It's the final decision days for NFL clubs as they have to go from 90 players to 53 players before the official start of the season. Some cuts have already happened, but most will wait until the final seconds, so the waivers get flooded, and teams can then pass their favorite players onto the practice squad. There are 12 Wisconsin Badger UDFAs; two have already been cut: Mason Reiger (injured) and Jackson Acker.
Here are three others that seem destined to be cut by their respective teams. All three barely played in the final preseason game and thus couldn't prove they belong in their last opportunity.
1. Ben Barten - New York Giants
Barten went from the Giants to the New York Jets back to the Giants in the last few weeks. That move seemed to signify that the Giants were regretting the decision to let him go and wanted to utilize his skill. And then in the final preseason game, he only got six total snaps. Recording zero stats, and that's bad news for a player hoping to make an NFL roster.
There's a chance he finds his way onto an NFL practice squad, but his limited usage in the NFL preseason isn't very helpful for that avenue either.
Related: Jim Leonhard's defensive expertise in the preseason is taking the NFL by storm
2. Austin Brown - Indianapolis Colts
Brown stepped into a pretty sweet situation in Indianapolis. He got to follow fellow Badger Hunter Wohler a year after Wohler was drafted as a 7th round pick. Wohler than showed that he's better than the NFL Draft gave him credit for and he's a potential starter for the Colts. Brown gets a UDFA deal by another former Badger in Chris Ballard. Yet, Brown didn't do much of anything all preseason.
In the final preseason game, in a moment when he needed to prove a ton of value to the Colts, he didn't really see the field. He ended up with one tackle. That's not a good sign, and you can bet that he won't make the final 53-man roster for Indianapolis. The big question will then be, what next?
3. Parker Petersen - Carolina Panthers
Petersen is a player who really needed to prove his value to the Panthers. It's a perfect scenario in a lot of ways for Petersen as the Panthers need defensive line depth. That's one of the big opportunities on the roster, yet he only received 12 defensive snaps in the final game against the Houston Texans. That all but signals the Panthers don't plan to keep him.
Similar to Barten, he may not have done enough throughout the entire preseason to get many looks by other teams, but now it's up to his agent.
The Badgers were shut out of the NFL Draft and instead saw 12 UDFAs sign, and most are now long shots to make a roster. There are a few that deserve to be on the roster, but it's not many; only three seem to have a legit shot. Find that article here: The 3 most likely former Badger UDFAs to wind up on an NFL 53-man roster.
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