Alex Henery’s misses cost him his roster spot on the Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles disclosed their “cut day” moves hours ahead of the NFL’s 4 pm deadline on Saturday, and the names of the players waived by the team held little surprise, though the biggest news was the ousting of struggling kicker Alex Henery.
The following players were waived:
LB Emmanuel Acho
OL Josh Andrews
RB Kenjon Barner (waived/injured)
CB Roc Carmichael
T Kevin Graf
K Alex Henery
WR Damaris Johnson
S Keelan Johnson
RB Henry Josey
LB Josh Kaddu
DT Wade Keliikipi
QB G.J. Kinne
CB Curtis Marsh
WR Ifeanyi Momah
WR Will Murphy
WR Quron Pratt
S Ed Reynolds
DT Damion Square
RB Matthew Tucker
Lane Johnson will begin his 4-game suspension, so he is not included on the team’s 53-man roster until that time is served.
WR Arrelious Benn and LB Travis Long (ACL tear in left knee) were placed on Injured Reserve.
The headliner of the cuts is the fact that Henery is now replaced by Cody Parkey, brought in from the Colts to give competition to the kicker position. The struggling Henery was decidedly trumped on Thursday’s preseason game against the Jets, when Parkey landed a 51-yard field goal with ease, among other achievements.
Before the cuts took place, rumors surfaced that the Eagles were looking to trade Johnson and were open to trading QB Matt Barkley. In the end, neither transaction transpired, with Barkley remaining on the team and Johnson left on his own to find a new team.
Johnson, who joined the Birds in 2012 and stood out because of his speed and agility, steadily contributed to special teams during his time in Philadelphia. But with a new coach and a new system, there was no longer a spot for the receiver.
Reynolds was a fifth-round 2014 draft pick by the Birds, but saw little time to play prior to the preseason finale, which made assessing his body of work very difficult. As he attended Stanford, he also missed a month of preseason workouts, an absence from which he never recovered.
Players like Curtis Marsh and Emmanuel Acho have been in this very position before, both having been on the Eagles’s roster at one time and then cut. This very well may mark the end of their return fortunes in Philadelphia. Momah was on the squad for the Eagles last preseason and must be feeling a particularly unpleasant case of deja vu, as he didn’t make the final cut then or now.
