NY Jets: 6 most surprising cuts the team made on Tuesday

The NY Jets have officially trimmed their roster down to 53 players ahead of Tuesday's deadline. Of course, the current 53 players that occupy the Jets roster won't be the group the team trots out come Week 1.

In fact, the roster will likely look completely different in around 24-48 hours once waiver claims are made and players are placed on the injured reserve.

But for now, this is the roster we're working with. As always, there were certainly a few surprises.

The Jets made some interesting decisions on the road to 53 that require a deeper analysis. From keeping eight cornerbacks to carrying just one true tight end (for now), it's safe to say that most predictions for the Jets roster were off by quite a bit.

Again, in the grand scheme of things, it doesn't really matter which players are actually on the initial 53-man roster. Some of the players released today will find their way back onto the active roster in the near future.

But at least for the time being, some of these cuts have raised a few eyebrows. Let's take a look at six of the most surprising cuts that the Jets made in the cut-down to 53 players.

6. James Morgan, QB, NY Jets

A fourth-round pick a year ago, James Morgan has struggled to carve out a role on the roster. And with the Jets seemingly opting to carry just two quarterbacks on the 53-man, Morgan was the odd-man-out.

It was a puzzling pick at the time that has only gotten worse in the year-and-a-half since it was made. Now, Morgan will likely land on the practice squad, provided he passes through waivers.

Still, there was reason to believe that the Jets would try to keep Morgan on their active roster to protect him from the waiver wire. It's telling that the Jets were willing to let him go and expose him to the other 31 teams.

That speaks to their confidence that he won't get claimed (not a great sign for his league-wide value) and that the Jets were even willing to take that chance.

It wasn't a shocking release, but cutting Morgan certainly raised a few eyebrows.

5. Vyncint Smith, WR, NY Jets

Vyncint Smith received some work with the first-team offense this summer regularly rotating in ahead of Denzel Mims and even Keelan Cole as the summer went on.

But that wasn't enough to earn him a roster spot.

Smith's release is particularly surprising when you factor in that the Jets are carrying seven wide receivers on their active roster. Braxton Berrios and Jeff Smith made the cut over Smith who might land on the practice squad.

It's rare to see a player go from working with the first-team offense to getting cut in such a short period of time. For that reason, Smith's release was a little surprising.

4. Sharrod Neasman, S, NY Jets

Sharrod Neasman seemed like a likely addition to the roster with Ashtyn Davis injured and J.T. Hassell released. But the Jets opted to carry only three safeties on the active roster, with only one of them being fully healthy.

Davis is not expected to be ready for Week 1 while Lamarcus Joyner is banged up and could miss the start of the season. That's what makes the Neasman release even more confounding.

You'd have to think there's a good chance that Neasman is brought back once IR moves are made, particularly if Davis lands on the short-term IR or PUP list.

If not, the Jets are banking on their extra cornerback depth being enough until Davis is healthy.

3. Noah Dawkins, LB, NY Jets

The release of Noah Dawkins leaves the Jets with just four healthy linebackers, three of whom will be starting Week 1. That's far from an ideal scenario.

Blake Cashman is the lone backup behind rookies Jamien Sherwood and Hamsah Nasirildeen, and C.J. Mosley. But much like Neasman, there's a good chance that Dawkins is brought back once Jarrad Davis lands on the short-term IR.

Still, Dawkins eventually took over for Nasirildeen as the starting WILL leading many to believe that he was guaranteed a roster spot.

He may very well be brought back, but until then, this release is certainly a surprise.

2. Ronald Blair, DE, NY Jets

When the Jets signed Ronald Blair back in early June, it was assumed that the Robert Saleh-favorite had a good chance of sticking around. That notion was strengthened following the loss of Carl Lawson for the season.

But Blair was one of a few surprise players that didn't survive roster cuts. Although, much like a few others on this list, it should be made clear that he might return in the near future.

The Jets currently have four defensive ends on their roster in John Franklin-Myers, Shaq Lawson, Bryce Huff, and Jabari Zuniga. Zuniga could be destined for the IR while Franklin-Myers is more of an edge/interior tweener.

Blair is probably needed on the active roster meaning that there's a good chance he's brought back. If not, expect him to land on the practice squad at the very least.

1. Ryan Griffin, TE, NY Jets

Perhaps the most surprising moves of the day came at the tight end position. The Jets traded away Chris Herndon and released Kenny Yeboah, Daniel Brown, and Ryan Griffin leaving Tyler Kroft as the lone true tight end on the roster.

But of them all, the most surprising move was the decision to move on from Griffin.

Griffin was expected to be a roster lock, especially following the release of Yeboah and the Herndon trade. Instead, it seems likely that the Jets plan to reshape nearly their entire tight end room via the waiver wire and/or the trade market.

The Jets could opt to bring Griffin back after cuts are made, but this one feels a bit more permanent. Very few people could have seen this move coming.