NFL roster cuts: Champ Bailey, Nate Burleson, Fred Evans among victims. http://t.co/xNxes5rYyE pic.twitter.com/CGCXRivaJT
— KARE 11 (@kare11) August 30, 2014
The Minnesota Vikings have cut 19 players and placed two on injured reserve to get their roster down to the 53-man limit by the Saturday afternoon deadline.
The list didn’t include any big surprises, but veteran safety Chris Crocker was released along with fellow safety Kurt Coleman, the Star Tribune reports. The Vikings also cut longtime defensive end Fred Evans and placed former starting safety Jamarca Sanford on injured reserve.
The Pioneer Press says Sanford will likely be released once he’s healthy, or he’ll have to spend the entire season on injured reserve. Sanford has been a starter for the last three years under former coach Leslie Frazier. But he didn’t play much during the preseason because of injuries.
“I’m kind of frustrated right now, so I don’t want to talk,” Sanford said when he was reached by the Pioneer Press.
Crocker, 34, was signed by the Vikings on Aug. 4 after playing under coach Mike Zimmer for the past seven years at Atlanta and Cincinnati.
Also not too surprising is the fact that Christian Ponder is still on the team, so the Vikings are keeping three quarterbacks on their roster — starter Matt Cassel and first-round draft pick Teddy Bridgewater in addition to Ponder. Wide receiver Adam Thielen, who played college football at Minnesota State University, Mankato, also made the team.
Here’s the list of the players let go by the Vikings:
Released:
G Jeff Baca
DT Chase Baker
RB Joe Banyard
S Kurt Coleman
WR Kain Colter
S Chris Crocker
DT Fred Evans
DT Isame Faciane
TE Chase Ford
WR Donte Foster
LB Justin Jackson
CB Kendall James
C Zac Kerin
CB Julian Posey
TE Allen Reisner
T Mike Remmers
DE Justin Trattou
RB Dominique Williams
LB Mike Zimmer
Placed on Injured Reserve:
T Antonio Richardson
S Jamarca Sanford
Wide receiver Jerome Simpson is suspended for the first three games of the season, and doesn’t count toward the active roster until he is eligible to play.
The complete 53-man roster is posted on the Minnesota Vikings website.
So, what’s the reaction to the Vikings’ moves? Judd Zulgad from 1500ESPN.com has a half-dozen observations, and a caution that the Vikings may very well make some more roster changes as they look at players who were cut by other teams.
And here’s a slightly different take from ESPN’s Vikings reporter Ben Goessling.
Another significant move on cut-down day: Michael Sam was released by the St. Louis Rams.
St. Louis Rams release Michael Sam, first openly gay player drafted by the NFL. http://t.co/za9OTdTftb pic.twitter.com/YmYgCZFcgm
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) August 30, 2014
#Rams coach Jeff Fisher on Michael Sam: “There was no distraction.” This is very much a football decision. “No issue there.”
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 30, 2014
