Practice squad

Last updated

In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scout team by emulating an upcoming opponent's play style. Because the players on the practice squad are familiar with the team's plays and formations, the practice squad serves as a way to develop inexperienced players for promotion to the main roster. [1] This is particularly important for professional gridiron football teams, which do not have formal minor league farm team affiliates to train players. In addition, it provides replacement players for the main roster when players are needed as the result of injuries or other roster moves, such as bereavement leave. [2]

Contents

National Football League

History

During the 1940s, Cleveland Browns coach Paul Brown invented the "taxi squad," a group of promising scouted players who did not make the roster but were kept on reserve. To avoid All-America Football Conference payroll rules, team owner Arthur "Mickey" McBride, put them instead on the payroll of his taxicab company, Yellow Cab of Cleveland, though those players never performed any work for Yellow Cab, much less drove taxicabs. [3] The name stuck, and the practice of retaining a squad of ready reserves spread throughout professional football. However, the National Football League (NFL) did not officially recognize the existence of taxi squads until February 18, 1965. On that date, the NFL team owners formally adopted a 40-man active roster supplemented by a taxi squad of unregulated size, [4] which was officially termed the "future list." [5] Over the next few seasons, the NFL gradually limited the allowable number of inactive players to seven, and regulations were established in relation to injured reserve and waiver practices. [6] [7] In 1974, the NFL eliminated the taxi squad altogether, moving the seven inactive spots into an expanded 47-man active roster. [8] Beginning in 1977, a more limited inactive system was introduced (often consisting of either two or four players, depending on the season), and these players were sometimes referred to as taxi squad members. [9] [10]

Mechanism

Players may be signed to a practice squad for several reasons: for lack of space on the team, due to injury, or because they require more development. Practice squad players can be signed to any team's 53-man active roster, without compensation to their former team, at any time during the season. Many NFL players spent time on practice squads before finding success in the league, such as James Harrison, Adrian Phillips, Jason Peters, Danny Amendola, Danny Woodhead, Arian Foster, and Kyle Cook. [11] [12]

The practice squad is only in effect during the regular season and postseason. Once a team's season finishes, practice squad players are typically signed to reserve/futures contracts by their teams, enabling them to be members of the team's 90-man offseason roster at the start of the new league year in March. [13] Typical practice squad contracts automatically terminate one week after the team's final regular season or postseason game of the season. [14]

The 2020 collective bargaining agreement allowed for teams to elevate up to two players per week to the active roster from the practice squad. Such promotions must be made the day before the team's game, and allow the player to automatically revert to the practice squad without having to clear waivers. [15] Players were allowed to be elevated to active rosters for up to two weeks in a regular season starting in 2020, and up to three weeks starting in 2022. [16]

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, beginning in 2020, teams were able to designate up to four practice squad player protections, which prevented other teams from signing those players to their active rosters. [17] Practice squad protections ended after the 2021 season. [18] Additional protocols were in place for activation of large numbers of practice squad players in the event of an outbreak. [19]

Squad size

In the 1993 collective bargaining agreement, practice squads were limited to five players. [20] The practice squad expanded to eight players on April 1, 2004, following a vote from NFL owners. [21] In August 2014, the practice squad expanded to 10 players. [22] The 2020 collective bargaining agreement increased the size of practice squads to 12 players starting in 2020 and 14 players beginning in 2022, [23] but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NFL increased the practice squad size to 16 for the 2020 season. [24] This size increase was made permanent effective with the 2022 season. [16]

Eligibility

In 1998, eligibility limits were imposed to allow only players without an accrued season or players who had one accrued season but were active for less than nine games that season. Players could only be members of the practice squad for up to two seasons. One practice squad season was defined in 1998 as having been on the squad for at least three games in a season, with bye weeks counting as a game. [20]

In 2006, a third practice squad season for a player became possible as long as the team had 53 players on their active roster for the duration of the player's time on the practice squad that season. The player was considered to have served a third season as a practice squad member if they were on the squad for at least one game that season. [25]

Until the 2011 season, games in which a player is listed as the third-string quarterback (using the third quarterback rule) did not count as being on the active list. Former quarterback Mike Quinn, who was listed as the third-string quarterback for several teams throughout his career, was practice squad eligible during his eighth NFL season. [26]

