June Cuts in the NFL

Early June signifies a time when some teams release players in an effort to conserve salary-cap space. The names often include seasoned veterans. For instance, two of last year's cuts were QB Brian Griese and CB Ray Crockett.

Marcus Bell, DT With Bell out, the team's primary remaining defensive tackles will be Russell Davis, Kenny King, Wendell Bryant and rookie Darnell Dockett.

Steve Bush, TE Bush appeared in all 16 games last season, catching 11 passes for 71 yards. His lone touchdown was a diving two-yard catch on fourth down during the Cardinals' late rally to beat Minnesota in the season finale.

Justin Lucas, DB Lucas played in 11 games a last season, but only saw action mostly on special teams.

Preston Parsons, QB Parsons became the odd QB out when the team drafted John Navarre out of Michigan in the seventh round of the 2004 draft. The team already has starter Josh McCown and backup Shaun King on the roster.

Barron Tanner, DT The six-year veteran started just two games last season, but played in 14 games, recording 17 tackles.

Tim Couch, QB After failing to work out a trade, Cleveland decided to release its former franchise cornerstone outright. After four years as a starter, Couch lost his job to Kelly Holcomb last summer. The Packers signed Couch following his release.

Daryl Gardener, DT In trouble with coach Mike Shanahan all season, Gardener was finally let go just one season after he was supposed to be one of the team's biggest free-agent pickups before the 2003 campaign.

Eric Crouch, S The former Heisman Trophy winner couldn't crack the lineup with the Packers. He was on and off the reserved/retired list over the course of the past year.

Joe Johnson, DE Plagued by injuries the past couple of seasons, Johnson was a bust in Green Bay after signing as an unrestricted free agent following eight seasons in New Orleans.

Marcus Spears, OT Spears was pushed aside by a good crop of younger players on Kansas City's line. He played in 79 games across seven seasons, but only started 18 contests.

Vinny Testaverde, QB The 19-year veteran lost his starting job to Chad Pennington in 2002 and eventually dropped to No. 3 on the Jets depth chart. He quickly found a new home in Dallas under one-time head coach Bill Parcells.

Jason Gildon, LB After playing all 10 of his seasons in Pittsburgh, Gildon knew his fate a month ago as he was not invited to minicamp and his backup, Clark Haggans, was signed to a four-year contract. Gildon will land with another team soon.

Zack Bronson, S Held to 17 games over the past two seasons due to injury, the price was too high for a former Pro Bowler that saw limited action, and fill-in Ronnie Heard is ready to take on a starting role.

Kurt Warner, QB Warner entered the 2003 season as the Rams' starter but was quickly replaced by Marc Bulger, who was recently given a contract extension. With Bulger clearly not giving up the top job anytime soon, Warner was made expendable. Less than 48 hours after his release, Warner signed with the Giants.

Trung Canidate, RB Acquired for a draft pick last year, Canidate totaled 671 yards and two touchdowns from scrimmage. The team dealt also dealt for Clinton Portis, who will be the starting running back.

Dave Fiore, OL The veteran offensive lineman only played in three games before a knee injury sidelined him for the season.

Jeremiah Trotter, LB Despite racking up over 200 tackles in two seasons, Trotter only amassed 1.5 sacks. The team signed ex-Giant Mike Barrow during the offseason already and told Trotter to pursue a trade. With no deals agreed upon, the Redskins simply let go.

posted by Anonymous @ 7:28 AM

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