When it rains, it pours. As news of the first wave of Eagles roster cuts began to trickle in, the team followed up with an announcement that sixteen names have been released.
LB Don Cherry
DT Winston Craig
WR Rashard Davis
TE Anthony Denham
QB Dane Evans
LB Carlos Fields
DE Jake Metz
C Tyler Orlosky
T Victor Salako
LB Christian Tago
DT Gabe Wright
TE Adam Zaruba
The Eagles have started freeing up space by parting ways with a lot of longshots or guys that were recently signed. Rashard Davis, Carlos Fields, Christian Tago, Jake Metz, and even Adam Zaruba were all players who were signed long after the draft had passed and deep into the heart of OTA’s and beyond. The Eagles liked Metz to bring him back for a second preseason tryout and clearly were high on the potential of rugby star Adam Zaruba, but if the team decide to claim them off waivers or not is another debate entirely.
The Eagles have also carved into their linebacker depth slightly, not only releasing the two “placeholders” who were signed after the team cut two cornerbacks, but also cutting Don Cherry. The load gets lighter at running back, as the Eagles need to decide just how many guys they want to keep around. Knowing that Najee Goode, Kamu Grugier-Hill and even Joe Walker can all add something on special teams only makes that decision tougher.
The most interesting move comes in the way of Aaron Grymes. After captaining the team last night, Grymes led the team in tackles and worked out of the slot. The cutting of Ron Brooks pushed Patrick Robinson into a position of strength, but it was the arrival and immediate impact of Dexter McDougle against his old team that ensured a sense of comfort in cutting the former CFL standout. It will likely be Robinson and McDougle named as your slot cornerbacks as the roster is trimmed down ahead of tomorrow’s deadline, leaving Aaron Grymes searching for a new home once again after a strong offseason.
Cutting Anthony Denham and Adam Zaruba leaves four tight ends on the roster. Ertz, Celek, Burton and Brown…is that how the position will stay? Pederson was excited to see what the group could produce against the Jets, but with two names now gone, the hard decision now comes into play.
Surprisingly, the Eagles also cut Gabe Wright, who was having a relatively strong preseason. The return of Beau Allen may have had something to do with it, but it now begs the question as to who will partner Vaeao this season? Will it be Beau Allen once again, or will it be Elijah Qualls stepping up to the plate after a dominant month in live-game scenarios? Could Justin Hamilton be an outside shot to steal a spot? All will be answered soon.
Additionally, Sidney Jones was officially placed on the reserve/Non-Football Injury list. This means that the second round pick will be kept sidelined for at least the first six games of the season.
There have been a couple of other roster moves that aren’t noted here however. Along with Dane Evans, Matt McGloin was also waived, and Paul Turner was released with injury settlement. You can follow along with every cut and roster move here with our LIVE tracker.
Now that the mostly unsurprising cuts are out of the way, the Eagles still have 17 more cuts to make…and this is where the pressure really turns up a notch. Stay tuned to Philly Sports Network for the latest news and analysis over the next 24 hours on all things roster moves.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
