NFL OKs rule changes, including one that Bears WR Mooney seems to be excited about
The NFL approved more than a dozen new rules, bylaws and resolutions on Tuesday at the NFL Owners Meetings in Phoenix. Here are a few noteworthy changes coming in 2023:
• Players may now wear the No. 0. (Offensive and defensive linemen are not allowed to wear it.)
Some players already appear to be excited about the addition of No. 0. Jaguars receiver Calvin Ridley has already announced that he will wear it, and the Jaguars already updated the roster on their website Tuesday to reflect that.
Bears receiver Darnell Mooney shared news of the change on his Twitter account and included emojis of eyes and smirking faces. Could Mooney, who currently wears No. 11, be planning a number change?
• Replay officials may now allow for reviews on failed fourth-down attempts at any point in a game.
• There will now be only one cut-down day during training camp for rosters to be reduced from 90 players to 53. In the past, there were tiers of cuts. Previously, teams had separate dates to cut the roster down to 85 players, then to 80, then subsequently down to 53.
The resolution that changed the cut-down deadline was submitted in conjunction by 25 teams, including the Bears, indicating it had wide appeal across the league.
Keeping 90 players on the roster throughout training camp will give teams more bodies during those summer practices. It also means that teams will have 10 additional players available during the third and final preseason game, when many teams rest their starters.
It will make for a hectic cut-down day; with 37 players from each team being cut, there could be as many as 1,184 players cut on one day.
• When an injured player has been "designated for return" to practice but technically remains on the injured reserve list, that player must now be listed on the weekly injury report and must have a game day status designation. Previously, teams did not have to include such players on the injury report.
Not this time:
Several more proposals were not approved. including one to make roughing the passer reviewable.
A proposal to replace onside kicks with a fourth-and-20 deep inside a team's own territory was not approved. A similar rule has been used in the XFL this spring. There is a desire among owners to improve onside kick recovery rates, per the NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. In 2022, just 4% of attempts were recovered by the kicking team, marking an all-time low. But no changes to the rule are coming in 2023.
Additionally, a proposed rule change allowing for an emergency QB was not approved. Teams are currently allowed to carry only 46 active players on game day. Many teams elect to include only two quarterbacks among those 46. The proposal would've allowed teams to add a 47th player, but that player would have to be a quarterback. The league used to have a similar rule, but it was abolished in 2011. The failed proposal came after both active QBs on the 49ers roster suffered injuries in the NFC championship game.