Former Utah punter Tom Hackett became the first local NFL cut casualty of training camp, as he was waived by the New York Jets on Thursday.
According to the Jets, Hackett was waived to make room on the 90-man training camp roster for quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick, the team's starter last season, had been holding out for a larger contract during the offseason before signing a reported one year, $12 million deal with the team Thursday.
The Jets, who reported to camp Wednesday and practiced for the first time Thursday, signed the two-time Ray Guy Award winner Hackett as an undrafted free agent following the NFL draft in April.
New York had also selected fellow Australian punter Lachlan Edwards out of Sam Houston State in the seventh round, setting up a potential punter battle in training camp. That battle ended before camp began, leaving the University of Utah with five rookies in NFL camps.
The five Utah rookies include running back Devontae Booker (Denver), a fourth-pick draft selection by the Broncos; outside linebacker Jason Fanaika (San Francisco); linebacker Jared Norris (Carolina); wide receiver Kendal Thompson (Washington) and linebacker Jason Whittingham (Minnesota). Both Thompson and Whittingham signed contracts with their teams earlier this week.
NFL teams must have their rosters cut to 75 players by Aug. 30 and down to 53 by Sept. 3. The preseason kicks off Aug. 7 with the Hall of Fame game between Green Bay and Indianapolis and ends Sept. 1.
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