In August 2014, eligibility was expanded by increasing the number of games in a season a player must be on the squad in order for that season to count as one of the player's three seasons of eligibility from three games to six games. Finally, each practice squad could include two players who have accrued too much playing time to be eligible for the squad under the previous rules, though these players may have no more than two accrued seasons in the league. [22] Starting with the 2016 season, up to four veteran players were allowed to be on the practice squad. [27] Beginning in 2022, up to six veteran players with two or more accrued seasons were allowed on a team's practice squad at a time. [16]

Salaries

The minimum salaries were $3,300 per week from 1993 to 1997; $3,650 per week from 1998 to 1999; $4,000 per week from 2000 to 2002; and $4,350 per week from 2003 to 2004. [20] The minimum salaries were $4,700 per week from 2006 to 2007; and $5,200 per week from 2008 to 2010. [25] The minimum salaries were $5,700 per week from 2011 to 2012; $6,000 per week in 2013; $6,300 per week in 2014; $6,600 per week in 2015; $6,900 per week in 2016; $7,200 per week in 2017; $7,600 per week in 2018; and $8,000 per week in 2019. [28]

Those on the practice squad are paid 18 weeks a year for the regular season, like active players, however unlike the latter there are no signing bonuses nor guaranteed salaries. Practice squad players earn considerably less than active squad players: in 2020, the minimum salary for a practice squad player was $8,400 per week ($142,800 for 17 weeks), and the minimum rookie salary was $610,000. [29] Some practice squad players are paid considerably more, however. In 2006, the New England Patriots paid third-year player Billy Yates the full $425,000 he would have earned as a member of the team's active roster. [30]

Canadian Football League

The Canadian Football League (CFL) follows similar rules to the NFL with regards to practice squad players, but has unique rules due to its nationality-based player designation and roster ratio system, where Canadian citizens are considered "national" players and non-Canadians are considered either "international" or "global" players. Each CFL team is normally limited to 10 players on their practice squads (2 of which must be national players) and their salaries count against their teams' salary caps. A CFL practice squad roster may further be expanded to 12 with "global" players (see "international players" below). Due to the CFL seasons starting before the NFL's and its position as a smaller sister-league to the NFL, each team's practice squad is temporary expanded to 15 players (17 when counting "global" players) following the NFL's roster cuts at the beginning of the NFL season; the extra 5 players do not count against a team's salary cap. [31]

XFL and NFL Europe

The second incarnation of the XFL, which held its sole brief season in 2020, in lieu of individual teams having their own practice squads, operated a centralized "Team 9" that acted as both a practice squad and farm team for the entire league. This team had its own coaches and staff but did not play any on-record games. Team 9 players were paid the league minimum salary for inactive players, $1,040 per week. [32] A similar system was reportedly used by the now-defunct NFL Europe, the NFL's European developmental league. [32]

College and high school football

In college football, players who are on a team's roster and practice with the team but do not play are known as redshirts. Redshirts consist mostly of freshmen and of transfer students who are not eligible to play in games due to NCAA rules. If a player plays through one entire season as a redshirt, that season does not count toward their limit of four years of eligibility to play college football; in rare circumstances, usually stemming from major injuries, a player may be granted a second redshirt year. [33] Before the 2018 season, a player lost redshirt status with his first game appearance in that season; since then, redshirt status is lost only if the player appears in more than four games during that season. [34] Prior to 1972, the NCAA prohibited freshmen from participating in varsity games, though they could practice with the varsity team and compete on separate freshmen teams, similar to junior varsity teams in high school football. [35]

International players

The practice squad has also been used by professional teams and leagues as a way to bring in and train players from outside the United States or Canada, where gridiron football is not a popular sport, as an attempt to foster international interest. In the CFL, players from outside Canada are designated "international" players, which is usually used in reference to American players, but a subset of "international" players known as "global" players was implemented in 2019 to refer to players originating from outside the United States and Canada. [36] This section, for both the NFL and CFL, refers to players that would be eligible for the CFL's "global" designation.

NFL

The NFL has operated programs in which selected international players were assigned to teams' practice squads as an extra member who did not count towards a team's maximum practice squad size.

