The NFL’s preseason is over, roster cuts are in, and 18 former NC State players survived the first big trim to 53-man rosters across the league.
That group includes two undrafted free agents who forced their way onto active rosters: linebacker Caden Fordham with the Buccaneers and defensive end Sabastian Harsh with the Texans.
Offensive tackle Ikem Ekwonu is also still in the mix for the Panthers, though he’ll open the season on the PUP list as he continues working back to full health.
A long list of other former Wolfpack players got through camp and made their teams’ initial rosters, including Anthony Belton with the Packers, Garrett Bradbury and Joe Thuney with the Bears, Bradley Chubb with the Bills, AJ Cole with the Raiders, Cory Durden with the Patriots, Chandler Zavala with the Panthers, BJ Hill with the Bengals, Dylan McMahon with the Rams, Jacoby Brissett and Bam Knight with the Cardinals, Alim McNeill with the Lions, Jakobi Meyers with the Jaguars, Kentavius Street with the Bears, Drake Thomas with the Seahawks and Payton Wilson with the Steelers.
Here’s the full group of former NC State players who made 53-man rosters:
Anthony Belton, OT, Packers
Garrett Bradbury, C, Bears
Joe Thuney, OG, Bears
Bradley Chubb, LB, Bills
AJ Cole, P, Raiders
Cory Durden, DT, Patriots
Chandler Zavala, OG, Panthers
Caden Fordham, LB, Buccaneers
Sabastian Harsh, DE, Texans
BJ Hill, DT, Bengals
Dylan McMahon, C, Rams
Jacoby Brissett, QB, Cardinals
Bam Knight, RB, Cardinals
Alim McNeill, DT, Lions
Jakobi Meyers, WR, Jaguars
Kentavius Street, DL, Bears
Drake Thomas, LB, Seahawks
Payton Wilson, LB, Steelers
Ekwonu is the only former Wolfpack player listed on the PUP list, with the Panthers expected to keep him there to start the year.
Not everyone made it through final cuts. Eleven former NC State players who spent the preseason with NFL teams were waived: Brandon Cleveland and Cian Slone with the Raiders, Zeke Correll with the Eagles, Wesley Grimes with the 49ers, Cody Hardy with the Saints, Jordan Waters, Tanner Ingle and Larrell Murchison with the Rams, Justin Joly with the Broncos, and Timothy McKay and Devon Marshall with the Jaguars.
Being waived doesn’t close the door completely. Some of those players could still be claimed by another team, while others may circle back to their current clubs on practice squads after clearing waivers.
In Other News...
Former NC State Players Made Some Tough NFL Roster Decisions Interesting
The NFL preseason wrapped up with a familiar cluster of former NC State players scattered across rosters, trying to turn August snaps into something more permanent. Thirteen ex-Wolfpack standouts took part in the finale for different teams, and the last game action offered one more snapshot of who helped themselves with steady tackling, pressure off the edge, catches in traffic or clean coverage before roster cuts begin to hit.
For a program that keeps pushing talent into the league, these late-summer showings matter because they often shape the difference between a practice squad opportunity and a more secure spot elsewhere. Not every former Pack player was available for the finale, but the ones who did suit up left enough behind in the stat sheet and the grading reports to make the decisions around them a little more interesting than the average preseason final whistle. [Read more 🡒]
NC States Offensive Usage Suddenly Looks Like A Real Problem
Spike Sowells quietly emerged as one of the most important pieces of NC States offense in the win over Virginia, playing every offensive snap and grading out as the lines best pass blocker. The full breakdown of snap counts tells a revealing story about how the Wolfpack deployed its personnel, with several starters carrying heavy loads while the coaches mixed in backups across the line, at receiver and at tight end to keep the group moving through the game.
The more intriguing part is what those usage numbers say about the state of the offense going forward. Davion Gause logged 17 snaps but saw only limited work as a runner, and the distribution among the other backs, receivers and tight ends suggests the staff is still sorting out who can handle the most reliable workload. With injuries also factoring into the mix, the snap chart does more than track one game - it hints at a rotation that may still be searching for the right balance. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Won But One Worry Still Looks Very Real
Week 0 brought a mix of results around college football, but one of the more sobering ones for NC State came in a 34-8 loss to Virginia. The Wolfpack were limited to just 168 total yards, a sign that the offense never found much rhythm while the Cavaliers controlled enough of the game to make the margin feel even larger than the final score.
Virginia also got a big debut from Beau Pribula, who added a new layer to what the Wolfpack had to defend and never really settled into a comfortable groove against. For NC State, the concern is less about one bad afternoon than what it suggested about how quickly the group can respond when the schedule starts asking tougher questions. [Read more 🡒]