National Football League

NFL cuts: Broncos cut ties with CB Cox

Published Sep. 3, 2011 1:00 a.m. ET

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The Cleveland Browns have released 17 players, getting first-year coach Pat Shurmur's roster to 63 in advance of submitting their final 53-man roster to the league.

The Denver Broncos waived Perrish Cox on Saturday, cutting ties with the cornerback who is facing a sexual assault trial later this year.

His agent, Jordan Woy, tweeted Saturday that ''any teams looking for a good, young CB should jump. Good starts under his belt.''

Cox started nine times as a rookie last year and was the backup to right cornerback Andre' Goodman this summer, but he played poorly in the final preseason game Thursday night at Arizona.

Cox was among two dozen players cut by the Broncos, who placed three others on injured reserve, including Thompson, Saturday.

Another notable second-year defensive back was cut by the Broncos. Kyle McCarthy had a spectacular camp coming off major knee surgery and was strong safety Brian Dawkins' backup.

Other holdovers from last season who were waived included guards Stanley Daniels and Eric Olsen, wide receiver Britt Davis, tight end Dan Gronkowski and kicker Steven Haushka.

Recently acquired receiver/returner David Anderson and tight end Dante Rosario were released. Rookie wide receiver Eron Riley, who had three catches for 144 yards against the Cardinals, and seventh-round draft pick Jeremy Beal of Oklahoma, were waived.

By virtue of their franchise-worst 4-12 season last year, the Broncos own the second waiver wire claim behind Carolina and will sign several players cut by other teams this weekend. They're especially in need of backup linemen and also would like to add depth to both their offensive and defensive backfields.

The Broncos can establish a practice squad of up to eight players Sunday and would like to bring back quarterback Adam Weber, whom they waived Saturday.

Ravens

Linebacker Tavares Gooden and wide receiver James Hardy are among 25 players cut by the Baltimore Ravens, who also placed offensive tackle Ramon Harewood on injured reserve to reach the 55-man limit.

The Ravens on Saturday also terminated the contract of linebacker Prescott Burgess.

Gooden is a former third-round draft pick from the University of Miami. Harewood is scheduled to undergo surgery to repair a torn ligament in his ankle.

Hardy, a former Buffalo Bills second-round draft pick, got off to a good start in training camp but missed much of the preseason with a chronic hamstring problem.

Burgess led the Ravens in special-teams tackles over the past two seasons. Baltimore also cut former fourth-round pick Marcus Smith, a wide receiver.

Browns

Defensive back Coye Francies, a sixth-round pick in 2009, was among the players let go Saturday by the Browns, who went 5-11 last season under Eric Mangini. Francies played in eight games for Cleveland the past two seasons.

Also, the Browns terminated the contract of veteran wide receiver Demetrius Williams. He was signed last October after playing four seasons in Baltimore.

Starting tight end Ben Watson (hip) and linebacker Chris Gocong (neck) remain limited in practice because of injuries.

Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons have cut quarterback John Parker Wilson and nine others to reach the NFL's 53-man roster limit.

The team included 2011 seventh-round draft pick Andrew Jackson, an offensive guard from Fresno State, among Saturday's cuts.

The cuts leave the Falcons with Chris Redman as the only backup to starting quarterback Matt Ryan. Wilson, from Alabama, was Atlanta's third quarterback but did not appear in a game in 2010

The team also cut center Brett Romberg, safety Rafael Bush, receivers Kevin Cone and Drew Davis, linebacker Robert James, defense end Emmanuel Stephens and tackle Jose Valdez.

The team reached an injury settlement with tight end Ryan Winterswyk.

Two undrafted rookies, cornerback Darrin Walls of Notre Dame and defensive tackle Carlton Powell of Virginia Tech, made the team.

Bengals

The Bengals placed cornerback Adam ''Pacman'' Jones and linebacker Keith Rivers on injured lists Saturday, sidelining them for at least the first six weeks of the season.

Jones had offseason neck surgery and couldn't participate in contract drills during training camp. Rivers had surgery on his right wrist and is wearing a cast.

The Bengals also had right guard Bobbie Williams suspended for the first four games for violating the NFL's ban on performance-enhancing substances. The 12th-year veteran has started all 16 games each of the last four seasons.

The Bengals also released guard Max Jean-Gilles, who signed as a free agent during training camp, and third-string quarterback Dan LeFevour as they got down to the roster limit. They'll go with two quarterbacks - Andy Dalton and Bruce Gradkowski.

Linebacker Roddrick Muckelroy, who tore his Achilles, and tight end Bo Scaife, who hurt his neck, are out for the season after going on the injured reserve list.

The Bengals also released defensive end Victor Adeyanju and cornerback Jonathan Wade.

