Former Auburn Tigers QB Cut Ahead of NFL 53-Man Roster Deadline

Payton Thorne experienced two years of up-and-down play as the Auburn Tigers starter before he ran out of eligibility following the 2024 season.

He went undrafted in April, but he was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Cincinnati Bengals. He was in the first round of cuts on Monday ahead of Tuesday’s NFL deadline to trim rosters from the 90 players they carry through training camp to the 53-man active roster mandated for the regular season.

Thorne was always a long shot to make the Bengals roster, battling with Desmond Ridder for a possible third quarterback spot (not all teams carry three quarterbacks).

After suffering through two seasons of erratic play from Thorne, Auburn fans won’t be surprised to see that Thorne isn’t on an NFL roster after Tuesday’s deadline. Though he hopes to hook up with the Bengals’ 16-man practice squad on Wednesday.

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Though not entirely his fault, with at least three voices in his ear calling plays on Saturdays, Thorne battled turnovers and poor decision-making with throws and pre-snap reads in two years as the Auburn starter.

Thorne threw nine interceptions in 2024 as Auburn suffered from self-inflicted wounds during crucial moments last season. The relationship between head coach Hugh Freeze and Thorne was prickly at best. 

After deciding to forgo the transfer portal for a quarterback prior to the 2024 season, Freeze overhauled the quarterback room completely after the Tigers finished 5-7 last year. There’s not a quarterback on the roster who took a snap for Auburn last season.

He’s placed his short-term hopes on former Oklahoma Sooners transfer Jackson Arnold, and his long-term future on five-star freshman Deuce Knight. Ashton Daniels comes in from Stanford as an experienced dual-threat insurance policy that Freeze is hoping he won’t have to cash in. 

The head coach is responsible for the personnel decisions for his team, so he doesn’t get a free pass if the problems at the position were mostly because of Thorne.

But Freeze will get one last chance with Arnold to correct the mistakes that plagued the Tigers in his tenure. 

We’ll get our first look at the revamped offense under Arnold on Friday night at 7:00 p.m. CT when Auburn takes on Baylor in Waco, Texas.