Why Detroit Lions Will Forfeit Monday OTA? What Rule Did They Violate?

The Detroit Lions have gotten themselves into troubled waters. They are barred from the OTAs on Monday. This unexpected situation happened because the team didn’t adhere to the rules and regulations of the OTAs. On-field physical contact between the players is not allowed and as a result, the team is asked to forfeit their practice by CBA.

“On Friday evening the organization was made aware by the NFL and NFLPA that Organized Team Activities (OTA) practices held the week of May 27 violated player work rules pertaining to on-field physical contact pursuant to the Collective Bargaining Agreement,” said the press release.

The statement further added, “As a result, the team’s OTA practice scheduled for Monday, June 10 has been forfeited. We take very seriously the rules set forth within the NFL’s Offseason Program and have worked to conduct our practices accordingly. We will continue to be vigilant with our practices moving forward.”

The Lions already had their mandatory minicamp last week, but conducted two OTA workout sessions from May 21-23 and May 29-31. The session on Monday is supposed to be their last one. However, they are barred from it for now, unless anything changes. The team made a statement with clarification. But what exactly are the rules behind the forfeit?

The nuances that make or break the OTAs

As stated earlier, no live contact is to be initiated in the OTAs. This includes one-on-one offense vs defense drills, which means no O-Lineman vs D-Lineman drills, no wide receivers vs. DBs, and no one-on-one offense vs. defense special teams drills are allowed. However, there are some exceptions to the training.

The teams can engage in 10-on-10 or 7-on-7 drills which mainly pertain to footwork and release work training. Even if they take part in such training, only hand contact is allowed, and the defensive players are not permitted to alter a receiver’s route in any shape or form. To clear any confusion, the NFL, along with the concerned team agree to the rules on regulations of training for press coverage.

The training on Monday was mostly applicable to the rookies, with a handful of semi-veteran players. The rest of the team has already participated in the OTAs that happened earlier. Though this might come as a bummer for the Detroit Lions, violation of CBA rules isn’t something out of the ordinary.

In 2022, it was reported that the Chicago Bears had lost their training on similar grounds as the Detroit Lions. Also, certain teams like the Dallas Cowboys, the Jaguars, and the 49ers have also violated the rules and have had their training revoked.