The Jets had to cut down their roster to a maximum of 53 players today and they reached that number by waiving 21 players and moving WR Santonio Holmes to their Reserve/Suspended list.
Four who made the cut were veteran RBs Danny Woodhead and Chauncey Washington and two rookies, CB Brian Jackson and TE Jeff Cumberland, all of whom used their good summers to make the team's Active/Inactive list.
Here is the list of the 21 waived players:
| Player Released | Player Released |
| S Emanuel Cook | LB Cory Reamer |
| FB Jason Davis | LB Brashton Satele |
| C Robby Felix | CB Bo Smith |
| S Keith Fitzhugh | DT Ty Steinkuhler |
| LB Ricky Foley | G Charlie Tanner |
| WR Brooks Foster | WR Larry Taylor |
| T Dan Gay | G Chet Teofilo |
| LB Tim Knicky | NT Martin Tevaseu |
| DE Jason Lamb | T Michael Turkovich |
| LB Boris Lee | S Donovan Warren |
| LB Josh Mauga |
Holmes now can't practice or play during the Jets' first four regular-season games due to an NFL suspension. CB Darrelle Revis, who is engaged in a holdout, and QB Erik Ainge remain on the Reserve/Did Not Report list. None of these three players counts against the 53-player Active/Inactive roster.
The 5'9", 200-pound Woodhead, who rushed for 7,962 yards at Division II Chadron State, played in 10 games last season for the Jets and he scored on a 14-yard run Thursday night against the Eagles. Jackson, an undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma, had four interceptions in '09 for the Sooners and he was credited with 4 PDs and one forced fumble during preseason action.
"It's never a bad thing at all," Woodhead said after the Eagles preseason finale about head coach Rex Ryan's favorable assessment of his summer. "But this is a business. You never know what's going to happen. I'm just going to keep on rolling and working hard."
The intriguing Cumberland, another undrafted rookie free agent who scored on 11 of the 59 receptions he had at Illinois, was a tough cover all camp and he scored on a 2-yard pass from Mark Brunell on Thursday.
"Pretty much camp for me has been going pretty good," Cumberland told Randy Lange before the Philadelphia game. "I've been doing some nice things to open some eyes. Now I just need to keep my focus, go out there and do what I have to do, which is to make plays."
Washington, a big back at 5'11" and 222 pounds, rushed 20 times for 75 yards in preseason play. He also delivered quite a body slam of Panthers punt returner Kenny Moore that forced a fumble that the Jets recovered, and also pounced on a Holmes fumble to keep a touchdown drive moving at Philly.
All four of the Jets' draft picks — CB Kyle Wilson (Round 1, No. 29 overall), OL Vladimir Ducasse (Round 2, No. 61), RB Joe McKnight (Round 4, No. 112) and FB John "The Terminator" Conner (Round 5, No. 139) — remain on the roster. With Revis holding out, Wilson could be the opening-day starter at corner opposite Antonio Cromartie. While Ducasse probably won't start at LG, he'll be a valuable reserve at both G and T, and Conner has been the talk of camp.
It's been a tough pro start for the talented McKnight, a Southern Cal product who had his troubles at the rookie minicamp and lost three fumbles during preseason action.
"He's going to make the team," said coach Rex Ryan late Thursday. "But we're not going to play him until we have more confidence in him, until he shows in practice that he gets the message."
Here is the breakdown alphabetically by position of the 53 players
OFFENSE (26)
Quarterbacks (3): Mark Brunell, Kellen Clemens, Mark Sanchez
Running Backs (7): John Conner, Shonn Greene, Joe McKnight, Tony Richardson, LaDainian Tomlinson, Chauncey Washington, Danny Woodhead
Wide Receivers (4): David Clowney, Jerricho Cotchery, Braylon Edwards, Brad Smith
Tight Ends (4): Jeff Cumberland, Ben Hartsock, Dustin Keller, Matthew Mulligan
Linemen (8): Vladimir Ducasse, D'Brickashaw Ferguson, Wayne Hunter, Nick Mangold, Brandon Moore, Matt Slauson, Robert Turner, Damien Woody
DEFENSE (24)
Linemen (6): Mike DeVito, Shaun Ellis, Vernon Gholston, Kris Jenkins, Sione Pouha, Matt Kroul
Linebackers (8): Kenwin Cummings, David Harris, Lance Laury, Calvin Pace, Bart Scott, Jason Taylor, Bryan Thomas, Jamaal Westerman
Defensive Backs (10): Marquice Cole, Drew Coleman, Antonio Cromartie, James Ihedigbo, Brian Jackson, Jim Leonhard, Dwight Lowery, Brodney Pool, Eric Smith, Kyle Wilson
SPECIALISTS (3)
K Nick Folk, LS Tanner Purdum, P Steve Weatherford
Each NFL team must be at a maximum of 53 players on its Active/Inactive List today by 6 p.m. ET. Then Sunday, beginning at noon ET, each team may establish its practice squad of eight free agent players.
