The Lions are back at it in 2024, proposing another four potential rule changes that will be discussed at the upcoming owners meetings in Orlando at the end of the month. Here’s a look at the four different rule changes they’ve proposed:
1. Teams can earn a third challenge by winning one of their first two challenges
The Lions proposed this exact rule change last year, but it was not adopted. Current NFL rules allow teams to have two challenges per game. The only way a team can be awarded a third is if they get both of their first two challenges correct. Here’s how the Lions’ rule proposal reads:
This one requires a bit of explaining. Under the current roster rules, if a player suffers a significant injury during training camp or in the preseason, a team has two options:
- Place them on IR immediately, and they won’t be eligible to return that season
- Have them make the initial 53-man roster, stay on that roster for a day, then place them on IR—where they’d be eligible to return at some point in the season.
- In order to keep injured players that they want to return during the season, this has forced teams to play roster gymnastics. For example, cutting a veteran player and re-signing them back a day later once the team can place an injured player on IR-to-return.