons is on PUP
This one was not unexpected. Parsons tore his ACL last December and has been talking throughout the offseason about how he would likely miss the start of the year. Now, it's confirmed that he'll be out for at least the first four games. You can bet your bottom dollar that he'd like to be back for the Packers' Week 6 game against his former team, the Dallas Cowboys, and if he does, that would immediately become one of the most anticipated games of the season. The Packers have a new defensive coordinator in Jonathan Gannon, but they will need Parsons to return at full strength to be the best version of themselves.
Dallas goes thin at RB
The Cowboys came into camp expecting one of Jaydon Blue or Phil Mafah to take the No. 2 running back job behind starter Javonte Williams, whom they signed to a three-year, $24 million contract this offseason. Blue had the lead early in camp and had head coach Brian Schottenheimer talking up his maturity and his potential to make plays in space, but as things progressed, it was 27-year-old former undrafted free-agent Malik Davis, who has mostly been a special teams player throughout his career, who looked like the most reliable option.
So Dallas not only handed the backup job to Davis, but cut both Blue and Mafah, electing to carry only two running backs in addition to fullback Hunter Luepke on the initial 53-man roster. Perhaps the Boys will bring back one of the young guys on the practice squad or else claim or trade for someone from another team's roster, but for now, they're very thin at running back.
Dallas Cowboys running backs on initial 53-man roster
| Player | Pos. | 2025 carries | 2025 rush yards | Yards per carry | Total TD | 2026 role |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Javonte Williams | RB | 252 | 1,201 | 4.8 | 13 | Starter |
| Malik Davis | RB | 52 | 250 | 4.8 | 2 | Primary backup |
| Hunter Luepke | FB | 16 | 71 | 4.4 | 1 | Fullback and special teams |
Notable cuts: Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah.
Stats are from the 2025 regular season. Total touchdowns include rushing and receiving touchdowns.
Dolphins play QB roulette
The Dolphins had themselves an interesting weekend. They came into it with Quinn Ewers as the backup to starer Malik Willis, with Cam Miller as the third quarterback. But they waived Miller to start the weekend, then traded Ewers to the Jaguars in exchange for a future sixth-round pick. The Dolphins then turned around and traded that sixth-rounder to the Packers for backup quarterback Kyle McCord.
Miami's quarterback room is now made up entirely of former Packers, with general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley dipping into their former team's depth chart to build out the roster under center.
Josh Jacobs placed on exempt list
Speaking of the Packers, they were dealt a blow over the weekend when their starting running back was placed on the exempt list. Jacobs was charged with battery and damage to property stemming from a May arrest where police initially detailed five alleged offenses, including battery, criminal damage to property, disorderly conduct, strangulation and suffocation and intimidation of a victim. He was officially charged last Thursday and placed on the exempt list on Sunday. (There is reportedly a video of the incident, but it hasn't been publicly released.)
The Packers traded for former Steelers third-round pick Kaleb Johnson, who will pair with MarShawn Lloyd and Chris Brooks in the backfield for however long Jacobs' absence lasts.
