Tuesday NFL cuts tough on state players

Former UAB wide receiver Austin Watkins led the NFL in receiving yards during the preseason as he had 16 catches for 257 yards and two touchdowns.

Those numbers didn’t keep the Cleveland Browns from waiving Watkins on Tuesday as he tried to go from winning the USFL championship with the Birmingham Stallions to making an NFL roster in a matter of months.

Watkins was among the 32 players from Alabama high schools and colleges (excluding Alabama and Auburn) who were waived or released by NFL teams on Tuesday.

Each team had to reduce its preseason roster, which could have as many as 90 players, to the regular-season limit of 53 on Tuesday.

The waived players included:

· Wide receiver Kawaan Baker (South Alabama) by the New Orleans Saints

· Defensive tackle Travis Bell (Jeff Davis) by the Chicago Bears

· Running back Spencer Brown (Mortimer Jordan, UAB) by the Carolina Panthers

· Defensive end DJ Coleman (Jacksonville State) by the Jacksonville Jaguars

· Quarterback Malik Cunningham (Park Crossing) by the New England Patriots

· Guard Tyrell Doss (Aliceville) by the Baltimore Ravens

· Wide receiver Grant DuBose (Park Crossing) by the Green Bay Packers

· Linebacker Nathan East (Samford) by the Los Angeles Chargers

· Cornerback Eric Garror (McGill-Toolen) by the Tennessee Titans

· Cornerback Allan George (Andalusia) by the Cincinnati Bengals

· Cornerback Tae Hayes (Decatur) by the Baltimore Ravens

· Cornerback Keenan Isaac (Midfield, Alabama State) by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

· Wide receiver Cephus Johnson III (Davidson, South Alabama) by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

· Running back DeWayne McBride (UAB) by the Minnesota Vikings

· Linebacker Jeremiah Moon (Hoover) by the Baltimore Ravens

· Defensive tackle Antonio Moultrie (UAB) by the Green Bay Packers

· Linebacker Tyler Murray (Troy) by the Cincinnati Bengals

· Quarterback Chris Oladokun (Samford) by the Kansas City Chiefs

· Running back La’Mical Perine (Theodore) by the Kansas City Chiefs

· Tight end Gerrit Prince (UAB) by the Jacksonville Jaguars

· Outside linebacker Jordan Smith (UAB) by the Jacksonville Jaguars

· Guard Logan Stenberg (James Clemens) by the Chicago Bears

· Offensive tackle Kadeem Telfort (UAB) by the Green Bay Packers

· Cornerback Starling Thomas V (Ramsay, UAB) by the Detroit Lions

· Safety Nolan Turner (Vestavia Hills) by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

· Wide receiver Montrell Washington (Samford) by the Denver Broncos

· Wide receiver Austin Watkins (UAB) by the Cleveland Browns

· Center Darryl Williams (Bessemer City) by the Jacksonville Jaguars

The released players included:

· Offensive tackle Chandler Brewer (Florence) by the Jacksonville Jaguars

· Linebacker Nicholas Morrow (Huntsville) by the Philadelphia Eagles

· Linebacker Malik Reed (Dothan) by the Miami Dolphins

· Defensive tackle Taylor Stallworth (Murphy) by the Carolina Panthers

Defensive tackle Neil Farrell Jr. (Murphy) came off the Las Vegas Raiders’ roster on Tuesday, but he was not cut. The Raiders traded Farrell to the Kansas City Chiefs for a sixth-round choice in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Two more players with Alabama football roots were put on reserve/physically unable to perform on Tuesday – defensive end Trey Flowers (Columbia) of the New England Patriots and cornerback Darrell Luter Jr. (South Alabama) of the San Francisco 49ers.

They will have to miss at least the first four games of the season, but they will have the opportunity to play after that if they get healthy.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.