EAGAN, Minn. (AP) – NFL owners on Monday approved a rule change that allows teams to play an emergency quarterback from the inactive list if the first two are injured during a game, a decision stemming from San Francisco’s depth US chart challenge results in NFC championship game.
The bylaws were originally proposed by the Detroit Lions. The third quarterback designation does not count against the active player limit (either 47 or 48) set 90 minutes before kickoff.
Emergency Activation can only occur following an injury or disqualification, not as a result of a performance decision or other conduct. If one of the first two quarterbacks is cleared to return to the game by the team’s medical staff, the third must be removed from the game and may return as a quarterback only if an injury scenario recurs.
If a team puts three quarterbacks on the active list for a game, they cannot use the contingency option. An increase in the training squad on the day of the match is also not permitted.
49ers running back Christian McCaffery had his arm warmed up at the NFC Championship game in Philadelphia after Brock Purdy injured his elbow and Josh Johnson suffered a concussion. Purdy was pushed back into the game but couldn’t throw the ball more than 10 yards because the 49ers abandoned their game plan for a run-heavy attack in the 31-7 loss to the Eagles on Jan. 29.
NFL Commissioner Roger Godell attends the NFL Owners Meetings at the Omni Hotel in Eagan, Minnesota on Monday, May 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Andy Clayton-King)
Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/Andy Clayton-King
Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay speaks to reporters at the NFL Owners Meetings at the Omni Hotel on Monday, May 22, 2023 in Eagan, Minn. (AP Photo/Andy Clayton-King)
Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/Andy Clayton-King
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The 49ers had already lost their two best quarterbacks — Trey Lance in Week 2 and Jimmy Garoppolo in Week 13 — to season-ending injuries.
The league’s owners held their spring meetings Monday in Minnesota, with the upcoming sale of Dan Snyder’s family’s Washington Commanders to Josh Harris’ group remaining a major, if not urgent, issue. There will be no vote on the record $6.05 billion transaction this week.
“There are certain criteria that have to be met, and that’s the way it is. It’s not there yet, but that doesn’t mean it can’t get there. It’s complicated. Say it like this. I could explain it to you, but it wouldn’t tell you anything,” said Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay, a member of the league’s finance committee.
Neither Snyder nor his wife, Tanya, came to Minnesota for the meeting. The league wants to approve the deal before the start of the regular season, Irsay said. Irsay said the amount of money at stake and the number of investors involved in Harris’ group – which includes National Basketball Hall of Famer Magic Johnson – have lengthened the approval process.
“We work hard. Everyone wants to make it and needs to make sure it’s within league guidelines. It’s a complicated deal so we’re trying to just work through it and we’re confident we can pull it off. It will likely be several more weeks of discussion before we see if we can reach the finish line,” Irsay said.
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