One day after getting cut by the San Francisco 49ers to make room for the 53 man active roster, rookie Junior Bergen signed on to the 49ers’ practice squad on Wednesday.

The #49ers are signing WR/KR Junior Bergen to the practice squad once he clears waivers. He was the only one of their 11 draft picks waived yesterday, so they all remain with the team as of now. pic.twitter.com/UjuwMmTIzm

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) August 27, 2025

Bergen, a Billings native who was drafted in the seventh round, was hoping to make the San Francisco 49ers roster as a special teams standout after setting the FCS record in college with eight punt returns for touchdowns. This preseason Bergen had four punt returns for 38 yards and also had one muffed punt. In the kick return game he totaled 128 yards on six attempts (21.3 average and a long of 25). In the passing game he had just one catch for one yard on two total targets.

As for fellow Montana native and NFL rookie Tommy Mellott, it had been reported by Tristen Kuhn of Nilson Sports that Mellott signed on to the Raiders’ practice squad. However Kuhn went on to delete that post on X and clarify that Mellott was not included on the team’s practice squad roster.

#Raiders Practice squad: Mellott has not signed as I stated https://t.co/nrQc1ok0X7

— Tristen Kuhn (@KuhnTristen) August 27, 2025

#RAIDERS ROSTER MOVES:

– The @Raiders have signed the following 17 players to the practice squad: pic.twitter.com/RvhmDTC9n6

— Raiders PR (@RAIDERS_PR) August 27, 2025

Mellott, a Butte native who was drafted in the sixth round by the Las Vegas Raiders, has been transitioning to play wide receiver at the next level after a prolific Bobcats career that concluded with him winning the Walter Payton Award as the the top offensive player in FCS football. This preseason Mellott recorded just two receptions for one yard while on special teams he had two kick returns for 63 yards (31.5 average with a long of 42) and also field two punts for zero return yards.

Also on Wednesday, Butte native and former Griz offensive lineman Dylan Cook signed on to the Pittsburgh Steelers’ practice squad and former MSU Bobcat defensive tackle Sebastian Valdez signed on to the 49ers’ practice squad.

53 MAN ROSTER CUTS NEWS FROM TUESDAY

It was a tough scene for many Treasure State football standouts on Tuesday as several former Grizzly and Bobcat football players were waived in order for NFL teams to make their final cuts and announce their 53 man rosters.

Exciting rookies Tommy Mellott of Montana State and Junior Bergen of Montana were among those players to be left off the 53 man roster.

Elsewhere, former Grizzly standout and Kalispell native Patrick O’Connell was waived by the Seattle Seahawks on Tuesday, the team he signed with as an undrafted free agent in 2023. Last season O’Connell appeared in five games for Seattle and recorded two total tackles. This preseason he tallied 12 tackles across three games.

Bozeman native and former MSU Bobcats wide receiver Lance McCutcheon was released by the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday. McCutcheon had five catches for 66 yards and a touchdown during this year’s preseason.

Former Grizzly offensive lineman Dylan Cook, a Butte native, was also cut by the Steelers. Cook, who was waived on Tuesday, has been with the Steelers since making the 53-man roster in 2023 but spent 2024 on the injured reserve list. 

Samori Toure, a former Montana Grizzly wide receiver who spent his final year of college football at Nebraska, was let go by the Chicago Bears on Sunday after recording five catches for 72 yards this preseason. Toure, drafted by Green Bay in the seventh round in 2022, has 13 catches for 160 yards in his NFL career while playing in 22 career games for the Packers.

Former MSU Bobcat defensive tackle Sebastian Valdez, who spent his final year of college football playing for the Washington Huskies, was waived by the 49ers on Tuesday.

Rush Reimer, a recent MSU Bobcats standout on the offensive line, was also waived this week as he was released by the Buffalo Bills on Monday.

The only former Grizzly or Bobcats to receive good news on Tuesday were former Montana State standouts Ty Okada (Seahawks) and Daniel Hardy (Bears) who each made the active rosters for their teams.

Bozeman native Will Dissly, as expected, has also made the active roster for the Los Angeles Chargers.

Players waived ahead of 53 man roster cuts will now look to sign on as practice squad players or find other teams and opportunities.