The Green Bay Packers have cut ties with one of their backup quarterback after losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday in their 2026 preseason opener.
According to the team’s official transaction wire, the Packers released undrafted rookie quarterback Kyron Drones on August 15 from their 90-man offseason roster, trimming their numbers at the position down to three for the remainder of their training camp.
Drones did not have much opportunity to play for the Packers in their 28-9 preseason loss to the Steelers, but more bad than good came out of his short time on the field. He played the final two offensive series in the fourth quarter, both of which ended in three-and-out punts, and threw just one pass — an incompletion — while taking three sacks.
The Packers will now presumably finish out camp with veteran Tyrod Taylor and Kyle McCord as the only two quarterbacks competing for roles behind starter Jordan Love.
Kyron Drones Faced Stacked Odds on Packers’ Roster
Drones’ time in Green Bay has now come to an end, but he had faced stacked odds from the jump in his pursuit of a spot on the Packers’ 53-man roster for the 2026 season.
For starters, Drones did not lead a prolific collegiate career across his five seasons at Baylor (2021-22) or Virginia Tech (2023-25). His first season with the Hokies in 2023 proved to be his strongest, throwing for a career-high 2,085 yards and 17 touchdowns in 11 starts and adding another 818 yards and five touchdowns on the ground as a runner.
Alas, Drones’ accuracy remained a problem throughout his three years at Virginia Tech.
While Drones matched his career best with 17 passing touchdowns during his final year in 2025, he also threw a career-high nine interceptions and finished with a career-worst completion percentage (56.5%) over his 12 starts, as the Hokies skidded to a 3-9 finish.
A collegiate finish like that doesn’t inspire much confidence at the NFL level, hence why Drones came into the league undrafted. And while the Packers offered him a chance to earn his keep as a UDFA, they didn’t make it easy for him, either, dropping him into a competition with a 15-season league veteran and a former sixth-round draft pick.
Kyle McCord Could Seize No. 2 Quarterback Role for 2026
While the competition is now over for Drones, it appears things are just getting started for the other two quarterbacks competing for the No. 2 role behind Love in 2026.
The Packers seemed to settle on their new backup quarterback in the spring when they signed Taylor to a one-year, $2.5 million contract following Malik Willis‘ departure in free agency. Taylor has had multiple stops as a backup quarterback around the league over the past few years and even started four games for the New York Jets in 2025.
If the Packers are judging based on preseason performance, though, McCord — a sixth-round selection for Philadelphia in 2023 — may have gained ground in their opener.
Despite sometimes shoddy protection, McCord impressed in his preseason debut for the Packers, completing 12 of his 16 passes for 102 yards and putting together a nice two-minute sequence as the offense’s leader in the final 46 seconds of the first half.
Meanwhile, Taylor was lackluster in his two offensive series against the Steelers. He went 4-of-8 for just 21 passing yards and saw both of his drives end with punts.
One preseason game won’t likely doom Taylor’s chances at the No. 2 role, but things could get interesting for his roster security if McCord shines on in the coming weeks.
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