Cut by the Philadelphia Eagles, wide receiver Devon Allen picks up a 55-yard touchdown pass during the NFL’s pre-season game against the Cleveland Browns.

Los Angeles (AFP) – The Philadelphia Eagles have fired Olympic hurdlers Devon Allen as the NFL teams faced a Tuesday deadline to reduce their teams to 53 players at the start of the season next week.[expander_maker id=”1″ more=”Read more” less=”Read less”]

Allen, 27, was a wide receiver at the University of Oregon but hasn’t played the netball since 2016 as he focused on his track and field career.

He placed fifth in the 110m hurdles at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and fourth at the Tokyo Olympics last year.

Allen set the third-fastest time in history of 110m hurdles in June, but was disqualified from the event final at the World Championships in July.

By then, Allen was already looking to fight for a spot with the Eagles, and the club is said to be planning to re-sign him to the coaching staff if he isn’t demanded on concessions.

He made headway into the later stages of training camp and pulled a touchdown pass from 55 yards in a pre-season game against the Cleveland Browns.

“I’d like to make it good,” Allen said of pursuing his NFL career in July.
“It is not a one time thing. It is a commitment from me. As long as I feel comfortable playing and feel that I can play good football, I will play.”

Among other cuts on Tuesday, the Kansas City Chiefs released veteran wide receiver Josh Gordon.

Gordon rose to prominence with Cleveland in 2013 when he led the league with 1,646 yards. He helped the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, but multiple violations of the NFL’s drug policy brought in several suspensions.

He joined the Chiefs in 2021 but ended up being the odd man out with Kansas City adding newcomers JuJu Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and rookie Skyy Moore.
Chiefs coach Andy Reed has not ruled out a place for Gordon’s coaching staff.

“I’m proud of Josh for everything he’s done,” Reid said Tuesday. “There is a possibility that he will come back here.”

Buffalo Bills released a tight end O.J. Howard, who signed a $3.5 million one-year contract with the team in the off-season.

Even with his salary guaranteed, the Bills decided they had better options in Dawson Knox, Quentin Morris and Tommy Sweeney.[/expander_maker]