The 49ers lost both of their active quarterbacks to injuries in the NFC Championship Game, essentially turning them into a run-only offense and ending any chance they had of upsetting the Eagles. That prompted a call for a return of the emergency quarterback.
The Lions formally proposed a rule that would allow for a third quarterback to dress on game days and enter the game if the other two quarterbacks are injured.
Owners tabled it Tuesday but expect to discuss it again in May.
Under the proposal, teams could designate one player on their inactive list or practice squad to be eligible to play in the event that their first two quarterbacks are ruled out due to injuries. If a practice squad player is used in that role, it would not count as one of the three elevations practice squad players can make before being subject to release or waivers.
“We talked through it. I think there is a lot of support for it,” Competition Committee chairman Rich McKay said. “There’s just a lot of logistics that go into it. Then, there’s the question of: Should that third quarterback rule apply to the practice squad player or only a player on the 53? There’s definitely a difference of opinion when it comes to that.
“I think our idea was to work on that, and it could be something that shows up this year. We’ll talk about it again in May. But I do believe there was a lot of support for it.”
Teams are free to carry three (or more) quarterbacks on their gameday rosters now but rarely does a team do so.