Cutdown day can turn a rookie’s summer into a launching pad, and a few first-year players came out of final roster cuts in especially good shape.
Some simply survived the numbers game. Others walked into a much bigger opportunity than the one they were expecting back in April. For these six rookies, the path ahead suddenly looks a lot clearer.
In San Francisco, Carver Willis went from fourth-round pick to the favorite at left guard. Rob Jones and Connor Colby were ahead of him on the depth chart when camp opened, with Colby getting the first shot at the job before losing ground to Jones.
But Jones, who was on a one-year deal and dealt with a calf strain throughout camp, was released. Willis then took control by starting all three preseason games.
Tennessee’s Fernando Carmona Jr. followed a similar climb at right guard. He began camp as the third option in a competition that included veteran Cordell Volson and 2025 Day 3 pick Jackson Slater.
Carmona Jr. separated himself as RG1 in camp and the preseason, and Volson was released. The fifth-round pick now has a real chance to contribute right away for a Titans offense trying to keep moving forward in 2026.
Philadelphia’s Cole Payton may have had the strangest roster outcome of the group. A developmental quarterback with size and athletic traits, he landed with the Eagles in the fifth round, which made sense for a team that loves to stockpile quarterbacks.
But the room was crowded from the start with Jalen Hurts, Tanner McKee and veteran Andy Dalton all in the mix. Still, cutdown day came and went with Payton staying put, as Philadelphia kept four quarterbacks on its initial roster.
That could mean a utility role for him, maybe even something in the Taysom Hill mold. And if a veteran gets traded during the season, Payton could slide into the No. 3 spot as a rookie.
Cleveland’s Taylen Green also found a path onto the roster, and in his case there may even be a route to the field. The sixth-round quarterback brings serious college experience, with 53 games and nearly 1,200 pass attempts, plus rare athletic traits.
He also scored an unofficial 9.99 RAS out of a possible 10.00, which ranked 2 out of 1052 QB from 1987 to 2026. With Dillon Gabriel headed to injured reserve, Green is on the team as the third quarterback behind Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders.
Unlike Payton, Green could actually be in line to start a few games this season.
Minnesota’s Brett Thorson won a punting battle against a name with real NFL pedigree. The Vikings moved on from Ryan Wright this offseason and set up a competition between Johnny Hekker and the undrafted rookie free agent.
Thorson came out on top, giving Minnesota a younger option at punter. But as a UDFA, and at a position like punter, he’ll probably have a short leash with Hekker just a phone call away.
Then there’s Miami’s Caleb Douglas, who may have benefited most from a roster shakeup. The Dolphins entered 2026 with a wide receiver room that already looked thin, then spent April drafting three more receivers after Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle left this offseason.
Miami’s receiver mix included Jalen Reagor, Jalen Tolbert, Malik Washington and veteran Tutu Atwell, with the rookies each fitting defined roles. Chris Bell profiles as a “Z” receiver, Kevin Coleman Jr. as a slot/returner type, and Douglas as the “X” who can stretch the field and win deep.
That setup made Atwell the obvious veteran for him to follow, until Miami traded Atwell last week. Douglas had already been losing preseason snaps as the team looked to protect him from injuries, but now the door is open for him to carve out a role.
If he can handle his assignment and build chemistry with Willis, he could stick in Miami’s offense this year and beyond.
In Other News...
Titans Just Turned A Feel Good Roster Story Into A Bigger Debate
The Titans spent the opening stretch of cutdown season trying to sort out the bottom of the roster, and one of the more encouraging stories took an unexpected turn. Xavier Restrepo had survived the initial trim to 53, a sign the team valued the rookie receiver enough to keep him around while other moves were being made. In the same wave of transactions, Tennessee leaned heavily toward defense, adding cornerback Melvin Smith Jr. and safety Terrell Burgess as it continued reshaping the back end of the roster.
Now Restrepo is off the active roster, which changes the conversation around one of the clubs feel-good depth pieces. The move does not appear to close the door on his Tennessee future, since he is still expected to be a candidate to return on the practice squad, but it does underline how fluid the Titans final roster picture remains. For a team still balancing immediate needs against longer-term development, even a relatively modest receiver decision can ripple into a bigger debate about where the roster is strongest, and where help is still being prioritized. [Read more 🡒]
Will Levis Drama Just Pulled Titans Fans Back Into That Era
Will Levis old connection to Tennessee is back in the conversation, this time through Gia Duddy and a social media post that sent Titans fans down memory lane. Duddy and Levis began dating in early 2021 while they were at different schools, and their long-distance relationship drew plenty of attention once Levis landed with the Titans as a 2023 NFL Draft pick.
Now that Levis is no longer on Tennessees roster and has entered free agency, the spotlight around that chapter has shifted in a different direction. Duddy recently posted a video from Nashville Stadium, and with rumors also linking her to Bengals wide receiver Andrei Iosivas, it has only added another layer to a story Titans fans had probably filed away until now. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Cut Day Left One Roster Move Fans Will Debate Most
The Titans have mostly wrapped up the churn that always follows cut-down day, and the shape of the offseason roster is starting to come into focus. Keeping Jeffery Simmons on the defensive front was never really in doubt, but the rest of the moves offered a clearer picture of what Tennessee values right now: depth in the secondary, some added flexibility on the edge, and a willingness to keep reworking the back end of the roster until it feels right.
What will linger longest for fans, though, is the decision to move on from Kyle Philips, a player whose fit and role had already been debated for months. At the same time, the additions of Elijah Molden and Amani Hooker give the defense more familiar pieces to lean on, while the signing of offensive tackle James Hudson adds a lineman with prior experience and some coaching staff familiarity. It all adds up to a roster that looks more settled than it did a day ago, even if one of the bigger calls is the one people are most likely to argue about. [Read more 🡒]