The Las Vegas Raiders sliced their roster down to 53 players on Tuesday, but arguably the most surprising cut of the week actually came a day later. On Wednesday, the club cut defensive tackle Byron Young, according to NFL Media. This comes just a year after the franchise selected him in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
The Alabama product with the No. 70 overall pick in 2023 after a collegiate career that included a College Football Playoff National Championship and a second-team All-SEC nod in 2022. He began last summer on the physically unable to perform list but was activated for the preseason. Young played in six games during his rookie season, logging no more than 31% of the defensive snaps in a given contest. In all, he totaled four tackles.
While surprising to see someone drafted so highly not make the roster just a year after he was drafted, it is worth pointing out that this Raiders regime doesn't have ties to Young. Dave Ziegler was the general manager who drafted Young and Josh McDaniels was slotted in as coach. Now, former Chargers GM Tom Telesco is running the front office and Antonio Pierce is serving as coach. While on staff for the Raiders, Young did not play a game while Pierce was the interim coach last season.
Given that circumstance, it's more palatable for the organization to move on from that type of player despite his draft stature.
