The 2024 NFL season is like a message in your rearview mirror: It's closer than it looks.
With the 4 p.m. ET deadline for player rosters having passed on Tuesday, all 32 teams in the league have reduced their rosters from a maximum of 90 players to a season-long maximum of 53. Many backup quarterback roles have been defined, and a handful of teams have made trades to skip the waiver line.
With the initial roster set, here are 12 takeaways from Tuesday's action.
1. The Falcons aren't looking to add depth to their QB lineup.
The Atlanta Falcons have three quarterbacks on the roster in Kirk Cousins, 2024 No. 8 overall pick Michael Pennis Jr. (obviously) and Taylor Heinicke, a six-year NFL veteran who played well below his career average in 38 games and 29 starts.
Heinicke completed just 45.5% of his passes (20 of 49) for 206 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. He looked underwhelming at times during the three preseason games, which seemed to put his roster spot in jeopardy. But he made the team. Part of that was likely because the 36-year-old Cousins was recovering from an Achilles injury. If his health hadn't been an issue, the team could have waived Heinicke and replaced him with another quarterback who missed the cut on another team. Atlanta instead chose to keep him on the team, in part because he participated in the entire offseason program.
2. Packers GM gives up on drafting a backup QB and kicker
The Packers have always had a track record as a draft-and-develop team when it comes to the quarterback position, and general manager Brian Gutekunst is no different in that respect than his predecessors Ron Wolf and Ted Thompson.
Gutekunst drafted Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford in the fifth round of the 2023 draft and Tulane quarterback Michael Pratt in the seventh round of the 2024 draft as backups to starter Jordan Love. Clifford served as Love's backup as a rookie in 2023, but that wasn't an issue in 2024. Both were cut, and Gutekunst traded for the Titans' 2022 third-round pick, Malik Willis, who likely would have been cut, but the Packers opted to skip the line.
The Packers front office also waved the white flag on 2023 sixth-round kicker Anders Carlson, a surprising move considering the team spent a draft pick on the position and that special teams coordinator Rich Bisacchia coaches Carlson's older brother, Daniel, the Raiders' 2022 first-team All-Pro kicker. Carlson made 27 of 33 field goal attempts in the regular season and was a perfect 20 of his kicks inside 40 yards. But his struggles surfaced in the postseason, when he made just 7 of 13 kicks beyond 40 yards.
Green Bay was leading 21-17 with 6 minutes, 21 seconds remaining on the road against the top-seeded San Francisco 49ers when Carlson missed a 41-yard field goal attempt aimed straight down the middle of the field. San Francisco capitalized on the miss and scored its only touchdown of the fourth quarter with 1 minute, 7 seconds remaining to take a 24-21 lead. The Packers ended up losing by that score, but the 49ers, leading by seven points, never marched down the field to tie the score. On Green Bay's final attempt, Love was forced to play hero ball, taking a desperation cross-body shot that was intercepted by linebacker Dre Greenlaw.
Veteran kicker Greg Joseph, who has worked with the Browns, Titans and Vikings, won the position despite being a 30-year-old outside kicker against the 26-year-old incumbent Carlson. It was a surprising development, and perhaps the deciding factor was Carlson's 32-yard shot in the final preseason game against the Ravens.
After all, Gutekunst has a smaller ego than some general managers might have in this situation, having invested in draft picks but being prepared to release these players from their contracts the moment he felt they were no longer contributing to the team.
3. Desmond Ridder's downfall continues
Speaking of the Falcons, former starting quarterback Desmond Ridder, who was once such a promising prospect in Atlanta's eyes that he publicly denied signing NFL MVP Lamar Jackson as a restricted free agent, is no longer good enough to win the backup quarterback competition, apparently losing out to 2023 fifth-round draft pick Clayton Tune. It's been a tough few years for the now-unemployed Ridder.
Desmond Ridder vs. Clayton Tune, this preseason
Comp At
20-35
35-52
Passing Yards
225
361
Passing Yards/Attack
6.4
6.9
TD-INT
0-0
1-1
Passer Rating
76.5
85.5
4. The Bills are willing to gamble on bringing Frank Gore Jr. back to the practice squad.
Buffalo doesn't have an established veteran backup, but they felt comfortable firing Frank Gore Jr. after his strong preseason performance this season. Gore Jr. came into his own in the team's final preseason game, rushing 18 times for 101 yards and a touchdown for an impressive average of 5.6 yards per attempt. The son of the NFL's third-leading rusher, Frank Gore, seemed to have plenty of energy and agility.
It would be reasonable to expect him to end up on the practice squad if no one else acquires him, but it's just as reasonable to think one of the other 31 teams will acquire him, and it would be surprising to see Buffalo take that risk after such a strong preseason performance.
5. The Titans are in the running for the AFC South title and a playoff berth.
Tennessee acquired the former Rams linebacker and team captain along with a sixth-round pick in 2026 in exchange for a fifth-round pick in 2025 on roster reduction day. The Titans also acquired a new starter at inside linebacker, albeit one entering the final year of his rookie contract. Ernest Jones IV isn't the only key player Tennessee has acquired this offseason to revamp its roster.
The Titans defense was strengthened with the acquisitions of Super Bowl-winning cornerback Rujarius Snead, cornerback Chidobe Awuzie, safety Kwandre Diggs, safety Jamal Adams, linebacker Kenneth Murray, defensive tackle Sebastian Joseph Day and rookie defensive tackle Tyvondre Sweat. Offensively, second-year quarterback Will Revis' supporting staff was significantly strengthened with the draft selections of Pro Bowl running back Tyler Boyd, solid center Lloyd Cushenberry and Alabama All-American offensive tackle JC Latham. Tennessee should certainly know what's in store for Revis by the 2025 offseason after seeing him in a vastly improved development environment.