Waived were fullback Fui Vakapuna, cornerback Brandon Ghee, cornerback Rico Murray, tight end John Nalbone, defensive tackle Jason Shirley, fullback James Develin, cornerback David Pender, defensive end James Ruffin, receiver Calvin Russell, defensive tackle Cornell Banks, linebacker DeQuin Evans, running back Jay Finley, running back John Griffin, receiver Andrew Hawkins, cornerback Korey Lindsey, offensive tackle Matthew O'Donnell, offensive guard Chris Riley and kicker Thomas Weber .

Texans

Running back Chris Ogbonnaya, linebacker Xavier Adibi and defensive tackle Damione Lewis were among the players released by the Houston Texans on Saturday.

The Texans also waived veteran punter Brad Maynard; receivers Dorin Dickerson, Trindon Holliday, Jeff Maehl and Derrick Townsel; running back Javarris Williams; fullback Zac Pauga; offensive tackles Peter Hendrickson and Cole Pemberton; centers Cody Wallace and Howard Barbieri; guard Andrew Gardner; and long snapper Scott Albritton.

On the defensive side, Houston cut ends Scooter Berry and John Graves; nose tackle Guy Miller; safeties Quintin Demps, Shiloh Keo and Torri Williams; and linebackers Mister Alexander, Steven Friday and Stanford Keglar. Keo was a fifth-round draft pick by Houston.

Rookie linebacker Cheta Ozougwo (left foot) and receiver Terrence Toliver (concussion) were placed in injured reserve.

Bills

Veteran offensive lineman Geoff Hangartner was among the surprise cuts made by the Buffalo Bills in establishing their 53-player roster.

Hangartner was among 22 players released on Saturday despite telling The Associated Press last week that he had assurances from the Bills' coaching staff that he would make the team. He's a six-year NFL veteran who had lost his starting job at center to Eric Wood this offseason.

It's also a curious move for the Bills to cut Hangartner. He was the most experienced offensive lineman on a team that general manager Buddy Nix two weeks ago acknowledged lacked experienced depth. Hangartner was also the team's highest paid lineman, scheduled to make $2.55 million this year, and 5.35 million in base salary over the final two years of his contract.

Bills coach Chan Gailey was scheduled to discuss the team's moves later in the day.

Cornerback Reggie Corner, a 2008 fourth-round draft pick, was also among the cuts for the Bills, who are coming off a 1-3 preseason finish and preparing to open the regular season at Kansas City on Sept. 11.

The Bills placed four players on the waived/injured list. It's a group that includes third-year safety Jon Corto and second-year left tackle Ed Wang.

Chosen in the fifth-round out of Virginia Tech, Wang had made headlines last year after becoming the first player with direct Chinese ancestry to be selected in the NFL draft. Buffalo had drafted him in the fifth round out of Virginia Tech. He missed much of last season with a thumb injury, and then was sidelined for part of training camp last month with a shoulder injury.

The Bills also placed running back Bruce Hall on injured reserve.

Rookie defensive tackle Michael Jasper was among the cuts. At 6-foot-4 and 383 pounds, Jasper was considered a project after being selected with the second of the team's two seventh-round picks in April out of Bethel University.

The Bills hope to keep Jasper with the team, as they made the move with the intention of placing him on their practice squad should he go unclaimed on waivers, according to a person familiar with the move. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the Bills have not announced their intentions regarding Jasper.

Second-year tight end Shawn Nelson was also cut in a move that didn't come as a surprise after he's been hampered by an assortment of injuries and opened last season missing the first four games while serving an NFL-imposed suspension for violating the league's substance abuse policy. He appeared in only five games last season before being placed on the reserve/injured non-football injury list as a result of migraines.

A fourth-round pick out of Southern Mississippi, Nelson then missed most of training camp last month with a leg injury.

Receiver Craig Davis failed to make the best out of his second chance. A first-round pick in the 2007 draft, Davis had four unproductive seasons before being released by the San Diego Chargers this year before signing with the Bills early last month.

Giants

The New York Giants switched punters Saturday, keeping Steve Weatherford and cutting Matt Dodge, while putting cancer survivor Mark Herzlich on their 53-man roster.

How long Herzlich stays with the club remains to seen, but the Boston College linebacker who was signed as a free agent after failing to be drafted can at least say he survived the final cut.

It is clear that Herzlich was on the roster bubble, and teams always make moves before their season opener. So it is uncertain whether he will be on the roster for the season opener at Washington.

The best competition in camp was for the punting job and Weatherford edged Dodge, who was inconsistent as a rookie.

Dodge's biggest mistake was failing to punt out of bounds on the final play in the December meltdown against Philadelphia, a blunder that resulted in DeSean Jackson returning the punt 65-yards for a game-winning touchdown.

