The Carolina Panthers needed to make room on their current 53-man roster for defensive end Henry Anderson on Monday. And to do so, they had a bit of a surprise in store.
That surprise led to the departure of defensive tackle Daviyon Nixon, a fifth-round selection by the Panthers from just a year ago. But, luckily for the 23-year-old, it will be a very short stay away.
As reported by NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport on Tuesday evening, the Panthers will bring Nixon back. The second-year defensive tackle will rejoin the organization as the 16th member of their practice squad.
#Panthers DT Daviyon Nixon cleared waivers today and will head back to the team’s practice squad, source said. Their former fifth round pick stays in the fold.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 6, 2022
Yesterday, head coach Matt Rhule said Nixon was just a victim of circumstance.
“These things are tough,” he said of the cut. “You have to make tough decisions. Daviyon’s, obviously, a person we drafted. Had a tough injury last year, coming into this year. But we couldn’t go into the year with that many d-linemen. We’ve been happy with [Marquan] McCall and [Phil] Hoskins. So that was the decision we had to make.”
Well, they’ve made a new decision now—one that has Nixon right back in the building.
