With five weeks under our belt, the NFL season is in full swing. This means that teams have already begun to move on from underwhelming players and make additions to replace injured players in an effort to improve their rosters every week. The grueling season will continue to take a toll on teams, who will increasingly turn to the waiver wire, practice squads, and the free agent market to fill holes on their rosters.
On Tuesday, it was a former Dallas Cowboys defender who found himself on the short end of the stick on his new team. The Charlotte Observer's Mike Kaye reported that ex-Cowboy Israel Mukuamu has been released by the Carolina Panthers.
Israel Mukuamu's Post-Cowboys Career Is Off to a Bad Start
This is a surprising development for Mukuamu, who many thought could be a decent depth piece for several NFL teams. Instead, only a month after signing with the Panthers, Mukuamu was released before even being activated off the practice squad and having the opportunity to play a game.
Carolina signed defensive back Keion Crossen to the practice squad to replace Mukuamu. The fact that they preferred to sign a player who plays the same position as Mukuamu, despite Crossen not having played in an NFL game since the 2022 season, speaks volumes about where the former Cowboys defender is in his career.
This also offers a reminder of how desperate the Cowboys were last season. Mukuamu, who can't make the practice squad with the Panthers, played every single game for the Cowboys in 2024 and was an important part of the defense, lining up in 18% of the team's defensive snaps. He finished with two interceptions and earned himself a one-year deal in March, before getting released by the front office as part of the final roster cuts.
Another team will likely give Mukuamu a chance, at least on their practice squad. The former sixth-round pick from the 2021 draft possesses an intriguing physical profile as he towers over the opposition at six-foot-four and 220 pounds. This gives Mukuamu fascinating versatility, and the Cowboys have used him all over the defense, including the line of scrimmage, free safety, slot corner, or as a box defender. His frame allows him to play a physical brand of football, which has helped the defensive back develop into a solid tackler, as demonstrated by his 76.9, 78.8, and 69.8 tackling grades from Pro Football Focus over three consecutive seasons in Dallas.
How quickly the super-sized defender can find himself a new home remains to be seen, but it's safe to say that his post-Cowboys career isn't off to a great start.