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Nfl Bars First-year Players Who Sign With College Teams From Returning In 2026

The college-to-NFL-to-college ping-pong game will not include a return to the NFL.

Via multiple reports, NFL teams will be informed on Wednesday that players who return to college will not be permitted to return to the NFL during the 2026 season.

Also, any player who goes from the NFL to college will not re-enter the draft. Instead, they will be free agents in 2027.

Any rules in this regard presumably require a modification, or at least a clarification, of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

The CBA already addresses one specific wrinkle that could become relevant in 2027, when the NCAA's new five-year rule goes into effect. If a team drafts a player who returns to college, the team holds that player's rights in the same slot as of the year that his college eligibility expires.

We floated that possibility last year, as Shedeur Sanders fell through the first four rounds of the draft. By next year, the theoretical move could become commonplace, if a player with a fifth year in his back pocket is drafted lower than expected and decides to make another year of NIL money before starting his NFL career.

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Nfl Bars First-year Players Who Sign With College Teams From Returning In 2026

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