Buffalo Bills practice squad is complete and includes a collection of familiar faces

The Buffalo Bills released nearly three dozen players on Tuesday. Several will be welcomed back Wednesday.

Buffalo carved its team to 53 players with cuts and a trade but will still finesse its roster and fill out its practice squad before Week 1.

All of the players the Bills cut on Tuesday cleared waivers.

The names are now official as the Bills released their 17-man practice squad . Fifteen of the 16 practice squad players are brought back after being cut by Buffalo this week. The only signee who was on a different NFL roster in training camp is quarterback Mike White.

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Practice squad players are allowed to participate in practices and scout team work. They can play in games if they're elevated and signed to a team's active roster during the season. After games, an elevated practice squad must be sent back to the practice squad. A practice quad player can be elevated three times per season before a team must sign the player to the active roster to continue playing in games.

Here's how the Bills practice squad looks:

Buffalo Bills practice squad signings

QB Mike White

The journeyman is signing with the Bills practice squad , but if Mitchell Trubisky is placed on injured reserve − meaning he'd have to miss at least four weeks − then White would be elevated to the active roster. If Trubisky is only going to miss a week or two, White would a practice squad elevation, then revert full-time to the practice squad when Trubisky is ready.

WR Jalen Virgil

Let go by the Broncos where he'd been for the last two seasons, Virgil was rumored to be coming to Buffalo and that did happen on Thursday. He had only two catches for 75 yards in nine games with Denver in 2022, but one was a 66-yard TD against the Titans.

S Lewis Cine

He was a first-round pick of the Vikings (No. 32 overall) in 2022 but suffered a gruesome leg injury in his rookie season and thus played only three games. He returned to play seven in 2023 but it was almost exclusively special snaps. The former Georgia standout was a teammate of Bills running back James Cook in college.

WR Tyrell Shavers

He appeared to have the best chance to make the original 53-man roster if the Bills had kept six, but their decision to go with five sent him into the wilderness overnight, but he is reportedly rejoining the team

WR KJ Hamler

Another wideout who seemed to have a chance to make the 53 because of his return ability, so the Bills will get back the two best receivers they cut and now have nice depth options should injuries strike.

RB Frank Gore Jr.

The Bills will only carry three running backs on the active roster with James Cook, Ty Johnson and rookie fourth-round pick Ray Davis so there was no room for Gore . However, he was an easy re-sign for the practice squad.

OL Mike Edwards

He was signed as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Campbell which is where he transferred after starting his college career at Wake Forest. The 363-pounder was a two-time All-American in the lower level of Division I, the Football Championship Series and will be a good developmental project.

OL Richard Gouraige

A natural tackle, the Bills tried him at guard in the last two preseason games so if he can be versatile, he's another project to develop for down the road.

OL Will Clapp

A v eteran addition for depth on the interior of the line is a good idea, given the youth the Bills have on their active roster with starter O'Cyrus Torrence plus backups Alec Anderson and Sedrick Van Pran-Granger.

DT Branson Deen

I'm not sure what the Bills see in him, but he's back for now.

DE Kameron Cline

He was on the Bills practice squad last year and he will be back again, but the edge rusher position is crowded and there really isn't a path for him to the 53.

DE Kingsley Jonathan

He was one of the tougher cuts because he has shown flashes, so getting him back is a nice luxury.

DT Eli Ankou

If it feels like he's been a career achiever on the Bills practice squad, that's because he's been on it for three years now.

S Kareem Jackson

The 15-year NFL veteran had no market so he's returning to Buffalo where he'll be a safety blanket in case of injury, but also someone who can share his experiences with a young group of safeties now that Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer are gone.

CB Daequan Hardy

Many thought he would make the active roster , but the Bills weren't quite there in terms if waiting for him to develop, so the practice squad was the right spot.

CB Te'Cory Couch

He had some impressive moments both in training camp and then the preseason games.

TE Zach Davidson

He was one of the stars of training camp , flashing every day at practice, and he also made a few plays in the games. But his lack of special teams value cost him making the active roster.

Buffalo Bills roster cuts

• QB : Ben DiNucci, Anthony Brown
• RB : Darrynton Evans, Frank Gore Jr.
• WR : Tyrell Shavers, Justin Shorter, KJ Hamler, Andy Isabella, Xavier Johnson, Deon Cain, Damiere Byrd
• TE : Zach Davidson, Tre McKitty
• IOL : Mike Edwards, Kevin Jarvis, Gunner Britton, Keaton Bills, Will Clapp, Lael Collins
• OT : Richard Gouraige;
• DE : Kameron Cline, Kingsley Jonathan, Rondell Bothroyd
• DT : DeShawn Williams; Eli Ankou, Gable Steveson, Branson Deen
• LB : Deion Jones, Shayne Simon
• CB : Daequan Hardy, Kyron Brown, Te’Cory Couch, Keni-H Lovely
• S : Kareem Jackson, Kendall Williamson

When can practice squad players be signed?

Vested NFL players with at least four seasons of experience become unrestricted free agents as soon as they're released and can immediately sign with another team.

Non-vested who don't have at least four years of NFL experience have to clear waivers first. The waiver priority is based on last season's draft order . Any player not claimed during the waiver process can be signed to a team's practice squad.

Teams have until noon on Wednesday, Aug. 28 to place a claim non-vested players who have been waived. Then teams can begin adding to their practice squads.

How many players are on an NFL practice squad?

NFL practice squads are allowed up to 16 players, but they can carry 17 providing one is a player from the International Player Pathway Program . Ten of the players have to be rookies or second-year players and the other six players have no requirements on years of experience. Travis Clayton would have been the Bills' 17th man as part of the IPPP, but he was placed on season-ending injured reserve Tuesday.

Prior to the pandemic, practice squads consisted of 10 players.

Can a practice squad player sign with another NFL team?

Practice squad players can be taken by another team if the new team is signing that player to its 53-man roster. A practice squad player can't sign with a team's upcoming opponent unless it's six days prior to the subsequent game or 10 days before if the new team is on a bye week.

Practice squad members can't laterally move from the practice squad of one team to the practice squad of another mid-season unless they are released.

How much do NFL practice squad players make?

Practice squad players earn between $12,500 and $21,300 per week.

The minimum salary is $12,500 for players with two or fewer seasons of service time. If a player has at least two years of experience, the minimum salary is $16,800 per week and the maximum is $21,300 per week.

Over an 18-week regular season, practice squad salaries range from $225,000 and $383,400 annually.

Sal Maiorana has covered the Buffalo Bills for four decades including 35 years as the full-time beat writer for the D&C, and he has written numerous books about the history of the team. He can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com, and you can follow him on Twitter @salmaiorana. https://profile.democratandchronicle.com/newsletters/bills-blast

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Buffalo Bills practice squad is complete and includes a collection of familiar faces