[PencilGeeks]

I don't think there was a "decision" per-se.. but that is just how the rule is written, which is what you confirmed when I inquired about it last year:

"By the start of the next rookie draft, each franchise must clear IR and have no more than thirty players on their roster."

"The 1st available date to list a player on IR is around August 30 at 12:00am - this will be a flexible date each year that basically commences the day after the 3rd pre-season games end (4th for the few teams that play 5). This will be approximately 7-10 days before the NFL regular season kicks off"

Which is the same wording as the deadline for decalarations:

"The deadline for the announcement of the length of the contracts of players picked up in free agency or the rookie draft will be August 30th (the day after (Tuesday) the 3rd preseason game for most teams) each year by midnight (the night before the start of the In-Season Free Agency period which begins on August 31 each NFL season)."

So the effect is that if you have an injured player you don't want to cut you have to carry him on your roster through declarations and then put him on IR.