The Jets have released/waived 26 players and placed DL Kyle Phillips on reserve/PUP to reach the league-maximum 53 players.
Of the 26 players removed from the roster, 14 were on offense and 12 on defense. All 10 members of the Jets' 2021 draft class made the initial 53-player roster.
"This is by the far the worst part of football and for some of them the dream of playing professional football is over," head coach Robert Saleh told reporters Monday. "For some, they're still going to be able to continue on. You never want to be the one to deliver bad news and you just hurt for them because you know how much effort and how much work they've put into it. So it's not easy, it will never be easy and it doesn't matter what role you are — whenever you have to tell somebody that their dream of playing professional football is possibly over, it's not a good thing."
Phillips (6-4, 277) was placed on the active/PUP list July 23. He was placed on injured reserve Oct. 28, 2020 after sustaining a season-ending ankle injury. He had 11 tackles, 3 tackles for loss and 1 QB hit in seven games (three starts) in the 2020 season. He signed with the Jets as an undrafted free agent in 2019 and led the Green & White with 18 tackles for loss (according to coach's statistics) and made 52 tackles and had 1.5 sacks as a rookie.
See the Current 2021 Roster Leading Up to the Regular Season
RB Josh Adams
K Matt Ammendola
OL Mekhi Becton
WR Braxton Berrios
TE Dan Brown
RB Michael Carter
CB Michael Carter II
LB Blake Cashman
WR Keelan Cole
RB Tevin Coleman
WR Jamison Crowder
WR Corey Davis
CB Isaiah Dunn
CB Brandin Echols
OL Chuma Edoga
OL George Fant
DL Folorunso Fatukasi
OL Dan Feeney
DL John Franklin-Myers
TE Ryan Griffin
CB Javelin Guidry
CB Bryce Hall
CB Justin Hardee
LS Thomas Hennessy
DL Bryce Huff
RB Ty Johnson
S Lamarcus Joyner
TE Tyler Kroft
DE Shaq Lawson
P Braden Mann
DL Jonathan Marshall
S Marcus Maye
OL Connor McGovern
WR Denzel Mims
WR Elijah Moore
OL Morgan Moses
LB C.J. Mosley
LB Hamsah Nasirildeen
S Sharrod Neasman
RB La'Mical Perine
CB Jason Pinnock
DL Sheldon Rankins
S Sheldrick Redwine
DL Nathan Shepherd
LB Jamien Sherwood
WR Jeff Smith
OL Greg Van Roten
OL Alijah Vera-Tucker
DE Tim Ward
TE Trevon Wesco
QB Mike White
LB Quincy Williams
DL Quinnen Williams
QB Zach Wilson
Here are the Jets' 27 transactions made by today's 4 p.m. ET deadline, grouped by positions:
| Player | Pos | Exp | How Acq | Transaction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Josh Johnson | QB | 7 | FA-2021 | Released |
| James Morgan | QB | 2 | D4b-2020 | Waived |
| Josh Adams | RB | 4 | FA-2019 | Waived |
| Lawrence Cager | WR | 2 | UdFA-2020 | Waived |
| D.J. Montgomery | WR | 2 | W-2020 (CLE) | Waived |
| Vyncint Smith | WR | 4 | FA-2019 | Waived |
| Dan Brown | TE | 7 | UFA-2019 (CHI) | Released |
| Ryan Griffin | TE | 9 | FA-2019 | Released |
| Kenny Yeboah | TE | R | UdFA-2021 | Waived |
| Grant Hermanns | OL | R | UdFA-2021 | Waived |
| Corey Levin | C | 4 | FA-2021 | Waived |
| David Moore | OL | R | W-2021 (CAR) | Waived |
| Jimmy Murray | OL | 3 | FA-2019 | Waived |
| Isaiah Williams | OL | 2 | FA-2021 | Waived |
| Ronald Blair | DL | 6 | FA-2021 | Released |
| Kyle Phillips | DL | 3 | UdFA-2019 | Reserve/PUP |
| Hamilcar Rashed | DL | R | UdFA-2021 | Waived |
| Tanzel Smart | DL | 4 | FA-2020 | Waived |
| Jeremiah Valoaga | DL | 2 | FA-2021 | Waived |
| Aaron Adeoye | LB | 1 | FA-2021 | Waived |
| Noah Dawkins | LB | 2 | FA-2020 | Waived |
| Milo Eifler | LB | R | UdFA-2021 | Waived |
| Del'Shawn Phillips | LB | 2 | FA-2021 | Waived |
| Elijah Campbell | S | 1 | FA-2020 | Waived |
| J.T. Hassell | S | 2 | FA-2020 | Waived |
| Lamar Jackson | DB | 2 | UdFA-2020 | Waived |
| Sharrod Neasman | S | 6 | FA-20201 | Released |
What's Next
Over the coming days, GM Joe Douglas and his staff will have the flexibility to continue to shape the roster, moving players to injured reserve, adding players who were let go from around the league and executing trades in addition to filling a 16-person practice squad.
Waiver Claims
The Jets hold the second slot in the waiver-wire priority (JAX is No. 1) and will hold that spot until after Week 3 of the regular season. At that point, the priority will match the NFL standings instead of the 2021 draft order. Teams can claim players who are waived until Sept. 1 at 4PM EST. After that, teams can sign players to their practice squad.
Practice Squad
The NFL is following the same format as the 2020 season. In addition to the traditional practice-squad qualifications, teams can have up to four players who don't have more than two accrued seasons without a game limitation and up to six players with no limitations of accrued seasons. One example of this from last season was when the Green & White added LB Alec Ogletree, who was 28 and played in 93 games in seven seasons at the time, to the P-squad.
Like last year, teams are allowed to promote two players from their practice squad on gameday and each player called up will revert back to the PS. Practice squad players cannot sign with another team's practice squad but are free to sign with another team's 53-man roster at any time unless they are one of their team's protected players. Teams decide on four protected players weekly.
IR/PUP/NFI
Players that are on PUP or NFI don't count towards the 53-man roster. They're eligible to return to action after the team's sixth game. Players placed on IR before the cut to 53 are ineligible to return during the regular season. The Jets have five players on injured reserve including DE Carl Lawson. If a player is placed on injured reserve after the roster cuts and during the regular season, they are required to miss three weeks.
