Jaxson Kirkland Among More Than Dozen Former Huskies Cut By NFL

The three-time All-Pac-12 selection couldn't stick with the Bengals.

NFL roster cutdowns were not at all kind to former University of Washington players with more than a dozen released on Tuesday, among them All-Pac-12 offensive lineman Jaxson Kirkland and All-Pac-12 edge rusher Jeremiah Martin, plus center Corey Luciano and linebacker Cam Bright from the UW's 2022 team.

Other notables from Montlake put out of work were UW all-time leading rusher Myles Gaskin, former first-round pick defensive tackle Danny Shelton, All-America linebacker Ben Burr-Kirven and veteran linebacker Corey Littleton.

Yet other former Huskies released were cornerbacks Keith Taylor Jr. and Sydney Jones IV, defensive tackles Benning Potoa'e and Josiah Bronson and wide receiver Jaydon Mickens. Wide receiver Terrell Bynum and linebacker Milo Eifler, one-time UW players who transferred out to USC and Illinois, respectively, likewise didn't make it.

The 6-foot-7, 321-pound Kirkland had to be sorely disappointed after he was waived by the Cincinnati Bengals following trials at offensive guard and offensive tackle as an undrafted free agent. Early in his UW career, the three-time All-Pac-12 selection was considered by some to be a first-round possibility. 

Yet a serious ankle injury stymied Kirkland's career momentum and he struggled once he took part in the Bengals' exhibition games, getting beat in ways that never happened at the UW.

The 6-foot-4, 267-pound Martin, who began his college career at Texas A&M, was let go by the Cleveland Browns; the 6-foot-4, 294-pound Luciano was cut by the San Francisco 49ers; and the 6-foot, 222-pound Bright, originally at Pittsburgh before coming to the UW,  didn't make it through camp with the Browns. All were undrafted free agents.

Gaskin leaves Miami after four seasons, two as the No. 1 back; Shelton, who has two Super Bowl rings, couldn't make the 53-man roster in Kansas City; Burr-Kirven made a courageous comeback after missing the past two seasons with the Seahawks; and Littleton, a 71-game starter over seven seasons, was released by the Houston Texans.

Taylor was cut by the Carolina Panthers and Jones didn't survive with Cincinnati. Potoa'e was released by the Washington Commanders and Bronson was let go by Miami. Mickens got a pink slip from the New York Giants.

Finally, Bynum, who transferred out of the UW after the 2021 season, was cut by the Los Angeles Chargers; and Eifler, who played for the Huskies in 2016 and 2017 before spending three seasons in the Big Ten, was dropped by the Washington Commanders.

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