Players Worth Salvaging From The Roster Cut Scrap Heap

The short answer: Not many. The longer answer is what I specialize in.

After Monday's cut deadline, all 32 teams in the NFL trimmed, hacked, sawed and sloughed off their weakest or most injured players to get down to the required 75 players. Along the way, a small handful of decent players—or at least potentially decent players—were among them.

Given the Falcons' lack of true depth at a couple of positions, such as middle linebacker and along the offensive line, they might want to poke around and see if there's any upgrades lurking.

Of course, it goes without saying the strongest players will be those released in the final wave of cuts coming up. We'll do this again once those cuts hit the wire.

After the jump, a few players that might be worth a closer look.

WR Jarrett Dillard: Veteran pass catcher with a little bit of upside. Dillard's always had enough raw talent to survive in the NFL but has never been able to harness it in a meaningful way. Still just 26 and a terrific special teams player, he'd probably be an instant upgrade on the current crop of fifth receiver options, at minimum.

C Jason Slowey: A sixth-round pick in this year's draft, Slowey offers quality size (6'3", 305 pounds) and was a quality player in college. He struggled with the 49ers, however. The team may want to consider bringing him aboard as a possible practice squad candidate, given the relative lack of options on the interior of the line. A lot of that depends on where the team stands on Andrew Jackson and Joe Hawley, of course.

DT Carlton Powell: Big body who is already familiar with the Falcons' defense. If Vance Walker is at all shaky for the season opener, the Falcons may want to bring someone like Powell in as emergency depth.

DE Louis Nzegwu: I still think this guy has enough talent to be worth stashing on the practice squad, and I hope the Falcons at least consider it.

WR/KR/PR Roscoe Parrish: The Falcons probably don't want to burn a roster spot on a pure returner, but Parrish is likely to be the best one on the market even after the wave of final cuts come down. If there's questions about some of the other options—and I believe there is—it'd be worth kicking his tires.

CB Walter McFadden: He's not the player he once was—and he was never an all-timer—but for a team with a struggling Dominique Franks, a rookie in Peyton Thompson and a banged-up Chris Owens competing for two slots, McFadden might be able to stick around.

QB Vince Young: Just kidding. But you thought!

Share your own picks from the admittedly shallow scrap heap.