Three former Metro area stars breathed a sigh of relief Sunday as National Football League teams made their first mandatory cuts of the preseason.

NFL teams had to trim rosters to 75 players Sunday. The difficult decisions will come this week as all teams must get down to 53 players by Friday.

The three ex-Metro players trying to make NFL rosters are Adrian Arrington with New Orleans, Allen Reisner with Minnesota and Rob Bruggeman with Kansas City.

Arrington, in his fourth year out of Cedar Rapids Washington and Michigan, was having the best camp of his career when he suffered a torn meniscus Aug. 13. He had minor surgery immediately and his return to regular drills is in question.

“It's always important to be out there, but I think I've been out there enough the past few years where they know the things I can do,” Arrington told CBSsports.com. “Now it's just a matter of getting healthy. It's frustrating to not be out there.”

Arrington is listed as the No. 3 left wide receiver for the Saints behind Marques Colston and Lance Moore. He is considered New Orleans’ fourth receiver but the longer he remains sidelined, the more opportunity others have to take his spot.

Reisner had a solid performance in the Minnesota Vikings’ third preseason game, catching four passes for 47 yards and a 20-yard gain. He made the Vikings' opening-day roster last year, but was immediately cut the next day to make room for another player.

The St. Paul Pioneer-Press projects Reisner, a Marion High School product, to make the opening-day roster as the Vikings’ fourth tight end. Observers like his pass-catching ability and versatility.

Another former Metro player, offensive lineman Jay Teply of Xavier, was invited to Minnesota’s free-agent camp but was not tendered a contract due to a doctor’s findings of an irregular heartbeat.

Bruggeman, another Washington product and former Iowa star, is facing a tough battle in Kansas City. But his fortunes were improved Sunday when the Chiefs cut one of their centers, rookie Cam Holland from North Carolina.

Bruggeman is listed as the Chiefs’ No. 3 center behind two second-year players, Rodney Hudson from Florida State and Luke Patterson from Texas A&M. One of Bruggeman’s snaps to quarterback Brady Quinn in the second preseason game went back before Quinn was ready, but that apparently did not affect Kansas City’s decision-making, at least so far.

Arrington, Reisner and Bruggeman all have played during the NFL regular season.

Arrington has seen action in five games the past two seasons with the Saints, catching 9 passes for 110 yards. Reisner played in six games for the Vikings last year, catching a 5-yard pass and playing on special teams. Bruggeman saw action in one game each of the past two seasons with Atlanta.

This week will determine whether their dreams of an NFL career continue or are given a jolt.

(Mark Dukes is former sports editor of the Cedar Rapid Gazette. He is co-host of The Gym Class radio show weekdays from 3-4 p.m. on KGYM-AM 1600, FM-107.5 and FM-106.3.)