6. The Panthers have raised the bar on their receivers.
When a new regime takes over an NFL team, as Carolina did in 2024, new head coach Dave Canales and new general manager Dan Morgan have no emotional attachment to the players they inherit, and that was certainly evident on Tuesday.
Wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr., a 2021 second-round draft pick, is leaving after three seasons with the team. He appeared in 36 games and caught 64 passes for 767 yards and just one touchdown. His production dipped last season, playing in just nine games and catching 19 passes for 139 yards.
Morgan spent the offseason looking to beef up his playmakers, trading cornerback Donte Jackson and a sixth-round pick to the Steelers for wide receiver Dionta Johnson and a seventh-round pick to give Bryce Young another veteran target. Morgan then spent three of Carolina's first four picks in the 2024 NFL Draft on offensive playmakers in South Carolina wide receiver Xavier Leggett (32nd overall), Texas running back Jonathan Brooks (46th overall) and Texas tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders (101st overall).
And with the talent Young currently possesses, there just wasn't room for an underachieving Marshall.
7. The Bears can develop a (backup) QB.
Think about it: Chicago is the only franchise in NFL history to never have a quarterback throw for 30 touchdowns or 4,000 yards in a season. They've struggled to develop high-level quarterbacks, but have had success getting their backup quarterbacks to play at a decent level.
Tyson Bagent, an undrafted free agent out of Division II Shepherd, won the backup quarterback position for the second straight year, beating out Brett Rypien, a veteran who played four years in the NFL, and Austin Reed, an undrafted free agent quarterback out of Western Kentucky. This bodes well for the Bears' future, because if they can develop Bagent consistently, Caleb Williams is a cakewalk.
8. From Broncos trash to Lions treasure?
Denver stuck with 28-year-old wide receiver Tim Patrick, who suffered a torn ACL in 2022 and a torn Achilles in 2023. He was rewarded for his patience, catching all five of his passes in this preseason, including a touchdown reception from first-round draft rookie quarterback Bo Nix.
But that wasn't enough to keep him on the roster, as the Broncos abruptly released him. He signed with the NFC runner-up Detroit Lions on Tuesday and bounced back quickly. The former undrafted rookie caught 143 passes for 2,009 yards receiving and 12 touchdowns from 2018-2021. He'll now compete for the No. 3 wide receiver spot on a Lions offense that features All-Pro wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, quarterback Jared Goff, running backs David Montgomery and Jameel Gibbs, tight end Sam LaPorta and offensive linemen Penei Sewell and Frank Ragnow.
9. The Bengals can no longer tolerate a slumping offensive line.
Cincinnati's path to winning the AFC North title is simple: Keep quarterback Joe Burrow healthy for a season. That didn't happen in 2023 (wrist) and his rookie year in 2020 (knee), and Cincinnati missed the playoffs. When Burrow was on the field in 2021 and 2022, the Bengals finished seventh in scoring each season and either won the AFC or were the AFC runner-up.
Still, they were comfortable cutting offensive lineman Jackson Carman, their second-round draft pick in 2021. They did so after signing Super Bowl-winning offensive tackle Trent Brown to a one-year, $4.75 million contract in 2024 and bolstering their offensive line with the 18th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Georgia native Amarius Mims, the most physically gifted player at the offensive tackle position. Mims is 6-foot-8 and weighs 340 pounds. He started eight games for the Bulldogs and did not allow a sack in 30 career games, including two College Football Playoff games en route to the 2022 national title.
In the past, Cincinnati might have turned to Carman out of desperation, but not now.
10. Mac Jones restored some credibility to the NFL.
Mac Jones left the Patriots exhausted after a Pro Bowl rookie season in 2021 followed by two up-and-down seasons in 2022 and 2023. The Patriots traded Jones to the Jaguars, and he proved this preseason that he is definitely still NFL-worthy and could even be a starter in the right situation.
In Jacksonville, he'll obviously be the backup to Trevor Lawrence, but Jones tore up defenses this preseason. He completed 73.1% of his passes (38 of 52) for 421 yards and three touchdowns, which resulted in a 115.9 passer rating through three preseason games. Jones is definitely still available, with the Jaguars locking him in as their QB2 heading into next season.
11. Texans WR Tank Dell is fully healthy and ready to go.
A big revelation came with the release of veteran wide receiver Noah Brown after six years in the NFL. Texans second-year wide receiver Tank Dell is fully healthy and ready to play. He suffered a season-ending leg injury while blocking during a goal-line run in Week 13 against the Broncos. Dell also survived a minor shooting incident earlier in the offseason in Florida where a bullet went through his leg and exited the other side.
Dell had seven touchdown receptions through the first 13 weeks of last season, fifth-most in the NFL before a fibula injury sidelined him, and his willingness to cut a capable backup like Brown shows he's ready to go.
12. The Lions have faith in Hendon Hooker's health.
Hendon Hooker was drafted into the NFL in the third round in 2023 while recovering from a torn ACL, but he had a spectacular preseason one year later. Hooker completed 29 of 44 passes for 300 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He also rushed 19 times for 138 yards and one touchdown for an impressive 7.3 yards per run.
Detroit vouched for his preseason performance by waiving veteran Nate Sudfeld, paving the way for the 26-year-old Hooker to assume backup quarterback duties behind starter Jared Goff — not a bad situation for a second-year passer just a year removed from rehabbing a torn ACL.
