The Panthers will be playing in the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday night, but defensive lineman LaBryan Ray won’t be getting any snaps against the Cardinals. Ray won’t be getting any snaps in the rest of the team’s preseason games either. The Panthers announced on Tuesday that they have placed Ray on the reserve/retired list. Ray played in 46 games for the Panthers over the last three seasons. He had 73 tackles and a sack on over 1,100 defensive snaps. The Panthers also announced that they have signed wide receivers Roc Taylor and Elijah Cooks. Wideouts Gabriel Benyard and Ainias Smith were waived, which leaves Carolina with one open roster spot
Word on Wednesday was that Panthers rookie wide receiver Chris Brazzell would miss up to eight weeks after tearing his LCL during practice, but his absence from the field is set to be even longer. Joe Person of TheAthletic.com reports that Brazzell received a second opinion about the knee injury and that he and the team concluded that the best course of action is for the third-round pick to have season-ending surgery . Brazzell is the second Panthers player to suffer a serious knee injury since camp opened last week. Linebacker Nic Scourton will miss the season with a torn ACL. The Panthers also placed wide receiver Dan Chisena on injured reserve this week. The Panthers have signed wideouts Casey Washington and Gabriel Benyard over the last two days. They join Tetairoa McMillan, Jalen Coker, Xavier Legette, John Metchie, Jimmy Horn, Brycen Tremaine, David Moore, and Ainias Smith as available options at wideout
The Panthers signed undrafted wide receiver Gabriel Benyard, who spent time on the Bills' roster earlier this year. This move comes after the Panthers signed Casey Washington and lost Chris Brazzell to an LCL injury, while also placing Dan Chisena on injured reserve
The Bills made five roster moves on Thursday. They signed wide receivers Deven Thompkins and Max Tomczak, waived cornerback Dorian Strong with a non-football injury, waived/injured running back Desmond Reid and waived wide receiver Gabriel Benyard. Thompkins is entering his fifth year in the NFL and was a minicamp invite with the Bills this week. The Utah State product made a memorable play on Wednesday, laying out to secure a deep touchdown pass from quarterback Shane Buechele. Thompkins previously played for the Falcons (2025), Panthers (2024) and Buccaneers (2022-23). He has 42 catches for 162 yards and a touchdown in his NFL career. Tomczak rejoins the Bills after signing with the team in May as an undrafted free agent. He spent his four-year collegiate career with Youngstown State. In 49 career games, Tomczak totaled a school-record 225 receptions, 3,024 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns
The Bills made five roster moves on Thursday. They signed wide receivers Deven Thompkins and Max Tomczak, waived cornerback Dorian Strong with a non-football injury, waived/injured running back Desmond Reid and waived wide receiver Gabriel Benyard. Thompkins is entering his fifth year in the NFL and was a minicamp invite with the Bills this week. The Utah State product made a memorable play on Wednesday, laying out to secure a deep touchdown pass from quarterback Shane Buechele . Thompkins previously played for the Falcons (2025), Panthers (2024) and Buccaneers (2022-23). He has 42 catches for 162 yards and a touchdown in his NFL career. Tomczak rejoins the Bills after signing with the team in May as an undrafted free agent. He spent his four-year collegiate career with Youngstown State. In 49 career games, Tomczak totaled a school-record 225 receptions, 3,024 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns
Today’s edition of “91 Buffalo Bills players in 91 days” was supposed to cover cornerback Daryl Porter Jr. However, as is the fickle nature of the NFL, Porter was released on June 1. I had assumed that Porter had little chance of making the final roster, hence his early placement in the series, but his release came even sooner than I had anticipated. Now, we turn our focus instead to the man who replaced Porter on the 91-man roster. He doesn’t play defense — he’s a wide receiver — but he is an intriguing young prospect, and someone whose name flows very well with the most annoying dance craze of the 1990s. Without further adieu, let’s talk about a former Fresno State Bulldog looking to make his mark in the NFL. _____________________________________________________________________________ Name: Mac Dalena Number: Unknown Position: WR Height/Weight: 5’10”, 180 pounds Age: 24 (25 on 10/4/2026) Experience/Draft: 1; signed with the Kansas City Chiefs following the 2025 NFL Draft College: Fresno State Acquired: Signed with Bills on 6/1/2026 Financial situation (per Spotrac): Unknown, but I assume it’s a one-year deal at the minimum, which is approximately $885,000 for the season. 2025 Recap: Dalena spent the offseason and preseason with the Chiefs last year. In three preseason games, he saw four targets and made two catches for nine yards. He did not make the final roster, nor did he sign with Kansas City’s practice squad. He eventually landed with the Seattle Seahawks , signing with their practice squad on November 4. He was released from the practice squad just four days later. The New York Jets signed Dalena to a reserve/future contract in January, but they released him on May 10. Positional outlook: Dalena is one of 13 receivers on the current roster. Khalil Shakir , DJ Moore , Tyrell Shavers , Joshua Palmer , Keon Coleman , Stephen Gosnell, Trent Sherfield , Mecole Hardman Jr., Gabriel Benyard, Skyler Bell, Ja’Mori Maclin, and Jalen Virgil are the others. 