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I guess I can cross off “X-Files” from my list of story angles for next week’s rematch of the NFC Championship Game. The Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans Saints are still scheduled to play Thursday night at the Superdome, but half of our offseason Twitter feud duo won’t be on the field.



The Saints will place safety Darren Sharper on the reserve/physically unable to perform list this weekend, according to Brian Allee-Walsh of NewOrleans.com. That means Sharper, who is trying to return from microfracture surgery on his knee, won’t be eligible to play until Week 7 of the regular season.



In case you forgot, Sharper and Vikings tight end Visanthe Shiancoe engaged in a mildly heated spring back-and-forth via Twitter. If any of us would have been listening at the time, my NFC South colleague Pat Yasinskas was smartly warning us that Sharper was questionable at best for the game itself.



The Saints had already moved on by moving cornerback Malcolm Jenkins to Sharper’s free safety spot, with Sharper viewed more as late-season insurance than anything else.



With that said, I think the tweet that originally started the “feud” will remain a hot topic next week. If you recall, Sharper suggested the Saints will target quarterback Brett Favre‘s surgically-repaired ankle in that game. Given the Vikings’ sensitive reaction to the beating Favre took in January, the issue will actually be one of the key factors in the game.



More on that in the coming days.

The Browns couldn’t wait to see what rookie running back Montario Hardesty could do on the field.

Biggest surprise: The Cardinals parted with tight end Anthony Becht even though rookie Jim Dray didn’t seem to show a great deal through most of camp. Becht became a valuable blocker in the Cardinals’ two-tight end sets last season. Stephen Spach‘s improved health this offseason lets him step into the role. Dray’s ability to contribute on special teams also gave him an edge over Becht. Releasing outside linebacker Cody Brown stands as surprise only because Brown was a second-round choice in 2009. Every other second-round choice from last season was still with his original team as of Friday morning. The move was less surprising based on Brown’s contributions. I once thought Herman Johnson might develop into a starting offensive lineman, but he reported to camp overweight and the Cardinals let him go. Their depth on the line gave Johnson less margin for error.



No-brainers: Veteran insider linebacker Monty Beisel had started during part of preseason and the Cardinals are lean at the position after placing Gerald Hayes on reserve/physically unable to perform. But Beisel wasn’t the answer at the position and keeping him on the roster for Week 1 would have guaranteed his salary. Rookie Daryl Washington looks like he’ll be starting at linebacker sooner rather than later. The Cardinals have also been pleased with veteran Paris Lenon. Reggie Walker also survived the first wave of cuts.



What’s next: The Cardinals still must release three players to conform with the 53-man limit. Matt Leinart‘s future remains in limbo. Coach Ken Whisenhunt told reporters Friday that he wasn’t prepared to make a decision on that front just yet. The Cardinals have four quarterbacks on their roster: Derek Anderson, Max Hall, John Skelton and Leinart. That situation should shake out in the coming days. Whisenhunt said he needs to figure out whether Leinart could fit as a backup if the team decided to name Anderson its starter. “It’s not so much a question of Matt and his ability to play football as it his how he fits with our team,” Whisenhunt said.



Cardinals players cut:

LB Stevie Baggs

TE Anthony Becht

LB Monty Beisel

LB Cody Brown

DE Jeremy Clark

DE John Fletcher

CB Trevor Ford

WR Ed Gant

OL Herman Johnson

WR Mike Jones

WR Onrea Jones

CB Justin Miller

OL Jonathan Palmer

OL Tom Pestock

FB Charles Scott

WR Isaiah Williams

Biggest surprise: Veteran running back Michael Robinson was one of the best special teams players in the league, but he wasn’t a factor on offense and that hurt him. It’s worth noting that the 49ers have a new special teams coach, and Robinson hurt his chances for a roster spot by fumbling on the first play of the exhibition opener. Keeping third tight end Nate Byham as a potential backup fullback allowed the 49ers to keep only four running backs, at least initially. Robinson was also the emergency quarterback, but with third stringer Nate Davis surviving the mandatory reduction to 53 players, Robinson wasn’t as important in that capacity, either. Former 49ers linebacker Jeff Ulbrich is a first-year assistant special-teams coach in Seattle. Former 49ers general manager Scot McCloughan also works for the Seahawks. Perhaps Seattle find a place for Robinson. I was also surprised to see the 49ers release veteran inside linebacker Matt Wilhelm.



