:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/37137652/20140808_ajw_ah7_305.JPG.0.jpg)
Some pretty big news just coming over the wire for guys that might be on the bottom part of National Football League rosters.
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com, next week the National Football League will expand practice squads for all teams from eight players to ten. That means an extra 64 jobs available for players across the league, and an opportunity for guys that might be hitting the street here in the next couple of weeks to keep their NFL dreams alive.
Per Schefter's report, the change will take place before roster reductions at the end of the month. Teams have to reduce their rosters to 75 by 3 PM Central time on August 26, and to 53 by 3 PM Central time on August 30. Teams can then start filling their practice squads on 31 August.
Here are the rules about practice squad eligibility, from Article 33 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (courtesy of our friends from Niners Nation).
Section 4. Eligibility:
(a) The Practice Squad shall consist of the following players, provided that they have not served more than two previous seasons on a Practice Squad: (i) players who do not have an Accrued Season of NFL experience; and (ii) free agent players who were on the Active List for fewer than nine regular season games during their only Accrued Season(s). An otherwise eligible player may be a Practice Squad player for a third season only if the Club by which he is employed that season has at least 53 players on its Active/Inactive List during the entire period of his employment.
A player shall be deemed to have served on a Practice Squad in a season if he has passed the club's physical and been a member of the club's Practice Squad for at least three regular season or postseason games during his first two Practice Squad seasons, and for at least one regular season or postseason game during his third Practice Squad season. (For purposes of this Section, a bye week counts as a game provided that the player is not terminated until after the regular season or postseason weekend in question.)