Colts

Three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Tommie Harris was one of 27 players cut by the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday to reach the NFL roster limit of 53.

Harris, a former first-round draft pick, was released by Chicago in February and signed with the Colts during the first week of training camp.

Indy also waived two draft picks from 2010 - guard Jacques McClendon and defensive tackle Ricardo Mathews. Receiver Taj Smith was placed on the waived-injured list and another receiver, Blair White, was activated from the physically unable to perform list.

Running backs Darren Evans and Chad Spann, who both played prep ball in Indy, made the active roster. And the Colts kept three quarterbacks: Peyton Manning, Kerry Collins and Curtis Painter. Veteran Dan Orlovsky was waived.

Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings have waived offensive lineman Ryan Cook, tight end Jeff Dugan and linebacker Heath Farwell, three vested veterans who've been valuable backups for several seasons.

The Vikings reduced their active roster to 53 players for the regular season before the NFL's deadline on Saturday afternoon, and they chose youth and potential over experience and stability when determining their depth at a handful of positions.

Cook and Chris DeGeare, a fifth-round draft pick last year, were waived in favor of rookies Brandon Fusco and DeMarcus Love as reserves on the offensive line. Rookie Allen Reisner, undrafted out of Iowa, made the team instead of Dugan as a backup tight end. Farwell was also beaten out by undrafted rookie, Larry Dean from Valdosta State.

Steelers

The Pittsburgh Steelers waived five players on Saturday to get the roster down to the 53-man limit.

Punter Jeremy Kapinos, offensive lineman Tony Hills, tight end John Gilmore, defensive lineman Jarrett Crittenton and defensive back Crezdon Butler were cut loose just before the 6 p.m. deadline.

Kapinos had been in a spirited battle with Dan Sepulveda during training camp and actually had a better average (49.8) than Sepulveda (45.7) during the preseason.

Hills, a fourth-round pick by the Steelers in the 2008 draft, failed to impress during camp despite extended looks at guard. Gilmore, signed as a free agent from Tampa Bay last month, had just one reception during the four exhibitions and was beat out by undrafted rookie Weslye Saunders for one of the three spots.

Chiefs

The Kansas City Chiefs have put Tony Moeaki on injured reserve after the second-year tight end was hurt in their final preseason game against the Green Bay Packers.

The Chiefs also put linebacker Gabe Miller on IR on Saturday and waived 25 other players to reach the 53-man roster limit before the NFL deadline.

Unlike most other teams, the Chiefs played their starters for much of their final preseason game Thursday night. Moeaki limped off the field in Green Bay with a reported knee injury.

His loss is a significant blow to the defending AFC West champions. Moeaki caught 47 passes for 556 yards and three touchdowns last season. That leaves tight ends Leonard Pope, Jake O'Connell and Anthony Becht to fill in, though Kansas City could add someone else off waivers.

Dolphins

Two-time Pro Bowl running back Larry Johnson was among those released by the Miami Dolphins to meet the NFL deadline for reaching the regular-season roster limit.

Johnson, who had his contract terminated Saturday, signed last week after sitting out most of last season when his career was derailed by a series of off-the-field missteps.

Miami also terminated the contracts of cornerback Will Allen, a veteran who missed all of last season with a knee injury, and fullback Lousaka Polite, an eighth-year veteran who started 24 games over the past three seasons.

Placed on injured reserve with a toe injury was backup tackle Lydon Murtha.

The Dolphins waived two of their four quarterbacks, Pat Devlin and Kevin O'Connell.

Cowboys

Demoted defensive lineman Igor Olshansky, last year's starting fullback Chris Gronkowski and veteran kickers Shayne Graham and Dave Rayner were among the players the Dallas Cowboys released on Saturday to get their roster down to 53.

The departure of the experienced legs means the Cowboys are sticking with David Buehler and Dan Bailey. Buehler almost certainly will handle kickoffs. It remains to be seen whether there's still a competition for field goals, or if that will be Bailey's role.

Olshanky's release was no surprise because he was dropped in the rotation. Cutting him saves more than $3.3 million against the salary cap.

Chargers

The San Diego Chargers cut their roster to 53 before the NFL's deadline on Saturday, releasing 27 players from their preseason squad.

Two notable cuts were receiver Seyi Ajirotutu and defensive lineman Ogemdi Nwagbuo, who has been with the team since 2009.

Among the players to make the cut is veteran inside linebacker Stephen Cooper, who has continued playing despite a torn biceps tendon that will require surgery.

The team also signed linebacker Na'il Diggs, a 12th year veteran with 139 NFL starts, most recently with the St. Louis Rams. He will play inside linebacker in the Chargers' 3-4 defensive scheme, adding experience to a young group of linebackers.

The team will add eight players to its practice squad on Sunday after players have had a chance to clear waivers.

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