4:51pm: Jackson passed his physical today, so his release appears to be contract-related rather than health-related, tweets Zac Boyer of the Washington Times. Meanwhile, a person familiar with the situation tells Mike Jones of the Washington Post (Twitter link) not to rule out a potential return to Washington for Jackson, though nothing is set in stone yet.
3:44pm: Shortly after he was reinstated following an indefinite suspension by the NFL, Tanard Jackson will hit the free agent market. The Redskins have terminated Jackson’s minimum-salary contract, according to Brian McIntyre (via Twitter).
Jackson, 28, was effective early in his career in Tampa Bay after being selected by the Buccaneers in the fourth round of the 2007 draft. He hasn’t appeared in a regular-season NFL game since 2011, however. Given his past violations of the league’s substance abuse policy, and question marks about his conditioning following his absence, it could be an uphill battle for him to earn an NFL roster spot this year.
Still, the timing of the move comes as a bit of a surprise, since Redskins general manager Bruce Allen indicated earlier today that the team may give Jackson a chance this summer. The safety had been expected to take a physical this afternoon, so perhaps the club was unimpressed with the results of that exam.