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NFL Free Agency: Arizona Cardinals cut Beanie Wells, Fozzy Whitaker

Bruce Arians and his staff are moving on from the former first round draft pick.

USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Cardinals continue with their changeup of the roster and their preparation for the free agency period that starts on Tuesday. The team announced that they have released running backs Beanie Wells and Fozzy Whitaker.

This marks the end of a disappointing run with Wells, who was drafted in the first round by the Cardinals in 2009. He had an up and down tenure, mostly due to injuries. This past season, he played in eight games last season (seven starts) and had 88 carries for 234 yards and five touchdowns. In his Cardinals career (2009-12), Wells played in 51 games (23 starts) and had 625 carries for 2,471 yards and 24 touchdowns to go along with 28 receptions for 293 yards.

His best season was 2011, when he ran for over 1000 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Whitaker spent time late in the season on the Cardinals' practice squad and signed a futures contract with Arizona in January. He was signed as an undrafted free agent out of Texas.

The move to cut Beanie saves some more money against the salary cap. He was due a $1.305 million bonus. He was in the final year of his contract.

He was not in good graces with the team at the end of last season, as he was benched the final game, having made comments about auditioning for other teams and fumbling in the previous game without being hit.

Is this move a precursor of the signing of a free agent running back? The team has been rumored to be interested in running back Reggie Bush.

With the official start of free agency just a day away, we may be getting news fast.

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