The 2025 NFL league year has not begun, but teams are already preparing for that to happen. Teams have been restructuring contracts to ensure they are cap-compliant by the deadline on March 12 at 4 pm EST.
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An unfortunate aspect of teams getting cap-compliant is they must make tough decisions to cut star players they deem to be too expensive. That said, here are the top 10 notable NFL players that have been released ahead of free agency.
One of the earliest releases was former Miami Dolphins running back Raheem Mostert. The former Pro Bowl-caliber back fell out of favor with the team with DeVon Achane taking over reps in 2024.
Though both shared the field in 2023, Achane was injured and missed a good chunk of the season. Fully healthy, Achane showcased his elite skills in 2024, leaving Mostert on the outs.
Jamaal Williams might be one of the most beloved personalities in football. However, after he led the league with 17 rushing touchdowns in 2022 with the Detroit Lions, his production suffered the next two seasons.
Injuries derailed Williams showcasing the same elite skills as he did in 2022, and securing two touchdowns and 470 rushing yards over the past two seasons wasn’t enough for him to be kept.
The Philadelphia Eagles are attempting to get younger, and they chose to release Bradbury to save some cap space. The former New York Giants secondary star came to the Eagles in the 2022 season and was named an All-Pro that year.
Now, he will need to find a new team in 2025.
To echo the above entry, the Eagles also chose to release Darius Slay. With both veteran corners being released, it appears the secondary will bank on the young and dynamic Cooper DeJean, and find possible younger talent through the draft and free agency.
Slay, like Bradbury, should have no problem finding a new team in 2025.
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Minshew Mania is over for the Las Vegas Raiders, as the team announced they are releasing the journeyman. The pass catcher had a respectable season with the Raiders, but not enough to warrant being kept around.
The Raiders are likely targeting Shedeur Sanders in the draft and are also angling to bring in a new veteran like Sam Darnold, Justin Fields, or Russell Wilson. Rebuilding the passer corps will be done without Minshew.
After what appeared to be the one and only place that Tyler Lockett would play, the Seattle Seahawks shockingly decided to cut their 10-year veteran. Lockett secured 600 yards and two touchdowns, but his dip in production led to his release.
The Seahawks have a tricky quarterback situation going on, and Lockett was a byproduct of that. He shouldn’t have a big issue landing with a new team in 2025.
Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets split was one that had been teased for months, and new head coach Aaron Glenn finally made the decision to move on from the once-great quarterback.
Rodgers didn’t have a terrible year per se, but the Jets ended the season with a paltry 5-12 record. Something was not working, and now the team can start over with a new direction under Glenn.
The Jacksonville Jaguars decided to move on from former star Christian Kirk, which was quite surprising. For some reason, Kirk and Trevor Lawrence’s relationship began to falter.
Kirk ended the 2024 season with only 379 yards and one touchdown. Now, he can join another team in 2025 to help rebound to securing 1,000 receiving yards again.
The Jets released Davante Adams due to his large contract. The star receiver is due $30 million, and that is too large of an amount the Jets were willing to eat.
Instead, they chose to cut Adams, who is likely to rejoin Rodgers at the next place he may end up. Though that is not guaranteed, that would make complete sense given the pair’s relationship.
One of the biggest and most surprising cap casualties was Alex Cappa from the Cincinnati Bengals. The stalwart offensive lineman was cut by the Bengals after experiencing a down year in 2024.
Cappa’s release didn’t take long to correct, as he was signed by the Raiders on a new two-year, $11 million deal. Strong offensive linemen are hard to come by, Las Vegas didn’t allow the Super Bowl champion guard to go anywhere else.
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