Cut Day Casualties: The Names Nobody Wanted to Say Out Loud

Patrick Mahomes got released. So did Travis Kelce. This is what a hard cap does to people.

There is no dignity in a mini-cap.

Patrick Mahomes, $3.0M, released. Three rings. Cut for the crime of costing three million dollars in a league where Jayden Daniels costs $1.2M.

Travis Kelce, $1.0M, released. A million dollars. That''s the number that ended it. Somebody looked at a tight end room and decided a million was one too many.

Aaron Rodgers, $2.6M, released. No comment was offered. None was expected.

Kyle Pitts, $1.0M, released. Fifth straight offseason he''s been described as a breakout candidate. Fourth straight offseason he''s been described as a cap casualty.

An entire fleet of defenses. The Seahawks ($1.4M), Texans ($1.3M), Jaguars ($1.1M), Browns ($1.1M) and Eagles ($1.0M) all hit the pool, because nobody in the history of this league has ever kept a defense and felt good about it.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the ledger: Justin Jefferson is on Florida''s books at $1.1M. Mike Evans is on Alaska''s at $0.5M. Malik Nabers is a Terrier at $0.3M. Jalen McMillan is a Wolverine for $0.2M, which is less than what Toledo pays in draft-pick salary for a seventh-rounder.

The cap doesn''t care who you are. It cares what you cost.

All 184 released veterans are on the auction board. Bring cash.

Photo: Travis Kelce — Accedie / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)