The first, called the International Practice Squad Program, began operation in 2004. [37] In 2005, Rolando Cantu of Mexico was promoted to the Arizona Cardinals' active roster after spending the previous season on the practice squad as a member of the program. [38] Players from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Japan, and Russia also participated. [37] In 2008, the program sponsored sixteen players, the largest number ever. [38] The program was discontinued for 2009. The rule allowing for an extra practice squad player of international origin, however, remained in the NFL's rulebook and teams attempted to use the rule even after the demise of the program. For example, in 2013 the Detroit Lions attempted to use it to add Norwegian kicker Håvard Rugland to their practice squad, but were rejected by the NFL, which stated that the rule was meant to be used for players from NFL Europe, which folded after the 2007 season. [39]

A new program, the International Player Pathway, was created in 2017. This new initiative started as a trial involving only NFC South teams. Each team in the division was allowed to sign one international player to its practice squad who would not count against the normal 10-player limit, but would not be eligible to be activated during the season after being signed. [40] The pathway was expanded to eight teams (NFC South and AFC North) for the 2018 season. [41]

Additionally, several international players have tried to find their starts in the NFL through spending time on teams practice squads without having initially been part of these programs, such as Efe Obada, Moritz Böhringer, and Jarryd Hayne.

CFL

In the CFL, the "global" player designation was started in 2019 as part of an international partnership with amateur and semi-pro leagues in Mexico and Europe. In addition to the requirement of each CFL team to have one "global" player on their active rosters, each team may have a maximum of two "global" players on their practice squad who do not count against the team's normal practice squad size limit. Each "global" player designated is paid the CFL minimum salary and a portion of their salary may be sent back to the leagues they were taken from, depending on partnership arrangements; players taken from Mexico, for example, currently have 10% of their salaries sent to the Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional, Mexico's top level American football league. [42]

Other sports

In the National Hockey League, the term "taxi squad" was used for the 2020–21 season to describe a group of players who traveled with but did not play for their respective teams until called upon to do so in the event that a positive COVID-19 case on the team forced the club to make a call-up immediately. The concept was used exclusively for that season; league deputy commissioner Bill Daly said it would likely not be used in future seasons as it was devised solely to circumvent the difficulties in summoning back-up players that were presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. [43] On December 26, 2021, after a large number of disruptions to the 2021–22 season schedule due to COVID-19 issues within teams (including a suspension of all games from December 23–27), the NHL announced that it would reinstate the rule. [44]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Football League</span> Professional Canadian football league

The Canadian Football League is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a city in Canada. They are divided into two divisions: four teams in the East Division and five teams in the West Division.

In professional sports, a salary cap is an agreement or rule that places a limit on the amount of money that a team can spend on players' salaries. It exists as a per-player limit or a total limit for the team's roster, or both. Several sports leagues have implemented salary caps, using them to keep overall costs down, and also to maintain a competitive balance by restricting richer clubs from entrenching dominance by signing many more top players than their rivals. Salary caps can be a major issue in negotiations between league management and players' unions because they limit players' and teams' ability to negotiate higher salaries even if a team is operating at significant profits, and have been the focal point of several strikes by players and lockouts by owners and administrators.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Football League Players Association</span> American labor union

The National Football League Players Association, or NFLPA, is a labor union representing National Football League (NFL) players. The NFLPA, which has headquarters in Washington, D.C., is led by president J. C. Tretter and executive director DeMaurice Smith. Founded in 1956, the NFLPA is the second-oldest labor union of the four major professional sports leagues; it was established to provide players with formal representation to negotiate compensation and the terms of a collective bargaining agreement (CBA). The NFLPA is a member of the AFL–CIO, the largest federation of unions in the United States.

The injured reserve list is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in the National Football League (NFL) and National Hockey League (NHL), the "injured list" in the Canadian Football League (CFL), and the injured list in Major League Baseball (MLB). The National Basketball Association (NBA) does not have a direct analog to an injured reserve list, instead using a more general-purpose "inactive list" that does not require a player to be injured.

The National Football League preseason is the period each year during which NFL teams play several not-for-the-record exhibition games before the actual "regular" season starts. Beginning with the featured Pro Football Hall of Fame game in early August, three weekends of exhibition games are played in the NFL to date. The start of the preseason is intrinsically tied to the last week of training camp.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">T. J. Jones</span> Canadian-born American football player (born 1992)

Tai-ler "T. J." Fitzgerald Jones is a former American-Canadian professional American football wide receiver. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the sixth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at Notre Dame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brett Jones (gridiron football)</span> Canadian gridiron football player (born 1991)

Brett Jones is a Canadian professional American football center who is currently a free agent. He previously played for the New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings, as well as the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). After the 2012 CIS season, he was ranked as the eighth best player in the Canadian Football League's Amateur Scouting Bureau final rankings for players eligible in the 2013 CFL Draft and fifth by players in Canadian Interuniversity Sport. He played CIS football for the Regina Rams.

