2003 NFL season

Draft

Referee changes

Major rule changes

• If an onside kick inside the final five minutes of the game does not go 10 yards, goes out of bounds, or is touched illegally, the receiving team will have the option of accepting the penalty and getting the ball immediately. Previously, the kicking team was penalized, but had another chance to kick again from five yards back.
• League officials encouraged networks to immediately cut to a commercial break if an instant replay challenge review was initiated. Previously networks were generally not permitted to utilize those game stoppages for their prescribed commercial periods.

2003 deaths

• John Butler: A former General Manager with the Buffalo Bills, whose team qualified for Super Bowl XXVIII and the San Diego Chargers, he died of lymphoma on April 11, 2003.
• David Woodley: Having played for the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl XVII, Woodley died from complications due to kidney and liver failure on May 4, 2003. Twenty years after Super Bowl XVII, he became the youngest Super Bowl starting quarterback to die, until the death of Super Bowl XXXIV starter Steve McNair at age 36 in 2009. Woodley was buried at St. Joseph Cemetery in Shreveport, alongside his parents.

Pro Football Hall of Fame

• Sid Gillman: A former head coach and general manager with the San Diego Chargers, Gillman died in his sleep on January 3, 2003, at the age of 91. He was interred in the Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery in Culver City, California.

Milestones

Head coach/front office changes

• Cincinnati Bengals – Marvin Lewis replaced Dick LeBeau who was fired following the 2002 season.
• Dallas Cowboys – Bill Parcells replaced Dave Campo who was fired following the 2002 season.
• Detroit Lions – Steve Mariucci replaced Marty Mornhinweg who was fired following the 2002 season.
• Jacksonville Jaguars – Jack Del Rio replaced Tom Coughlin who was fired following the 2002 season.
• San Francisco 49ers – Dennis Erickson replaced Steve Mariucci who was fired following the 2002 season.

• Arizona Cardinals – Rod Graves replaced Bob Ferguson, who was fired following the 2002 season.
• Jacksonville Jaguars – James "Shack" Harris replaced former head coach Tom Coughlin, who was fired following the 2002 season.
• Seattle Seahawks – Bob Ferguson replaced head coach Mike Holmgren, who agreed to step down as general manager to focus on coaching the team.
• San Diego Chargers – A. J. Smith replaced John Butler, who died of lymphoma on April 11, 2003.

Stadium changes

• Baltimore Ravens: Ravens Stadium was renamed M&T Bank Stadium after M&T Bank acquired the naming rights
• Chicago Bears: The Bears moved back to a newly renovated Soldier Field after temporarily playing in 2002 at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois
• Philadelphia Eagles: The Eagles moved from Veterans Stadium to Lincoln Financial Field, with Lincoln Financial Group acquiring the naming rights
• San Francisco 49ers: After the naming rights deal with 3Com expired, the stadium was officially renamed San Francisco Stadium at Candlestick Point instead of its original Candlestick Park name

• Atlanta Falcons: New FieldTurf surface
• Buffalo Bills: New AstroPlay home turf
• New Orleans Saints: New AstroPlay home turf by mid-season
• New York Giants, New York Jets: New FieldTurf surface replacing natural grass.

New uniforms

• The Atlanta Falcons unveiled a new uniform design featuring red trim down the sides of both the jerseys and pants. The pants were switched from gray to white, and black pants were also introduced for selected games. Black remained the primary jersey color while a red alternate jersey was also introduced. The falcons helmet logo was redesigned to be more aggressive and closely resemble a capital "F".
• The Cincinnati Bengals added new alternate black pants with their black jerseys for select home games.
• The Cleveland Browns added new alternate orange pants last worn during the 1970s-early 1980s Kardiac Kids era of coach Sam Rutigliano.
• The Denver Broncos introduced blue pants with orange streaks to match with their blue jerseys.
• The Detroit Lions introduced a new design that added black trim to their logo and jerseys, and changed their face masks from blue to black.
• The Houston Texans added red third alternate uniforms.
• The Miami Dolphins added orange third alternate uniforms.
• The New England Patriots added silver third alternate uniforms.
• The New Orleans Saints wore gold pants full time, discontinuing using black pants with their white jerseys.
• The Philadelphia Eagles added silver trim to the jersey numbers on uniforms, and black third alternate uniforms.
• The St. Louis Rams added alternate blue pants to their road uniforms.
• The San Diego Chargers wore white pants instead of blue with their white jerseys. They wore blue pants with their blue jerseys for the game vs. the Dolphins which had to be moved from San Diego to Arizona due to wildfires in southern California.
• The Tennessee Titans added powder blue third alternate uniforms.

Television