The 2024 offseason brought a change in how teams could construct their 53-man rosters while retaining flexibility with injured players. Clubs were permitted to attach return designations to two players (in total) placed on IR or an NFI list before setting their initial rosters.
In prior years, anyone placed on IR before a team set its initial 53-man roster could not be activated in-season. All August 26 IR- or NFI-return designations, however, already count against teams’ regular-season limit of eight. Teams will be tasked with determining which players injured in-season will factor into activation puzzles as the year progresses.
All players designated for return on August 26 became eligible to be activated beginning in Week 5, though any player placed on IR after a team set its initial 53 has not been designated for return and therefore does not yet count toward a club’s eight-activation limit. Playoff teams will receive two additional injury activations once the postseason begins.
Here is how the 14 remaining teams’ activation puzzles look for the wild-card round:
Buffalo Bills
Eligible for activation:
- S Damar Hamlin (story)
- DT Ed Oliver (playoff return in play)
- S Taylor Rapp (unlikely to return this season)
- WR Curtis Samuel (story)
- CB Dorian Strong (story)
Activated:
- CB Maxwell Hairston (Week 8)
- DT T.J. Sanders (Week 11)
- OL Tylan Grable (Week 13)
- WR Mecole Hardman (Week 16)
Activations remaining: 6
Carolina Panthers
Designated for return:
- G Robert Hunt (12/24)
- G Chandler Zavala (1/6)
Activated:
- DE LaBryan Ray (Week 5)
- WR Jalen Coker (Week 7)
- C Austin Corbett (Week 7)
- G Chandler Zavala (Week 9)
- WR David Moore (wild-card round)
Activations remaining: 5
Chicago Bears
Designated for return:
- CB Kyler Gordon (1/6)
- T Braxton Jones (1/6)
Eligible for activation:
Activated:
- RB Travis Homer (Week 7)
- DE Austin Booker (Week 9)
- LB Amen Ogbongbemiga (Week 10)
- CB Kyler Gordon (Week 13)
- CB Jaylon Johnson (Week 13)
- LB Tremaine Edmunds (Week 16)
- OL Luke Newman (Week 17)
Activations remaining: 3
Denver Broncos
Designated for return (Aug. 26):
- LB Drew Sanders
Eligible for activation:
- RB J.K. Dobbins (playoff return in play)
- S Brandon Jones (eligible for divisional-round return)
- TE Lucas Krull (story)
- OL Matt Peart (story)
Activated:
- DL Malcolm Roach (Week 6)
- LB Dre Greenlaw (Week 7)
- LB Garret Wallow (Week 11)
- G Ben Powers (Week 16)
- LB Karene Reid (1/6)
Activations remaining: 4
Green Bay Packers
Eligible for activation:
- LB Nick Niemann
Activated:
- OL Jacob Monk (Week 7)
- WR Jayden Reed (Week 14)
- RB MarShawn Lloyd (Week 16)
- DL Brenton Cox (Week 16)
Activations remaining: 6
Houston Texans
Designated for return:
- CB Ajani Carter (12/23)
- WR Justin Watson (12/10)
Eligible for activation:
- DT Folorunso Fatukasi (story)
- S Jaylen Reed (story)
- CB Jaylin Smith (story)
Activated:
- S Jaylen Reed (Week 7)
- CB Jaylin Smith (Week 8)
- FB Jakob Johnson (Week 11)
- TE Cade Stover (Week 11)
- TE Harrison Bryant (Week 15)
- OLB Darrell Taylor (1/6)
Activations remaining: 4
Jacksonville Jaguars
Designated for return (Aug. 26):
- LB Jalen McLeod (practice window opened 12/16)
Activated:
- TE Brenton Strange (Week 12)
- S Eric Murray (Week 14)
Activations remaining: 7
Los Angeles Chargers
Eligible for activation in wild-card round:
- TE Tucker Fisk (story)
Activated:
- OLB Khalil Mack (Week 7)
- ILB Denzel Perryman (Week 7)
- DT Da’Shawn Hand (Week 10)
- LS Josh Harris (Week 10)
- DB Deane Leonard (Week 10)
- RB Omarion Hampton (Week 14)
- RB Hassan Haskins (Week 14)
- DL Otito Ogbonnia (Week 14)
Activations remaining: 2
Los Angeles Rams
Designated for return:
- CB Roger McCreary (12/24)
Eligible for activation:
- RT Rob Havenstein (story)
Activated:
- CB Ahkello Witherspoon (Week 13)
- WR Tutu Atwell (Week 15)
- TE Tyler Higbee (Week 18)
- S Quentin Lake (wild-card round)
Activations remaining: 6
New England Patriots
Eligible for activation:
- CB Alex Austin
- RB Terrell Jennings (story)
Activated:
- LB Jahlani Tavai (Week 5)
- LT Will Campbell (Week 18)
- DT Milton Williams (Week 18)
Activations remaining: 7
Philadelphia Eagles
Reverted to season-ending IR:
- T Myles Hinton (practice window closed 12/10)
- G Willie Lampkin (practice window closed 11/27)
Eligible for activation:
- OLB Azeez Ojulari (story)
Activated:
- WR Darius Cooper (Week 8)
- OLB Nolan Smith (Week 10)
- CB Jakorian Bennett (Week 11)
- S Marcus Epps (Week 14)
- LS Charley Hughlett (Week 15)
- T Cameron Williams (Week 18)
Activations remaining: 3
Pittsburgh Steelers
Reverted to season-ending IR:
- CB Donte Kent (practice window closed 12/24)
- DB Cory Trice (practice window closed 11/19)
Eligible for activation:
Activated:
- LB Malik Harrison (Week 9)
- QB Will Howard (Week 11)
Activations remaining: 7
San Francisco 49ers
Designated for return:
- WR Jacob Cowing (1/5)
Activated:
- DL Kevin Givens (Week 7)
- TE George Kittle (Week 7)
- OL Spencer Burford (Week 8)
- G Ben Bartch (Week 10)
- DE Yetur Gross-Matos (Week 16)
Activations remaining: 5
Seattle Seahawks
Eligible for activation:
- TE Elijah Arroyo (eligible for divisional-round activation)
- RB George Holani
- WR Tory Horton (story)
- LB Chazz Surratt
Activated:
- FB Robbie Ouzts (Week 9)
- G Christian Haynes (Week 11)
- S Julian Love (Week 14)
- DT Jarran Reed (Week 14)
- TE Eric Saubert (Week 15)
- C Jalen Sundell (Week 15)
- WR Dareke Young (Week 15)
Activations remaining: 3
So if the Bears activate Booker how do they only have 6 left? You get 8. That would be one. 8-1=7 right? They haven’t had time to do another one. Not to mention I hope they don’t activate the other 2 and just release them and sign them back if they must. There’s no rule that says they have to bring them back is there?
I appreciate the trackers but the single column formatting makes for a very long website scroll. Double columns would be better but I suppose that would interfere with ad space and perhaps not function well on the mobile app.
Not a good season to be named some variation of Jaylon
Jaylen Brown’s dad was arrested for allegedly stabbing a man 25 times during a parking lot dispute over a door ding.