Today is cutdown day in the NFL. Teams must have their rosters at 53 players by 6:00 pm Eastern Time.
Over the next day or two, you will hear a lot about the waiver wire. You might be curious what that is.
Inevitably, players who are released today will generate interest from other teams across the league. There is a good chance 54th best player on the Seahawks (who will be cut) is better than the 53rd best player on the Jets (who initially will be on the roster).
How can the Jets acquire players who
other teams cut? It depends on how much NFL experience they have.
Players with at least four years of NFL service time instantly become free agents. Their contract is terminated immediately, and they are free to sign a new deal with any team to be on the roster or the practice squad.
For players with less than four years of experience, it is a tad more complicated. These guys are subjected to the waiver process.
The other 31 teams will have an opportunity to claim that player if they want him. If they put in a claim, they will be awarded that player, and his current contract is absorbed by that team.
If nobody claims a player, he is said to have “cleared waivers.” Only at this point does his contract terminate, and he becomes a free agent able to sign with any team’s roster or practice squad. Additionally players the Jets waive will need to clear waivers before they can be signed to the practice squad.
What happens if more than one team claims a player? He goes to the team with the highest waiver priority. Until we get three weeks into the regular season, the priority is determined by where that team’s pick fell in the first round of the most recent NFL Draft. The Jets picked second overall in the spring so they have the second priority on the waiver wire. For all intents and purposes, that means the Jets will get any player they claim off waivers unless the Raiders also claim that player.
Those of you who play fantasy football might be familiar with the waiver wire and how priority works. In many fantasy leagues, if you successfully claim a player you immediately move to the bottom of the priority list. That’s not how it works in the NFL. The Jets remain number two no matter how many players they claim. The waiver process is designed to help the weaker teams get stronger.
The Jets currently have +25000 odds to win the Super Bowl according to our partner, FanDuel Sportsbook so the oddsmakers clearly believe they can use all the help they can get.
The first batch of waiver claims will be announced tomorrow. If the Jets add any players from waivers, they will need to clear a spot on their roster.