The NFL collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is a labor agreement which reflects the results of collective bargaining negotiations between the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) and National Football League (NFL). The labor agreement classifies distribution of league revenues, sets health and safety standards and establishes benefits, including pensions and medical benefits, for all players in the NFL. The first collective bargaining agreement was reached in 1968 after player members of the NFLPA voted to go on strike to increase salaries, pensions and benefits for all players in the league. Later negotiations of the collective bargaining agreement called for injury grievances, a guaranteed percentage of revenues for players, an expansion of free agency and other issues impacting the business of the NFL. The NFLPA and team owners have negotiated seven different agreements since 1968.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jalin Marshall</span> American football player (born 1995)

Jalin Delane Marshall is an American football wide receiver and return specialist for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He signed with the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent following the 2016 NFL Draft. He played college football at Ohio State. He has also played for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (CFL) and Orlando Apollos of the Alliance of American Football (AAF).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Singleton (linebacker)</span> American gridiron football player (born 1993)

Alex Reed Singleton is an American football linebacker for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Montana State and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Seattle Seahawks after the 2015 NFL Draft. He also previously played for the New England Patriots, Minnesota Vikings, Calgary Stampeders, and Philadelphia Eagles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional</span> Semi-pro American football league in Mexico

The Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional, commonly known simply as LFA, is a professional american football spring league in Mexico, founded in 2016. Starting with four teams, the LFA has since expanded to eleven members as of 2022. The championship game is called Tazón México, and is currently played on the second Sunday in May. The players are drafted from the country's two college football conferences: ONEFA and CONADEIP and through international drafts, which mainly recruit American players.

The 2019 CFL season was the 66th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it was the 62nd Canadian Football League season. The regular season began on June 13 and concluded with the playing of the 107th Grey Cup in Calgary on November 24 —where the Winnipeg Blue Bombers defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 33–12 to win their first Grey Cup since 1990.

The 2020 CFL season would have been the 67th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it would have been the 63rd season of the Canadian Football League.

The International Player Pathway Program (IPPP) is a scheme run by the National Football League (NFL) to increase the number of non-American and Canadian players in the NFL. The program was formed as part of the NFL's strategy to grow globally as it provides athletes with the opportunity to play in the league which will increase the pool of talent and ultimately drive fan growth globally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sua Opeta</span> American football player (born 1996)

Iosua Opeta is an American football guard for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for Weber State, he was signed by the Eagles as an undrafted free agent in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jordan Kunaszyk</span> American football player (born 1996)

Jordan Kunaszyk is an American football linebacker for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at California and signed with the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent in 2019.

Wesley Ed Hills is an American football running back for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football for Delaware and Slippery Rock (PA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan Hunter</span> Canadian gridiron football player (born 1995)

Ryan Hunter is a Canadian gridiron football offensive lineman for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He has also been a member of the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL).

Josiah Bronson is an American football defensive end for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Washington and signed with New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2021.

