The NFL season is ready to begin on Thursday with the Baltimore Ravens hosting the Denver Broncos and after a number of notable releases for teams to get down to the 53-man roster limit, some names available for Week 1 include Jonathan Dwyer, Tyler Wilson, Tim Tebow, Leon Washington, Jacob Hester and Robert Meachem.
Tebow and Wilson were two notable releases at quarterback, while Washington, Hester and Dwyer could be interesting backup options for teams heading into Week 1 of the season. The Steelers are dealing with an injury to Le'Veon Bell and after cutting Jonathan Dwyer, they will go with Isaac Redman and Felix Jones until he gets healthy. The Steelers thought his foot injury was more serious than it was and now they will use Jones and Redman until he returns and they need the running game to be more consistent this season.
Dwyer ended up as the leading rusher for the Steelers with over 600 yards and he was one of over 20 cuts with the team while they cut down to the final 53-man roster. Dwyer even had two 100-yard games in a row and also was the leader in the preseason, but after acquiring Jones in a trade with the Eagles, he appears to be one of the primary starting options for the Steelers.
The Patriots made a number of notable cuts, including Leon Washington as well as Tim Tebow, who may not have another NFL home to go to after not being able to stick with New England. Washington is considered a prime kick returner in the league, but after adding LeGarrette Blount in a trade, the team likely will give him kick duties to keep him on the roster as a running back behind Stevan Ridley, Shane Vereen and Brandon Bolden. Washington was second in the league last season in average on kickoffs and now he will be looking for a new home as well.
The Patriots released Tim Tebow and he cleared waivers making him a free agent and now his career could be over after completing just 11 passes for 145 yards in the preseason. Tebow didn't play in the third preseason and game and was released along with Washington and the Patriots decided they feel comfortable with Ryan Mallett as the backup for Tom Brady heading into the season. Tebow looked good on some passes but overthrew many others and now he is a free agent again.
Tyler Wilson was released by the Raiders after they liked what they saw from Matt McGloin in the preseason and now Reggie McKenzie has admitted failure at the fourth round pick. The Chargers also released Robert Meachem despite having to pay him $5 million and clearly they were not happy with him. All players could catch on before Week 1 and are some solid depth options.
