The Jets got down to their 53-player active roster today as they waived 12 players and released two fifth-year players, C Travis Swanson and RB Charcandrick West.
They also placed S Rontez Miles on the Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform list. He would be eligible to be activated after six games.
The final three players of the 18 moves the Jets had to make today were those beginning the regular season on NFL suspensions — CB Rashard Robinson (four games), LB Kevin Pierre-Louis (two games) and WR ArDarius Stewart (one game).
With first-year K Taylor Bertolet among the waived players, Jason Myers appears to have won the kicking job, although the Jets could still consider newly available kickers in the coming days. Myers kept the kicking competition with Bertolet going after he was acquired on waivers from Seattle on Aug. 21 and veteran Cairo Santos was released two days later due to his slow return from last year's groin injury.
Myers, asked after the preseason finale at Philadelphia what he expected the Jets to do at his position, replied like the professional kicker he has become.
"That's not my job," he said. "My job is when they tell me to go out there and kick, I just make everything that I can."
He did that in the Jets' last two preseason games, hitting all three of his field goal tries — including a 58-yarder vs. the Eagles — and his one extra point, plus getting touchbacks on all six of his kickoffs, one of his strengths in three seasons at Jacksonville.
The three suspensions gave the team some time to continue analyzing their roster, head coach Todd Bowles said on a Friday conference call.
"It's bad that they got suspended," Bowles said, "but if we are on the fence on a couple people, they may be able to squeak by and get some time in, and then injuries always play a part in it. It's going to be a tough deal either way, but hopefully we can finagle this where we get the best value with the guys we keep."
The Jets will continue to refine their 53-man roster in the week ahead leading up to the season opener at Detroit on Sept. 10. All teams can establish their 10-man practice squads beginning Sunday.
Following are the Jets' 18 moves/suspensions made today by the 4 p.m. ET deadline, grouped by position:
| Player | Position | Experience | Transaction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas Rawls | RB | 4 | Waived |
| Charcandrick West | RB | 5 | Released |
| Travis Swanson | C | 5 | Released |
| Chad Hansen | WR | 2 | Waived |
| Tre McBride | WR | 4 | Waived |
| ArDarius Stewart | WR | 2 | Reserve/Suspended |
| Clive Walford | TE | 4 | Waived |
| Deon Simon | DL | 2 | Waived |
| Dylan Donahue | LB | 2 | Waived |
| Frankie Luvu | LB | R | Waived |
| Lorenzo Mauldin | LB | 4 | Waived |
| Kevin PIerre-Louis | LB | 5 | Reserve/Suspended |
| Anthony Wint | LB | R | Waived |
| Brandon Bryant | S | R | Waived |
| Jeremy Clark | CB | 1 | Waived |
| Rontez Miles | S | 4 | Reserve/PUP |
| Rashard Robinson | CB | 3 | Reserve/Suspended |
| Taylor Bertolet | K | 1 | Waived |
