With just over a day remaining until the sickle has cut the roster down here's the best guess at who will be left at the Fortress.
It probably should have been discussed sooner because Mond was always supposed to have this season as a gap year but the team could still bring in someone to be the #2 while not displacing KM as the QB of the future. As the group currently exists the three that have gotten all the preseason game work will be the ones on the roster tomorrow night.
Kirk Cousins, Kellen Mond, Jake Browning (3)
Adam Thielen & Justin Jefferson are the only sure receivers on the roster but when the list is announced they could have six total WRs. Whop Philyor & Myron Mitchell seem like the two most likely practice squad targets, which would still leave five for four spots, if they keep six. Strong consideration was made to choosing five, but with the Irv Smith news yesterday they'll need another pass catching option early in the season & could use the special teams impact that a few of them can provide.
Adam Thielen, Justin Jefferson, Dede Westbrook, Dan Chisena, Chad Beebe, Ihmir Smith-Marsette (9)
As for TE, Zach Davidson could be an emergency punter but he seems more like another practice squad stash while Tyler Conklin & Brandon Dillon may have been locks even without the surgery news.
Irv Smith Jr., Tyler Conklin, Brandon Dillon (12)
The best-case-scenario at running back would be to keep three & have A.J. Rose on the practice squad. With what he put on tape it's hard to imagine that Rose would not be signed by another team. Dalvin Cook has started to shed his injury-plagued status but it isn't all the way just history, so due to that, in conjunction with how Rose handled his opportunity, the number grows by one.
Dalvin Cook, Alexander Mattison, Kene Nwangwu, A.J. Rose (16)
Add one more with the fullback leading the way for those guys
C.J Ham (17)
The line they will be running through will include some new names & one who (hopefully) gets paid soon.
Brian O'Neill, Oli Udoh, Rashod Hill, Christian Darrisaw, Ezra Cleveland, Wyatt Davis, Kyle Hinton, Mason Cole, Garrett Bradbury (26)
Halfway through & the numbers are skewed the offense's way, but is that really a surprise to anyone?
The other line could be as few as 8 or as many as 10. Just a guess, but the coaches preference would be the higher option but in the numbers game to get to 53 it's hard to say that he'll get his way.
Michael Pierce, Dalvin Tomlinson, Sheldon Richardson, Danielle Hunter, Everson Griffen (31)
Those are the sure-things. The other ends will be a choice between the experience of Stephen Weatherly or the cheap youth of Patrick Jones & D.J. Wonnum. They could keep all three & still be at eight but going into the season with three DTs would be asking for trouble. But going up to 9 or 10 would mean robbing another position. Since this is an exercise in inexactness, here's the guess for the rest of the DL.
Patrick Jones, D.J. Wonnum, Stephen Weatherly, James Lynch (35)
Anthony Barr's preseason complicates the situation behind the line but they'll have to cross their fingers & roll with that.
Barr, Eric Kendricks, Chazz Surratt, Nick Vigil, Troy Dye (40)
If they go deep on the line then they could also save a slot at cornerback but the shave will more likely have to come somewhere other than the coaches pet position.
Patrick Peterson, Bashaud Breeland, Mackensie Alexander, Kris Boyd, Harrison Hand, Cam Dantzler (46)
Which leaves the back-end of the defense
Harrison Smith & Xavier Woods are the only sure-things, which in this configuration would leave two spots of flexibility. Not bad, all things consider! One of those two could go elsewhere but I think the team would be best served to be four-fold at safety.
Smith, Woods, Cam Bynum, Myles Dorn (50)
Which leaves the already-set specialists group
Andred DePaola - long snapper (51)
Britton Colquitt - punter (52)
Greg Joseph - kicker (53)
With the practice squad number being 16 again this season, the competition for cut players will be as fierce as ever but we'll have to wait & see which guys they retain & who they bring in from other organizations.
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