As of 3:00pm central time this past Sunday, NFL teams could begin adding players to injured reserve lists with the designation to return. Unlike the usual IR list, which keeps a player inactive all season or until he reaches an injury settlement with his team, this shorter-term IR list allows a player to begin practicing after six weeks and to begin playing in games after eight weeks.
Of course, whereas the standard injured reserve list can accommodate several players at once, NFL teams can only use the designation to return on one player, so teams must be cautious about how to fire that single bullet. Given the eight-week timeframe for the IR-DTR slot, most clubs will use it during the season’s first few weeks if they need to use it at all.
So far, a handful of clubs have taken advantage of the opportunity to use the IR-DTR spot — we’ll list all those players right here. If other clubs decide to use their openings at any point, we’ll note that below as well. This post can be found anytime on our right-hand sidebar under the Nerdy Football Features menu.
Here’s the full list so far:
AFC East:
- Buffalo Bills: Unused
- Miami Dolphins: Used on RB Jay Ajayi (rib)
- New England Patriots: Unused
- New York Jets: Used on CB Dee Milliner (wrist)
AFC North:
- Baltimore Ravens: Unused
- Cincinnati Bengals: Unused
- Cleveland Browns: Used on CB Charles Gaines (hamstring)
- Pittsburgh Steelers: Used on C Maurkice Pouncey (fibula)
AFC South:
- Houston Texans: Unused
- Indianapolis Colts: Unused
- Jacksonville Jaguars: Unused
- Tennessee Titans: Used on RB David Cobb (calf)
AFC West:
- Denver Broncos: Unused
- Kansas City Chiefs: Unused
- Oakland Raiders: Unused
- San Diego Chargers: Unused
NFC East:
- Dallas Cowboys: Unused
- New York Giants: Unused
- Philadelphia Eagles: Unused
- Washington: Unused
NFC North:
- Chicago Bears: Unused
- Detroit Lions: Used on CB Alex Carter (ankle)
- Green Bay Packers: Unused
- Minnesota Vikings: Unused
NFC South:
- Atlanta Falcons: Unused
- Carolina Panthers: Unused
- New Orleans Saints: Unused
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Used on T Demar Dotson (MCL)
NFC West:
- Arizona Cardinals: Unused
- San Francisco 49ers: Unused
- Seattle Seahawks: Unused
- St. Louis Rams: Unused
