Kansas City Chiefs waive John Lovett, five other players

The Kansas City Chiefs waived six players on Wednesday to reduce the roster to 80.

Every NFL team will be forced to reduce their rosters to only 80 players by the newly-installed August 16 deadline, but the Kansas City Chiefs have gotten a leg up on the rest by placing six players on waivers.

The Chiefs released tight end John Lovett, offensive lineman Jovahn Fair, defensive tackle Braxton Hoyett, defensive back Jalen Julius, punter Tyler Newsome, and linebacker Bryan Wright. The total number of players now on the roster is 80 and comes at the same time the signing of offensive lineman Kelechi Osemele was made official.

Lovett was one of the more well-known names of those released on Wednesday. The former Princeton quarterback looked impressive last year as a hybrid player trying to fill an h-back/tight end role. He ended up on injured reserve for the year but returned in 2020 hoping to build on the potential he displayed last summer.

Newsome’s release means that Tommy Townsend is the lone punter left on the roster after the release of longtime starter Dustin Colquitt earlier this spring.

Fair was contending with a lot of viable options along the offensive interior, from veterans to heralded rookies, which meant his ability to make the roster was a steep climb. The same could be said for the overload of talent along the defensive front which stood in front of Hoyett.

Wright was a former linebacker from Cincinnati who signed as an undrafted free agent this year. He had 100 tackles and 3.5 sacks last year for the Bearcats.