The Chargers' full list of roster cutdowns will be out on Tuesday by the deadline. But, the team got to an early start on the roster trimming today. WR Brenden Rice, son of Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, is reportedly being released by the team.
While the move will come as a surprise to the national media, this was expected for anyone who had kept up with the Chargers' WR room. Rice barely got time on offense last year as he registered just three snaps against Arizona in Week 7. He was placed on IR in November with a shoulder injury.
The Brenden Rice cut was more than expected. And there's doubts about him even getting a Chargers' practice squad spot.
Rice was given the chance to compete for a roster or practice squad spot this offseason. However, the Chargers didn't stop adding to their wide receiver room. They added two draft picks in Tre' Harris and KeAndre Lambert-Smith. They re-signed Keenan Allen after bringing back Jalen Reagor earlier in the offseason. Frankly, Rice was competing with UDFAs like Dalevon Campbell to try and make an impact rather than any of the figures on the main roster.
Rice played just seven snaps in Week 2 of the preseason when LA played their starters. This week vs. San Francisco, Rice played 42 snaps when they pulled all of the starters. Playing that many snaps in the preseason finale is generally not a great indicator towards the end of the roster at WR.
While Garafolo's initial tweet says that Rice would be in consideration for a practice squad spot, I'd have my doubts based on how the preseason played out. Reagor will be a priority for the practice squad assuming he does not make the main roster given his special teams contributions last year. The aforementioned Campbell and Rutgers product JaQuae Jackson generally got more reps in games and camp practices than Rice.
Rice unfortunately just never developed into what some of the fanbase expected him to be after the draft. Hopefully, the son of the former NFL star WR gets an opportunity with another team.