What's It Like To Be Cut From An NFL Team? 1000 Players Set To Be Cut For Final Roster Deadline

cut day is obviously a massive day dreams are coming true you were second round pick second round pick so you knew you're making a team you kind of knew you were making a team for me pick 222 I was in a punting competition with Tim maste who was certainly a better punter than me at that time whenever he got released before I think our first uh preseason game or maybe our second preseason game I forget what it was It was kind of handed off for me to be the guy and they wasted a Draft pick on a punter so a lot of people told me I was safe but I was having some days of practice where I was like I don't know if I'm safe and so when that last cut day came a lot of kickers and punters were getting released from teams when I found out I made the team I was ecstatic I was so pumped I was so thankful I thought about my journey I mean it was like a full moment for me to take in like but then really the work just Begins for you was there ever a time during those cut days where a perspective was put in place because you have lunch with a guy and then all of a sudden you go to a meeting and then he's cut you never see him again that's the first time a lot of these rookies have to deal with any of this type of stuff yeah it's tough cuz you know you come from college where you know you're going to have your class there for four five years you know you bu that Brotherhood and then you get into the league and you realize how much of a business it is um when you get drafted or signed you know somebody else has to come out that door I think when I got drafted they traded like Ellis Hobbs maybe that first like soon as I got drafted they traded Ellis Hobs so you know it's always a numbers game and been a second round pick I still didn't know at that point so I'm you know like Bill was talking about yesterday you're hearing your family you're calling agents I had a bad day he's like hey you're you're good you can trip over the 50 yard line every play and you're gonna make the team but you'll be good but the second year kind of struggled my second year even as a second round pick and then going into that third year I was released and then the year after that went to Carolina they claimed so I don't know if people notice but based on your draft position they have basically first U first in the pecking order the team draft uh position so the Panthers the worst team the previous year so a few teams claimed me but the Panthers got my right rights played there for a year got cut again so as a second round pick it was back to back years going into my third year where I had been cut and then found a home in Indie where I came here with Chuck and uh have two picks first day of practice oh yeah yeah you know it it it lit we were so happy it lit that it lit that fire fire under your ass so it is it is a rough day for a lot of players um but at the same time you know you got to keep working and keep um being prepared for that opportunity when it does present itself you know I found a home a lot of people get cut Kenny Moore Kenny Moore I think he got cut from the Patriots found his home in Indianapolis just signed another uh big deal this off season so it's never really the end of that story until it's the end you keep working and you keep find you know keep working keep grinding and my third time uh grixsen at the time I sat down with grix and he was like hey I remember you when you were coming out how are you coming out I think he was with Philly at the time but he was like Hey this probably is going to be your last opportunity your last real opportunity because when you're a high pick you get more opportunities just based on your draft position and your expectation and talent and all that stuff so um I came in I'm like all right if I go out I'm going go out my way so I took more chances I studied more and you kind of become a pro you know you learn things and then it was a lot of things that I didn't like about my first stint in New England that that once I got to year three year four I kind of realized okay that's why they do these things that's why the practice this way that's why you prepare um this way so you you get a different perspective as you get older but a lot of times a lot of people don't get those type of chance so I was fortunate but to the people out there man it's not end keep working it is a tough day it's a great day for a lot of players who who get that call and say Hey you made the 53 I'm pretty pumped that they both cut you uh as Jo up in any I mean yeah yeah yeah I am very pump first day you got to I think you had two picks in your first practice and me and Viner were like we [ __ ] got it finally we got it we got it Guy this is it and then obviously you fit into the locker room so well so quickly and you know everybody learns and and adjusts their like for me I I mean I got arrested and then immediately after that is when I started having success because life got put into perspective very quickly which I think cut day does for people you know you kind of start realizing like wait I did not have a backup plan my whole life all I had was football football football but to your point UFL still exists right UFL still g a lot of job CFL is still giv a lot of jobs teams have more practice squad spots than they've had in the past because of Co it's not over for everybody but some of you need to look in the mirror and realize it probably is yeah you you you kind of once you get to that to to this level it's you realize it's a different ball game really quick you got to bring it you know you got to bring it every day you got to bring it every year because even as you get older in the league you start to pay attention to the draft a little more you start to pay attention to who's going where and as you mentioned it's going to be a lot of guys hitting the street today at 4:00 so as you mentioned with these other teams hey I'm thin in your line it becomes a numbers game so it's not that a lot of times it's not that you're not good enough to make a team but hey we got some injuries a wide receiver we got some injuries a corner that team let go of a you know Allan Robinson's available now maybe we bring Noah Brown just got released from the Texans who had a good year last year he'll probably get picked up somewhere hjin you saw Malik Willis he's now the backup in Green Bay so it'll be a lot of moving Parts jamus you know poti available which is crazy to think about especially with everything that's been coming out positive with him in Cleveland he said we and us to Cleveland in his interview with us like 15 times and now Mary Kay who's been covering the Cleveland Browns forever so more names coming out more things potentially uh more more players available for teams to get better overnight I I just think like man if you sign somebody like if the Minnesota Vikings go out and sign somebody and I know Sam darnold's goingon to be great okay but if they sign like a bigname court let's say jamus or let's say Snoop I mean I was going to say he's a pro bowler Snoop Hunley made a pro bowl a couple years AG go like your fan base gets reinvigorated again you know it's like hold on wait a minute we can actually make this but if you're a player that's potentially sitting on the edge of the bubble you want to see as little Talent as possible hit the I want everybody to be cropped that gets that gets waved or gets cut because to your point about the numbers game we'd have a linebacker or something that was like very good at special teams rookie like I would like this guy to be on my teams or whatever they're like well we got good linebackers we don't have a lot somebody just got hurt in a corner room so we're going going to have to go sign somebody and this guy who's good linebacker potentially going to make team going to get cut just stly cuz we're only allowed 53 people and he happens to be the last one in that particular room it's like so you can see how so many people who are very good at football their entire life get jaded at the end of their football career because there is numbers games that happen and people never really get an opportunity there is an injury that takes place maybe in training camp maybe there's one game where you were told to do the wrong thing and you get exposed so on film you look bad and all you're wondering for the rest of your life is what if what if what if what if what if what if what if and that suck for people and today some of those what if moments start for some people but on the flip side Hall of Famers are making a team for the first time today that is walk not walk on but you get it un un undrafted undrafted guys have made a team made a pro bowl made the Hall of Fame there's a chance one of those stories happens today could be on your team could be on your team will probably be on one of my teams there is what I mean Pro probably not but I mean when you're talking about New England probably bracket one of the greatest of all time straight out of Ruckers guy out of West Virginia beanie Bishop who's undrafted who's going to be the starting nickel I think who's going to make the 53 I cannot believe he was undrafted by the way made a lot of plays for the West Virginia Mountaineers can't wait to get down there on uh Friday that should be an Absolut Victor Cruz undra yeah Hard Knocks helped Propel him into the strategy huge huge preseason game Super Bowl champ like hey good luck to all the players and congrats and thank you for your uh commitment to football throughout your entire life if you don't make a team you know and uh still great sport taught you a lot of things you have a head start on everybody else because you did play football mentally they got you physically you'll be able to take care of yourself you just need to apply everything from the the World of Sport and football into your regular regular life if you are done and if you're not done hey good luck and go take advantage of the opportunity you're getting a head start on everybody with the amount of money you're about to make for playing a kids sport kids sport Kings Ransom used to say it all the time get to don't have to and it's like well a lot of people are getting to make money off of this we we should be as well in this entire thing