At their quarterly meeting, NFL owners approved the following rule changes:

1. NFL owners voted to require players to wear knee and thigh pads starting in 2013. Since this was not part of the new CBA, the NFLPA could theoretically intercede, although it appears that the owners would ultimately win.

2. The owners voted to move the trade deadline from after Week 6 to after Week 8.

3. The owners voted to allow one 'marquee' player who was placed on injured-reserve to return to practice after the sixth game and to return to the lineup after the eighth game. That player must be on the 53-man roster after the final preseason cut, however.