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Eight Former Indiana Football Players on Active NFL 53-Man Rosters

NFL teams finalized their 53-man rosters for the 2023 season, and eight former Indiana football players made the cut, while one is on injured reserve and many more were unfortunately waived.

The deadline for NFL teams to finalize their 53-man rosters for the 2023 season was on Tuesday, Aug. 29, at 4 p.m. ET. 

While Indiana is not the most prominent football factory in the country, there are still a number of Hoosiers who made the cut and will be playing on the sport's biggest stage this next year. Unfortunately, there were also plenty of former Indiana football players who were released from their respective teams this week, many of whom were undrafted free agents signed fresh out of IU following the 2022 season. 

Here's a look at where each former Indiana football player has ended up following the NFL's 53-man roster cuts for the 2023 season:

Updated 4:56 p.m. ET on Aug. 31.

Indiana Football Players on Active NFL Rosters

  • Cam Jones, LB — Kansas City Chiefs
  • Micah McFadden, LB — New York Giants
  • Dan Feeney, OL — Chicago Bears
  • Caleb Jones, OL — Green Bay Packers
  • Raheem Layne, SAF — Los Angeles Chargers
  • Peyton Hendershot, TE — Dallas Cowboys
  • Ian Thomas, TE — Carolina Panthers
  • Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, WR — Tennessee Titans

Indiana Football Players on Injured Reserve List

  • Nate Sudfeld, QB — Detroit Lions (Sudfeld tore his ACL during a preseason game, and is not on the Lions' 53-man roster, but has been placed on the team's Injured Reserve list). 

IU Players Waived And/Or Not on an NFL Roster

  • Stevie Scott III, RB — Waived by Arizona Cardinals
  • Ty Fryfogle, WR — Waived by Kansas City Chiefs
  • Jaylin Williams, CB — Waived by Minnesota Vikings
  • Tiawan Mullen, CB — Waived by Los Angeles Chargers
  • Luke Haggard, OL — Waived by Tampa Bay Buccaneers
  • Ryder Anderson, DL — Waived by New York Giants
  • Demarcus Elliott, DT — Signed as UDFA with Chiefs, No Longer on the Team

However, of that group, several have been signed to NFL practice squads, despite not making a team's 53-man roster .

Here are former Indiana football players that have been reportedly signed to practice squads following the Tuesday deadline:

IU Players on NFL Practice Squads

  • Tiawan Mullen — Philadelphia Eagles practice squad
  • Jaylin Williams — Minnesota Vikings practice squad
  • Luke Haggard — Tampa Bay Buccaneers practice squad
  • Ryder Anderson — New York Giants practice squad
  • Marcelino McCrary-Ball — New York Jets practice squad

As you could tell in the bullet points above, the big news is that former first team All-American Tiawan Mullen was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles as a practice squad player. 

While Williams, Haggard and Anderson are simply staying put in the cities where they just barely missed out on making the 53-man cut, Mullen is traveling across the country to join the practice squad of the defending NFC champions.

Philadelphia does have a deep cornerback room already, having kept seven players at the position on its 53-man roster. It would likely take an injury, trade or significant decline in play from one of Darius Slay, James Bradberry, Avonte Maddox, Kelee Ringo, Josh Jobe, Eli Ricks or Mario Goodrich for Mullen to see the field for the Eagles in 2023.

But stranger things of happened, and after getting waived by the Chargers on Tuesday, it's great to see that the former Indiana cornerback still has a home in the NFL for the time being. 

Shaun Shivers Playing in the CFL

A bit of strange one here, but news on an Indiana football player nonetheless.

Former Hoosier running back Shaun Shivers originally signed with the Seattle Seahawks as a free agent in April. The 5-foot-7 running back from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., attended Seattle's rookie mini-camp, but was released by the NFL team immediately after its conclusion. 

In May, Shivers signed with the British Columbia Lions in the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Auburn-turned-Indiana running back scored a touchdown in his debut with the team on Jul. 9. 

Shivers finished his CFL debut with 14 carriers for 63 yards and a touchdown, and two receptions for 73 yards (one of his receptions went for 71 yards). 

Shivers also played for the B.C. Lions in a game on Jul. 22, but has not seen game action since. 

  • CAM JONES MAKES CHIEFS' ROSTER: Former Indiana Hoosiers' linebacker Cam Jones has made the 53-man roster for the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. CLICK HERE
  • SUDFELD TEARS ACL: The all-time leading passer in the history of Indiana football sadly tore his ACL in an NFL preseason game on Friday. He's now been placed on the Injured Reserve list by the Detroit Lions. CLICK HERE
  • FORMER IU CORNERBACK CUT BY CHARGERS: Former Indiana football cornerback Tiawan Mullen was released by the Los Angeles Chargers on Tuesday, as NFL teams trim their rosters down prior to the start of the season. CLICK HERE