Waiving Brevin Easton allows Jaguars to better assess other young receivers

The Jacksonville Jaguars are making a couple moves ahead of the Week 3 preseason matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. Besides signing a familiar face in E.J. Perry to provide depth at quarterback, they've released Brevin Easton.

Easton, an undrafted free agent in this year's draft, had three catches for 38 yards against the Bucs. However, it looks like the team's brass has already seen enough of him. By moving on from the former Albany Great Danes, the Jags can better assess receivers Joshua Cephus, Austin Trammell, Seth Williams, and sophomore Elijah Cooks in what's left of the preseason.

Cephus, like Easton, was an undrafted free agent. He was seen as a dark horse candidate to make the team. Whereas he was a highly productive player for the Roadrunners, he's failed to stand out throughout two preseason games, registering two catches for 10 yards. On top of that, the former UTSA standout had a drop in the opener and a fumble against Tampa Bay.

Cooks, another trendy pick to make the team, has had an uneventful preseason, hauling in just one reception for 10 yards. An undrafted free agent himself last year, the former San Jose State Spartan earned a spot in the 54-man roster. The Jaguars made the unusual decision to carry seven receivers last season in order to prevent teams from claiming him off waivers. It's uncertain if they'll keep as many in 2024, and his chances of sticking around will decrease if they don't.

Trammell, for his part, is leading all Jacksonville receivers with six catches for 108 yards after two preseason games. He joined the Jags this past June, having spent the past couple seasons with the Los Angeles Rams. An undrafted free agent in 2021, the Rice product signed with the Atlanta Falcons as a rookie and appeared in two games for them that year.

Also in the mix are Denzel Mims and Seth Williams. The former is a former second-round pick who struggled to hit his stride in previous NFL stops. The latter spent the last two years in the Jacksonville practices squad.

The Jaguars can now sort out their WR room with Brevin Easton out of the picture

In previous years, there were cutdown days. In 2024, there only will be one. It will come on August 27. By 4:00 p.m. ET of that day, teams will have to trim down their roster to 53 players, but that doesn't mean they cannot make moves before the deadline. Waiving Breavin Easton allows the Jacksonville Jaguars to speed up the process.

Brian Thomas Jr., Devin Duvernay, Christian Kirk, Parker Washington, and Gabe Davis are all locks to make the team. That potentially leaves only one or two spots open. Tim Jones has the edge by virtue of having the most experience of the bunch and being an asset on special teams. However, the front office may want to keep a player with a higher upside. That's where Joshua Cephus or Elijah Cooks come in.

The issue is that Cephus and Cooks haven't shown enough — at least from an outside perspective — to earn a roster spot over Jones. It's also worth noting that the Jaguars kept seven receivers last year at the expense of carrying just three tight ends. If the team's brass decides they want to hold onto free-agent acquisition Josiah Deguara, who can also line up at fullback, having seven receiver slots will not then be feasible.

In the end, there's always a surprise cut or an unexpected player makes the cut on roster cutdown day. By waiving Brevin Easton ahead of the preseason finale, the Jags have a bit of a clearer picture.

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