Kansas City Chiefs: Orson Charles, Josh Augusta squeezed out by recent roster moves
By Matt Conner
The Kansas City Chiefs released Orson Charles and Josh Augusta as they try to make more room for undrafted free agents and further roster moves.
The Kansas City Chiefs continue to make moves to create some more roster space, and on Thursday they let go of two more players before rookie minicamp begins. Both tight end Orson Charles and defensive tackle Josh Augusta were let go, per NFL communications.
Charles came to the Chiefs just last year, supplanting longtime tight end project Ross Travis as the team’s third tight end. The Chiefs had attempted to help two players behind Travis Kelce transition from their former careers as college basketball players into professional football players. Demetrius Harris has stayed the course, but Travis never turned the corner—at least Brett Veach didn’t give him that chance.
More from Arrowhead Addict
- Former Chiefs cornerback in legal trouble in Las Vegas
- Chiefs Kingdom: Get ready to break contract news
- Chiefs news: Travis Kelce wants to host fan ‘chug-off’ in Germany
- Podcast: Breaking down the Chiefs biggest roster battles
- KC Chiefs send Dave Merritt to NFL coaching accelerator
In Travis’s place, Veach brought in Orson Charles, a versatile player known for his toughness who can play fullback and tight end. In general, he was the blocker the Chiefs hadn’t had for years and excelled on special teams. On Thursday, he was released outright and can sign with any team.
As for Augusta, he was waived by the Chiefs which means teams can put in claims (and the Chiefs cannot recall him). Augusta was always a rotational body, even at the college level at Missouri, but he was productive nonetheless and gifted with mammoth size to play the line at 6’4, 300 lbs. Teams looking for young depth to develop along the line might take a chance on Augusta in the days ahead.
As for the Chiefs, the moves make sense. The team just traded for another blocking tight end Randall Telfer in the deal that sent outside linebacker Dadi Nicolas to the Cleveland Browns. The Chiefs also selected Derrick Nnadi and Breeland Speaks in the recent NFL draft, which squeezed the defensive front for even more roster spots. Together, both Charles and Augusta were deemed odd men out in the process.