2026 Offseason: Dalena just signed with Buffalo, but he is healthy and ready to participate in minicamp and training camp. 2026 Season outlook: Dalena offers some promise as a slot receiver, as he’s definitely quick enough to operate in that area of the field despite his lack of size. At his pro day in 2024, Dalena ran a 4.43-second 40-yard dash, and completed the three-cone drill in just 6.89 seconds. He also showed off a 38.5” vertical and a 10’5” leap in the broad jump. Dalena has a small frame and short arms, so he doesn’t offer much in the way of contested-catch value, but he does offer enough speed and quickness where he could parlay a strong summer into a stint on Buffalo’s practice squad. I say “practice squad” and not the 53-man roster because there isn’t anything to suggest that the Bills will go with a soon-to-be 25-year-old as one of the final wideouts who makes the roster, and nor should they. This is a Buffalo team that needs to be in win-now mode, and unless Dalena comes in and sets the practice field on fire against the first-team defense, he isn’t going to make the team. Could he slot in as a potential backup for Shakir? He may show enough promise in head coach Joe Brady’s offense where that could be a long-term goal, but Dalena is unlikely to be a solution for the team in the short-term. Dalena has proven that he can be a difference-maker on offense before. As a senior at Fresno State, he caught 64 passes for 1,065 yards and eight scores. He led the Bulldogs in all three categories. For his efforts, Dalena was named a Second-Team All-American by HERO Sports, and he was also First-Team All-Mountain West. If Dalena wants to prove his mettle, he’ll have to compete on special teams and show that his field-stretching speed outweighs his slight stature. He’s likely a camp body, but he could be a fun player to watch during the summer if he finds some open field
My first 53-man projection of the 2026 season is here, fellow rumblers. Let me be upfront: this is a way-too-early look, before a single preseason snap has been played and before training camp opens in late July. Things will change. That’s precisely what makes this exercise worth doing. What I can tell you right now is that Brandon Beane built this roster with more genuine depth than the Bills have had in years — particularly along the defensive front — and that identifying the final ten roster spots is legitimately difficult. Positions that were afterthoughts in previous offseasons are now actual competitions. Welcome to OTAs, where the picture starts to come into focus. Here’s my initial 53, the guys I would pick. In the next predictions, it’ll change to what I believe the Bills will do. For now, this is the starting point. Quarterback (3) Josh Allen , Shane Buechele , Kyle Allen Running Back (5) James Cook , Ty Johnson , Ray Davis , Frank Gore Jr., Desmond Reid Fullback (2) Ben VanSumeran, Jackson Acker Wide Receiver (X) (3) DJ Moore , Keon Coleman , Tyrell Shavers , Wide Receiver (Z) (6) Skyler Bell, Joshua Palmer , Mecole Hardman , Stephen Gosnell, Ja’Mori Maclin, Max Tomczak Wide Receiver (Slot) (4) Khalil Shakir , Trent Sherfield , Jalen Virgil , Gabriel Benyard Tight End (5) Dalton Kincaid , Dawson Knox , Jackson Hawes , Keleki Latu , Shane Zylstra Left Tackle (3) Dion Dawkins , Tylan Grable , Jude Bowry Left Guard (3) Alec Anderson , Austin Corbett , Nick Broeker Center (3) Connor McGovern , Sedrick Van Pran-Granger , Lloyd Cushenberry III Right Guard (2) O’Cyrus Torrence, Ar’Maj Reed-Adams Right Tackle (5) Spencer Brown , Chase Lundt , Travis Clayton , Bruno Fina, Da’Metrius Weatherspoon Nose Tackle (5) Deone Walker , DeWayne Carter , Phidarian Mathis , Tommy Akingbesote , Zion Logue Defensive Tackle/End (5) Ed Oliver , TJ Sanders, Landon Jackson , Zane Durant , Kody Huisman Outside Linebacker / EDGE (8) Greg Rousseau , Bradley Chubb , Michael Hoecht , Javon Solomon , TJ Parker, Mike Danna , Andre Jones Jr., Cade Denhoff Inside Linebacker (7) Terrel Bernard , Dorian Williams , Joe Andreessen , Keonta Jenkins, Kaleb Elarms-Orr, Jimmy Ciarlo, Theron Gaines Cornerback (9) Christian Benford , Maxwell Hairston , Davison Igbinosun , Toriano Pride , MJ Devonshire , Daryl Porter Jr., Dorian Strong , Kani Walker, Jordan Dunbar Slot / Nickel Cornerback (3) Dee Alford , Jordan Hancock , Te’Cory Couch Safety (7) Cole Bishop , CJ Gardner-Johnson, Jalon Kilgore, Sam Franklin , Damar Hamlin , Geno Stone , Wande Owens Kicker (2) Tyler Bass , Maddux Trujillo Punter (2) Mitch Wishnowsky , Tommy Doman Long Snapper (1) Reid Ferguson Starter: Josh Allen Backup: Kyle Allen Analysis: Josh Allen is the guy. The unquestioned best player on this team, an MVP-level quarterback even when you feel like he could’ve been playing better, and the primary reason this franchise is among the contenders every year. The system around him changes — Joe Brady is now the head coach, not the offensive coordinator, and the offense should look and feel different in his year one with full command — but the foundation is unchanged. What has changed from last year is the backup. I’m going with two quarterbacks and dropping Buechele to the practice squad. Kyle Allen, signed as a free agent in March, gets the job. Buechele signed a reserve/futures deal and has been around this organization long enough to be an effective scout team option — that’s a practice squad role, not a 53-man role. That roster spot makes a difference somewhere else on this roster. Cut: Shane Buechele Starters : James Cook, Jackson Acker (FB) Backups: Ty Johnson, Ray Davis Analysis: Cook has established himself as one of the league’s more dynamic weapons. He demands a specific game plan from every defensive coordinator who faces him, and there’s still room for improvement as a pass catcher coming from the backfield, something new OC Pete Carmichael should bring [... truncated ...]
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