The 2026 NFL preseason is officially in the books for the Kansas City Chiefs, which means the next time you’ll see the team play is Week 1 against the Denver Broncos at Arrowhead Stadium

Andy Reid, Brett Veach, and the rest of the Chiefs’ brass will now turn their attention to assembling the 53-man roster and 16-man practice squad. Deliberations among the coaching staff and front office are already underway, with some very tough decisions ahead of the 53-man roster cut deadline on Sunday, Aug. 30, at 5:00 p.m. CT. 

Below you’ll find everything you need to know about roster cuts ahead of the 2026 NFL season.

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Important details to know for Kansas City Chiefs’ 2026 NFL roster cuts:

Rosters will be reduced to 53 players by Sunday, Aug. 30, at 5:00 p.m. CT. Teams have several transactions they can use to do that. Here are important terms you need to familiarize yourself with: 

Released

When a vested veteran (those who have accrued four seasons in the NFL) is cut from a team, they aren’t required to pass through waivers. They will immediately become unrestricted free agents. Sometimes that means they’ll sign with another team. Other times, there’s a handshake agreement in place. Teams will release these veterans with the intention of re-signing them after procedural moves, like placing players on injured reserve.

Waived

Players who have not accrued four seasons in the NFL are waived instead of being released. 31 NFL teams will have a chance to claim waived players on their 53-man roster by Noon CT on Monday, August 31. If players are not claimed on waivers, they become unrestricted free agents. Team records from the previous season determine waiver priority this time of year. The team with the worst record will get the top waiver priority; in this case, the Las Vegas Raiders. The Chiefs will have the No. 8 waiver priority this year, which is the highest they’ve had in a long time.

Waived/Injured

If these players clear waivers, they will revert to the Chiefs’ injured reserve list. This already happened with WR Jeff Caldwell. They can opt to spend the season with Kansas City on IR or reach an injury settlement with the team, which will pay them for the weeks they miss and make them an unrestricted free agent. Players who take the latter route can rejoin the team later in the season once they’re healthy via the practice squad.

Injured Reserve

Up to two players can be placed on IR on the day of final cuts and be designated to return. Teams still have the option to carry injured players on the 53-man roster, and some good reasons to do so. First, if a player is placed on IR, he must miss at least four games. Second, if a player makes the initial 53 and is placed on IR on the following day, there are eight designations to return from IR, and another two for playoff teams.

Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list 

Players on the Active/PUP list can be placed on the Reserve/PUP list in a move to get the roster down to 53 players. The player to watch here for Kansas City is DT Omarr Norman-Lott. Players who are moved to the Reserve/PUP list do not count against the 53-man roster. They can attend team meetings and use team facilities for rehab, but they cannot practice for two weeks, which is new. It used to be four weeks. After two weeks, they can be designated to return to practice. After four weeks, they can be activated to the 53-man roster.

Reserve/Non-football injury/illness (NFI) lists

Players placed on the Reserve/NFI lists have to go through the same process as players on the Reserve/PUP list. The big difference between the NFI and PUP lists is that teams can withhold a portion of a player’s salary if they’re placed on the NFI lists.

Reserve/Suspended list

Players who are placed on the Reserve/Suspended list have to serve out an NFL suspension. Players on this list do not count toward 53-man roster limits and are not paid their base salary. Rashee Rice is not expected to be suspended for his offseason probation violation, so the Chiefs shouldn’t have any transactions like this unless someone new gets in trouble.

Reserve/Did Not Report list

Players who are placed on the Reserve/Did Not Report list have left their team. The Chiefs could have used this list on Chris Jones in 2023 when he sat out Week 1, but they didn’t. It’s unlikely Kansas City will place any players on this list this season.

Reserve/Retired list

Players who are placed on this list have retired from the NFL. This is a pretty rare transaction you typically wouldn’t see in a move to get to 53 players, but you could see it during the offseason.

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Kansas City Chiefs’ 2026 roster cuts: 90*

• Injured Reserve: Ethan Downs
• Injured Reserve: John Michael Gyllenborg
• Injured Reserve: Jeff Caldwell
• Waived: LB Wesley Bissainthe – ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that Bissainthe is eligible and considering a return to college football.
• Trade: LT Diego Pounds – A day after Andy Reid updated reporters on Josh Simmons’ injury, the team adds left tackle depth.
• Waived: CB Zelmar Vedder – Often the first player on the field at training camp, Vedder could be a candidate for the practice squad.

*The Chiefs technically had 91 players on the offseason roster with international OT Chu Godrick getting a roster exemption.

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NFL practice squad rules

After the claiming period has ended at Noon CT on Monday, Aug. 31, teams are permitted to assemble their 16-man practice squads. Here are the rules on who can be signed to the practice squad.

• Players who do not have an accrued season (I.E. rookies).
• Players who were on the active roster for fewer than nine regular-season games during their only accrued season(s).
• Up to four players per team with no more than two accrued seasons.
• Up to six players per team with no accrued season limitations (I.E. vested veterans).

Additionally, the Chiefs are allotted an exempt practice squad spot in 2026 because of the NFL International Player Pathway (IPP) program. Should Chu Godrick be waived from the 90-man offseason roster and clear waivers, Kansas City can keep him in that exempt spot on the practice squad as they’ve done for the past several seasons.