Florida A&M's Xavier Smith had one of the more whiplash-inducing weeks an NFL player can have — and it ended with him out of a job.
Less than 24 hours after Los Angeles Rams special teams coordinator Bubba Ventrone publicly stated the team was not considering a change at punt returner, the Rams waived Smith. The move, made in the days leading up to their matchup with the Eagles, capped an inconsistent start to the 2026 season for the FAMU product and raised eyebrows across the league for its abrupt timing.
Ventrone had already been sending cautionary signals. Earlier in the week, he described Smith as "inconsistent" through the first three weeks and pointed to fundamental issues with his technique — but still backed him to keep the role. That public vote of confidence expired almost immediately. Within a day, Smith was gone.
The cut carries some additional sting given the context. Smith reportedly muffed a punt during the NFC Championship game against the Seahawks — a moment that lingered over his standing heading into 2026. Despite posting over 300 receiving yards in the 2025 season, the special teams miscues proved too costly to overlook once the coaching staff apparently had a change of heart.
The Rams are now scrambling to identify a replacement, with Sports Illustrated noting that the internal options are, by their own assessment, not great — a reflection of how the team leaned on Smith to fill that role and left itself thin behind him.
For FAMU, it's a tough moment. Smith had carved out a legitimate NFL niche as a returner and receiver, and his release is a reminder of how quickly roster decisions can turn, even when the public messaging suggests otherwise.
Elsewhere in the FAMU alumni ledger, running back Terrell Jennings — most recently with the Patriots — drew interest from Pittsburgh this week. The Steelers worked out Jennings along with seven other free agents on October 2, per KPRC 2's Aaron Wilson, as the team looks to address roster depth thinned by injuries. No signing was immediately reported.
On the Dallas side, safety Markquese Bell and linebacker Isaiah Land were both on the roster for the Cowboys' 31-34 loss to Baltimore on September 27. Neither generated notable statistical lines in the brief, but both remain active contributors in Dallas's defensive scheme.
It was a week that encapsulated the precarious nature of NFL roster life for FAMU alumni — one cut without warning, one auditioning for a new opportunity, and two holding their spots on a Cowboys squad still searching for consistency.
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