As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) issue in the United States continues to grow, it is becoming increasingly clear that the NFL will soon have to rethink its plans to start the 2020 NFL season on schedule.
With stay at home orders being enacted to flatten the curve, things like OTAs and preseason may be postponed or cancelled, with the new season also being put into jeopardy. This is a situation that owners and the league office would love to avoid, but the circumstances may force their hand.
Health safety for players and team personnel is the highest priority when considering whether or not to play football and fortunately for the Los Angeles Rams, it appears they have not had any cases within their organization. Rams head coach Sean McVay recently gave an update on the health of all of his players, via Gary Klein of Los Angeles Times:
“There’s nobody that, to my knowledge, is in a bad spot right now,” McVay said. “Everyone is feeling good. Their families are healthy, and we’re really just doing everything we can to be sound in how we follow the guidelines.”
This is good news to hear as several people in the league have come down with coronavirus including New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton. Luckily, the NFL was not in-season and thus exposure from fans and fellow players was at a minimum.
Despite that, it is still a serious problem both from an on the field and off the field perspective as there are countless hurdles that need to be cleared before the NFL can begin the season. Tests for COVID-19 are at a premium and are reserved for those who truly need it, meaning that teams will just have to wait until it is more readily available to the public.
In the meantime, it sounds as though things like the 2020 NFL Draft will continue as scheduled but everything else is still up in the air.
