NFL regulations apply. A player who is "not immediately available for involvement with a club" may be placed on injured reserve (reserve/injury list) by a team. Teams may also place a player on injured reserve with a minor injury classification, but the player must be released after he has recovered. If a player remains on injured reserve after being classified as such, then the team has lost its chance to claim it off of another team's active roster. The player can be removed from injured reserve at any time before Week 1; however, if he is not activated by that team, he will have to sit out the entire season. When a player is placed on injured reserve, a new spot opens up on the active roster. So even though a player is injured and cannot play, a team can still decide to keep him on the active roster in order to have some insurance in case someone else gets hurt or performs poorly. A player can be activated before Week 1 provided that his injury is confirmed valid by the team doctor and he passes a physical examination. Otherwise, he will have to stay on the reserve/injured list. Being inactive in the NFL means that you are unable to play due to an injury. It does not matter how long you are inactive, once your team places you on injured reserve, you cannot play until you are reinstated by that team. This rule was created because anyone who is injured could potentially end up suffering from long-term effects from their injury.