NFL Injured Reserve Rules

As a football fan, nothing is as devastating as seeing the star quarterback, go-to wide receiver or workhorse running back go down with a serious injury. This can be especially traumatic in the National Football League, as the NFL injured reserve rules are some of the strictest in all of professional sports.

  1. Players on Injured Reserve

    • According to the official NFL injured reserve rules, once a player is placed on the I.R. list, he is unable to return to play until the end of his team's current schedule. Furthermore, he may not practice with his team until the conclusion of that season.

    Past NFL Injured Reserve Rules

    • The current NFL injured reserve rules were put in place in the mid-1980s. Before that, the rules dictated that a player only needed to miss the entire season if he was put on the I.R. list during the preseason. However, anyone put on injured reserve during the regular season only needed to miss at least four games.

    Reason for the Rule Changes

    • It has been said that injured reserve policy in the National Football League was changed because some franchise owners believed the rule was being abused. The suspicion was that some owners were using the rule to remove players who weren't hurt from the roster, thus freeing up space to sign an additional player and fill a need elsewhere on the team.

    Rule Violations

    • NFL players on injured reserve cannot practice with their team. In 2008, a former New England video assistant came forward and said that Patriots coach Bill Belichick had allowed players on the I.R. to practice with the team . The NFL investigated the matter as part of the now-infamous "Spygate" controversy, which resulted in the team being fined and stripped of a draft pick.

    Controversy

    • On January 30, 2009, the Chicago Tribune ran a story about Pittsburgh Steelers RB Rashan Mendenhall. Mendenhall, who was injured early in the season and subsequently placed on I.R., was healthy and could have participated in Super Bowl XLIII had NFL rules not prohibited it. Rumblings in the media and among fans suggest the rule should be changed again.