All six players with Hawai‘i ties taken in this year’s NFL Draft have earned spots as rookies on opening day rosters.

NFL teams were required to cut their opening day rosters to 53 by today.
The players with Hawai‘i ties are:
• Seattle offensive lineman Max Unger, a Hawaii Prep and Oregon alum (drafted in second round)
• Cleveland defensive end/linebacker David Veikune, a Campbell and University of Hawai‘i alum (second round)
• Tennessee cornerback Ryan Mouton, a UH alum (third round)
• Cleveland linebacker Kaluka Maiava, a Baldwin High and USC alum (fourth round)
• Chicago safety Al Afalava, a Kahuku and Oregon State alum (sixth round)
• New England long snapper Jake Ingram, a Mililani and UH alum (sixth round)

Also today, among the players who were released were former UH defensive tackle Josh Leonard (Texans), center Donovan Raiola (Bears), a Kamehameha alum, wide receiver Ashley Lelie (Chiefs), a Radford and UH alum, receiver C.J. Hawthorne (Bills), a UH alum and right guard Kynan Forney (Chargers), a UH alum.
Offensive lineman Brandon Rodd, an ‘Aiea graduate, was waived by the Bills. Rodd suffered a strained knee ligament last week.