Anfernee Orji might want to start wondering if his phone is on Do Not Disturb.
The New York Giants said goodbye to several linebackers and pass rushers during roster cuts on Sunday, and it didn’t take long for almost all of them to find somewhere else to play football.
Darius Muasau was claimed by the New England Patriots. Khalid Kareem landed on the Atlanta Falcons’ practice squad. Caleb Murphy reunited with Jim Harbaugh on the Los Angeles Chargers’ practice squad, while Trace Ford is back like he never actually left, re-signing with Big Blue and joining New York's practice squad after clearing waivers.
Then there’s Orji.
The 25-year-old was released during Sunday's mass exodus and remains unsigned, making him the only linebacker or outside linebacker cut by the G-Men who hasn’t found his next home. And that’s a pretty lonely club to be in.
Anfernee Orji is the odd man out after Giants roster cuts
The Dallas, TX native didn’t exactly have a lot of time to make his roster case in East Rutherford. Big Blue finally signed him on July 30, giving the former Vanderbilt linebacker roughly a month to prove he belonged on the 53-man roster. He had worked out for the team earlier in the offseason.
He ultimately couldn’t crack a crowded linebacker room before the Giants sent him packing in their first wave of cuts. There was still reason to believe another team might come calling.
Orji entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the New Orleans Saints in 2023 and quickly carved out a role for himself on special teams. And when you’re fighting for one of the last few spots on an NFL roster or hoping to stick around on a practice squad, making an impact in the third phase can go a long way.
After spending 2023 and 2024 in the Big Easy, he was waived and landed with the Tennessee Titans for the 2025 season, where a torn ACL ultimately ended his year before he eventually made his way to North Jersey this summer.
It’s impossible to know exactly why Orji hasn’t found another team. He’s healthy now after recovering from that torn ACL, and joining the Giants as late as he did probably didn’t give him much time to put anything meaningful on tape this summer, either.
Whatever the reason, he’s now watched every other linebacker New York cut land somewhere. Yet Orji is still waiting for the phone to ring.
Things could obviously change tomorrow. NFL rosters are constantly in flux this time of year, especially in the aftermath of roster cut day, when teams make final tweaks to the bottom of their rosters. For now, though, the Giants’ linebacker version of musical chairs has stopped, and Orji is the only one left without a seat.
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