J. J. Koski is an American football wide receiver for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Cal Poly.

References

  1. ↑ Thomas, Jeanna (September 2, 2017). "Here's how NFL practice squads work". SB Nation. New York, NY: Vox Media.
  2. ↑ "Here’s how NFL practice squads work".
  3. ↑ Cantor 2008, p. 95.
  4. ↑ "NFL Player Limit (40)". Herald News . February 19, 1965. Retrieved May 23, 2020– via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ Roesler, Bob (September 29, 1968). "Behind the Sports Scene". The Times-Picayune. New Orleans. sec. 6, p. 2.
  6. ↑ Belloni, Nat (August 22, 1968). "Bliss Among the Tall Pines". New Orleans States-Item. New Orleans. p. 17.
  7. ↑ Roesler, Bob (May 6, 1970). "Behind the Sports Scene". The Times-Picayune. New Orleans. sec. 2, p. 6.
  8. ↑ McMillen, Larry (September 11, 1974). "Williams Heads Cuts by Saints". The Times-Picayune. New Orleans. sec. 3, p. 1.
  9. ↑ Marshall, Bob (September 13, 1977). "Four More Saints to Go Today". The States-Item. New Orleans. p. C1.
  10. ↑ Janofsky, Michael (November 8, 1982). "Rozelle: Super Bowl Rooms to be Released". The Times-Picayune/The States-Item. New Orleans. sec. 3, p. 3.
  11. ↑ "Houston Texans - Arian Foster Profile". Houston Texans. houstontexans.com. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Patriots.com". Patriots.com. New England Patriots. Archived from the original on August 21, 2014. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
  13. ↑ Dunleavy, Ryan (May 23, 2020). "What is a NFL futures contract? Closer look at first 12 Giants signed this offseason". NJ.com. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  14. ↑ CBA 2020, p. 360.
  15. ↑ Vitali, Carmen (March 15, 2020). "New CBA Brings Immediate Changes for 2020 NFL Season". Buccaneers.com. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  16. 1 2 3 Rapien, James (May 29, 2022). "NFL Makes Changes to Practice Squad Rules Ahead of 2022 Season". SI.com. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
  17. ↑ "Chiefs could benefit from expansion to 16-man practice squad". Chiefs Wire. July 24, 2020. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  18. ↑ Florio, Mike (September 17, 2022). "Browns elevate Jordan Kunasyzk, Roderick Perry from practice squad". NBCSports.com. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
  19. ↑ "NFL reportedly proposes expansion of practice squad and here are the details". CBSSports.com. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  20. 1 2 3 "National Football League Management Council and National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) (1993)". Cornell University. 2008. Archived from the original on January 10, 2009. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  21. ↑ Tomlinson, Dylan B. (April 1, 2004). "Tice says Vikings should have plenty of motivation". The Post-Crescent . Retrieved May 23, 2020– via Newspapers.com.
  22. 1 2 "NFL Practice Squads Expand to 10 Players". National Football League. August 19, 2014. Archived from the original on September 11, 2014. Retrieved September 18, 2014.
  23. ↑ Battista, Judy (March 15, 2020). "NFL players approve CBA: Impact on league in 2020 and beyond". NFL.com.
  24. ↑ "Chiefs could benefit from expansion to 16-man practice squad". Chiefs Wire. July 24, 2020. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  25. 1 2 "NFL–NFLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement 2006" (PDF). NFL.com. March 8, 2006. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  26. ↑ Bouchette, Ed (September 22, 2004). "Quarterback Quinn Signs Up for Practice Squad". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved September 19, 2009.
  27. ↑ Wilson, Aaron (June 22, 2016). "NFL changes rules for practice-squad members". Houston Chronicle . Retrieved June 22, 2016.
  28. ↑ "NFL–NFLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement 2011" (PDF). NFL Labor. August 4, 2011. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  29. ↑ CBA 2020, p. 172.
  30. ↑ Reiss, Mike (September 19, 2007). "NFL hunting for answer on how Fox got Patriots video". The Boston Globe. Retrieved July 2, 2009.
  31. ↑ CFL Roster Makeup — A CFLdb Razzle Document
  32. 1 2 Rachuk, Stephan (April 24, 2019). "Oliver Luck talks TV deals, Draft and XFL's "Team 9" | XFL2k". XFL2K.com. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  33. ↑ "How to Become an NFL Football Player".
  34. ↑ Dellenger, Ross (June 13, 2018). "The NCAA's Redshirt Rule Change Is a Major Win for Both Coaches and Players". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved July 27, 2018.
  35. ↑ "A Brief History of Freshman Eligibility and Race in the NCAA". October 22, 2015.
  36. ↑ "Global additions set to make history in Week 1". June 11, 2019.
  37. 1 2 Williamson, Bill (June 12, 2008). "International practice-squad players assigned". ESPN. Archived from the original on September 11, 2009.
  38. 1 2 NFL Expands International Practice Squad Program Archived July 11, 2008, at the Wayback Machine , The News Tribune , May 23, 2008.
  39. ↑ "Kickalicious says league rejected Lions' attempt to keep him on practice squad". nbcsports.com. September 12, 2013. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  40. ↑ Patra, Kevin (May 25, 2017). "International players added to four practice squads". Around the NFL. NFL.com . Retrieved May 27, 2017.
  41. ↑ "NFL expands program for overseas practice squad players". AP NEWS. May 1, 2018.
  42. ↑ BARNES: Mexican players who make an active CFL roster will hand over 10% of salary for a scholarship fund
  43. ↑ Rosen, Dan (January 13, 2021). "NHL realignment, taxi squad for only one season, Daly says in Q&A". NHL.com. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  44. ↑ "NHL, NHLPA agree to temporary taxi squads for COVID-19". NHL.com. Retrieved December 27, 2021.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.