No-brainers: Receiver Jason Hill was lost in the shuffle all through training camp, so his release came as little surprise. The team kept rookie Kyle Williams, who showed potential as a return specialist before suffering a toe injury. Dominique Zeigler also stuck after stepping up his game during camp. Zeigler’s sure hands and precise route running worked in his favor. Hill could have some value elsewhere, but his future in a 49ers uniform was shaky. At tight end, Byham’s development made J.J. Finley and Tony Curtis expendable. The 49ers kept only two tight ends last season. Byham proved worthy as the third tight end and as a potential backup fullback. The 49ers usually load up on defensive backs and this year might be no different; they kept 11, a high number. They also kept 10 offensive linemen, one more than usual — not a surprise while center Eric Heitmann recovers from a broken leg.



What’s next: This is the initial 53-man roster, not the final one, and some players surviving the first cut cannot celebrate too wildly. Coach Mike Singletary has made clear his unhappiness with Davis, whose talent and potential have outweighed his preparation to this point. Davis might now have an opportunity to prove he’s serious about becoming a professional and taking advantage of this second chance. On defense, the 49ers will need to monitor outside linebacker Ahmad Brooks‘ recovery from a lacerated kidney. Keeping Diyral Briggs and Travis LaBoy gives them pretty good depth at the position.



49ers players cut:

K Shane Andrus

LB Mike Balogun

QB Jarrett Brown

FB Jehuu Caulcrick

TE Tony Curtis

LB Bruce Davis

G Brian de la Puente

TE Joe Jon Finley

WR Bobby Guillory

WR Jason Hill

WR Kevin Jurovich

T Matt Kopa

LB Keaton Kristick

S Chris Maragos

FB Brit Miller

DT Khalif Mitchell

CB Karl Paymah

RB Michael Robinson

DT Will Tukuafu

DT Derek Walker

C Cody Wallace

LB Matt Wilhelm

The conditioning test was nothing compared to Albert Haynesworth’s latest punishment.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns moved one step closer to trimming their final rosters down to 53 players Friday evening.



Pittsburgh announced 10 cuts. They included receiver Brandon London, running back Justin Vincent, linebacker Renauld Williams, defensive tackle Scott Paxson, long snapper Matt Stewart, safety Justin Thornton, offensive linemen Dorian Brooks and Kyle Jolly, and tight ends Sean McHugh and Eugene Bright.



The Browns released seven players: cornerback Coye Francies, tight end Joel Gamble, offensive linemen Casey Bender and Joel Reinders, and receivers Syndric Steptoe and Jake Allen.



Final cuts have to be made by 6 p.m. Saturday.

Although the New Orleans Saints haven’t formally announced any roster moves today, it’s become apparent that Chase Daniel has won the backup quarterback job.



Mike Triplett reports that the agent for Patrick Ramsey said the veteran has been cut. Ramsey was signed as the heir apparent to veteran Mark Brunell to serve as the backup for Drew Brees. But Daniel, who spent part of his rookie season on the regular roster and practice squad, had such a strong preseason that he beat out Ramsey.



Under coach Sean Payton, the Saints often carry only two quarterbacks. Rookie Sean Canfield already was released, but remains a candidate to be signed to the practice squad next week.



Ramsey didn’t play poorly in the preseason and could be on the radar for several other teams looking for experienced backups. I see one possible destination in the NFC South, and let me make this clear: this matchmaking is purely speculative on my part.



Although the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been singing the praises of Josh Johnson, I really think they need a backup with some real experience behind starter Josh Freeman. Johnson isn’t very experienced, and I’m not convinced he can be a solid backup.



If the depth chart at quarterback stays the way it is in Tampa Bay, the Bucs are in a world of trouble if anything happens to Freeman, who is recovering from a fractured thumb and expected to begin practicing soon. A guy like Ramsey wouldn’t be a threat to Freeman, but he has some experience and talent, and he’d provide better insurance than Johnson.

I’ll provide a separate file breaking down each NFC West team’s roster moves once they meet the 53-man limit.



In the meantime, a few odds and ends:



Arizona Cardinals



Traded guard Reggie Wells to Philadelphia; released tight end Anthony Becht; released linebacker Steve Baggs; released linebacker Monty Beisel; apparently informed receiver Max Komar he made the initial 53-man roster; apparently did not tell quarterback Matt Leinart about his status to this point; scheduled a news conference for 6 p.m. ET (but nothing significant on Leinart is expected at that time).



San Francisco 49ers



Released running back Michael Robinson, released fullback Brit Miller; released fullback Jehuu Caulcrick; released receiver Jason Hill; released receiver Kevin Jurovich; released offensive lineman Cody Wallace; released defensive lineman Khalif Mitchell; released tight ends Tony Curtis and J.J. Finley; released linebacker Bruce Davis; released cornerback Karl Paymah.



Seattle Seahawks



No known moves to this point; Seattle waited until Saturday to announce its cuts last season.



St. Louis Rams



No known moves to this point; the Rams also waited until Saturday last season.