Cam Newton headlines list of players released
Cam Newton followed Mac Jones along the sideline, holding his right hand up, waiting for the rookie quarterback to slap it after the No. 15 overall pick threw a touchdown in a preseason game Sunday night.
Newton may as well have been congratulating Jones for taking his job.
The New England Patriots released Newton on Tuesday hours before NFL teams reduced rosters to 53 players. Jones, the first QB selected in the first round during Bill Belichick’s 22 seasons in New England, takes over after Newton was a one-year stopgap following Tom Brady’s departure.
Newton, the 2015 NFL MVP, headlines the list of players now seeking a new team. He was 7-8 as a starter last season.
“He started at a much higher point than what he did last year, so definitely moving in the right direction,” Belichick said of Newton on Monday.
A day later, he was moving out of Patriot Way.
Newton is not vaccinated and recently missed practice time because of COVID-19 protocols. It’s unknown whether that factored into New England’s
decision to let him go.
Jacksonville Jaguars coach Urban Meyer said vaccination status was a consideration in their roster decisions.
“Everyone was considered. That was part of the production, let’s start talking about this and also, ‘Is he vaccinated or not?’ Can I say that that was a decision-maker? It was certainly in consideration,” Meyer said.
Meyer pointed to defensive end Josh Allen missing one week because of protocols. Allen, who is not vaccinated, was activated from the COVID-19 list Monday.
“Well, Josh Allen’s never had (COVID),” Meyer said. “He’s not played in two weeks. So he’s never had COVID. I don’t know if I’m allowed to say that, but he’s never had COVID. So that’s pretty punitive.”
The Eagles released wide receiver Travis Fulgham, who had an excellent five-game stretch last season before disappearing from the offense. Veteran running back Jordan Howard also was cut by Philadelphia.
Baltimore released quarterback Trace McSorley, leaving Tyler Huntley as the backup to Lamar Jackson. Carolina cut quarterback Will Grier, a third-round pick in 2019. The Panthers are going with Sam Darnold and P.J. Walker as their quarterbacks, for now.
The Falcons kept backup quarterbacks Josh Rosen and Feleipe Franks. Rosen, a former first-round pick by Arizona, survived the cuts one week after signing with Atlanta and playing in only one preseason game.
The Browns, a legitimate title contender after so many miserable seasons, surprisingly released wide receiver KhaDarel Hodge, had a solid preseason, catching two touchdown passes in the past two games. He’s also been a valuable special teamer. However, he fell behind Donovan Peoples-Jones, Rashard Higgins and rookie Anthony Schwartz on the depth chart as the No. 3 behind Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr.
Cleveland also kept defensive tackle Malik McDowell, a former second-round pick by Seattle whose career once seemed over following an ATV accident and two arrests in 2017.
The Chiefs placed offensive lineman Kyle Long, who came out of retirement only to break his tibia at the start of camp, on the physically-unable-to-perform list.