[MIJB#19]

Merchantmen release 10 players
The Maassluis Merchantmen have trimmed their roster down to the pre-season maximum of 60 on roster. 10 players were released, most notable long snapper Timothy Biegen and kicker Emmett Wells. The full list of players released is below.

Long snapper Timothy Biegen was an undrafted rookie free agent signing for the Merchantmen shortly after the 2086 draft. He got the nod as the new long snapper and kept the role for 4 straight seasons. This off-season the Merchantmen brought in veteran Bryce Karney as competition and the team went with the supposedly more talented veteran.

Kicker Emmett Wells was a 3rd round pick for the Merchantmen in the 2088 draft. It seemed that the Merchantmen had found their long-term answer at the position, but in the recent draft they took a U-turn and drafted Mark Giles in the 2nd round. Wells spent 2 seasons with the Merchantmen and kicked for them in 32 games.

Tight end Tyler Kotz was a 7th round pick for the Merchantmen in the 2085 draft. He spent his first two seasons inactive, then in 2087 was active in 4 games and in 2088 finally made his first career catch, but that season was almost exclusively a special teamer. Last season his activity was limited to 1 game. Kotz leaves Maassluis after 5 seasons on roster with 21 games played.

Tight end Randy Holliday was a 5th round pick for the Merchantmen in the 2087 draft. He spent 2087 on inactive, but in 2088 was a starter being considered the best receiving tight end on roster. Last season he was demoted to a backup role, playing almost exclusively on special teams. He leaves the Merchantmen after 3 seasons of service with 31 games played.

Linebacker Trenton Mendelssohn was the Merchantmen's 3rd round pick in the 2088 draft. After an underwhelming initial training camp and pre-season, he spent his rookie season inactive. In 2089 he saw the field just once, making a tackle on 1 of just 2 plays, meaning he leaves the team after 2 seasons on roster and just 1 game played.

Safety Levi Blanchard was an undrafted rookie signing shortly after the 2088 draft. But he was stuck behind veterans and never got to see any action for the Merchantmen. He leaves the team after 2 seasons on roster, without any games played.

Defensive tackle Francisco Burgess leaves the Merchantmen after a season without seeing the field. The 11th year IHOF veteran was signed to mentor first round pick Darien Fletcher, but spent all season inactive and now is considered no longer required.

Defensive tackle Tyrone Hanson was recently a 5th round pick for the Merchantmen in the 2090 draft. Despite praise to the 23-year old pass rusher, he was considered unlikely to make the 53-men roster on a unit that the team considers to be loaded with many young, but developed others.

Center Dwayne Gullett was recently a 7th round pick for the Merchantmen in the 2090 draft. The Merchantmen decided that he was the least likely of 10 linemen to make the final 53-men roster.

Linebacker Ruben Caminiti was a recent undrafted rookie free agent signing. His release was very likely as the fear of him unable to adapt to a 4-3 defense or moving to defensive end turned out to be legitimate. Team management continued to praise him as a worthy pass rusher on a 3-4 defense.