Players who sign reserve/future contracts overwhelming opt to stay with the NFL team that had them on the practice squad at the end of the season.

But there are exceptions, and the Philadelphia Eagles signed two of them on Thursday when they added former Alabama linebacker Terrell Lewis and former UAB wide receiver Austin Watkins via reserve/future contracts.

Watkins had been on the Cleveland Browns’ practice squad at the end of the season. Lewis had been out of the league since the New Orleans Saints released him from their practice squad on Oct. 2.

A player signed to a reserve/future contract can be added to an NFL team’s roster when it expands from 53 to 90 players for the offseason on the first day of the NFL’s 2023 business year on March 13. The newly signed players become eligible to participate in offseason workouts, minicamps and OTAs as team members.

Only players who aren’t on NFL active rosters can sign reserve/future contracts.

Neither Lewis nor Watkins appeared in an NFL regular-season game during the 2023 campaign.

Watkins signed with the Browns in July after playing for the Birmingham Stallions’ 2023 USFL championship team. He spent the entire season on the Cleveland practice squad.

In a preseason game against Philadelphia, Watkins had seven receptions for 139 yards and one touchdown in an 18-18 tie on Aug. 17.

A 1,000-yard receiver for UAB in 2019, Watkins also has been the San Francisco 49ers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Lewis was on Chicago’s 53-player active roster when the Bears reduced their preseason roster on Aug. 28 to meet the NFL’s regular-season limit. During the preseason, Lewis had recorded three sacks, including two that forced fumbles. But the day after the roster cuts, the Bears were awarded two players off waivers, and Lewis was one of the players let go by Chicago to create the roster space for the waiver claims.

Lewis signed with the Saints after working out for the team on Sept. 13.

A third-round draft choice of the Los Angeles Rams in 2020, Lewis played in 30 games in his first three NFL seasons.

Eighteen players from Alabama high schools and colleges have signed reserve/future contracts since the end of the 2023 NFL regular season. The other players include:

· Offensive lineman Chandler Brewer (Florence), Jacksonville Jaguars

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

· Safety Shyheim Carter (Alabama), Tennessee Titans

· Defensive end DJ Coleman (Jacksonville State), Jacksonville Jaguars

· Offensive lineman D.J. Fluker (Foley, Alabama), Las Vegas Raiders

· Tight end Miller Forristall (Alabama), Los Angeles Rams

· Cornerback Allan George (Andalusia), Cincinnati Bengals

· Cornerback Tae Hayes (Decatur), New York Jets

· Wide receiver Shedrick Jackson (Hoover, Auburn), Cincinnati Bengals

· Tight end Jordan Matthews (Madison Academy), Carolina Panthers

· Wide receiver Anthony Schwartz (Auburn), Miami Dolphins

· Tight end John Samuel Shenker (Auburn), Las Vegas Raiders

· Offensive lineman Lachavious Simmons (Selma), Tennessee Titans

· Wide receiver Cam Sims (Alabama), Carolina Panthers

· Outside linebacker Jordan Smith (UAB), Kansas City Chiefs

· Center Darryl Williams (Bessemer City), Jacksonville Jaguars

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