NFL Takes on COVID-19
With the NFL season underway, the league has made many adjustments to accompany the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Considering the remarkable number of people involved in the league, from the players to the coaches and staff involved in all 32 teams, some have been surprised that there hasn’t been a major outbreak yet.
For sports leagues around the nation, whether they be professional, youth, or even high school here at Del Norte, the protocols of the National Football League can help keep athletes safe. Re-integrating sports with the constant threat of the coronavirus seems to be the only path forward for athletes hoping to play this season, and the NFL seems to be leading the way.
The NFL has been able to continue with the league despite the pandemic, as players and staff are obligated to follow strict guidelines. There are daily symptom screenings, temperature checks, and positive/negative testings regulated every day for players, coaches and staff. All teams and league personnel have a mask requirement in team facilities, or when travelling to and from games. In addition, teams can fine players if they participate in reckless behavior away from the team facility, which discourages players from putting themself in high risk environments like clubs, bars, or other large gatherings.
For most players and team staff, the most dangerous part of the new process is travelling for away games. The NFL has instituted rules so that players are not allowed to leave the hotel to eat at restaurants or participate in outside activities. Players are also generally prohibited from using any shared hotel facilities such as the pool or the gym.
If a player tests positive, they are immediately isolated from the team and quarantined. From there, the player must wait 10 days and can only return once he has gone three days without symptoms. The team’s head physician must also clear each player before they can return to play. Any players and staff that have come into contact with the “positive” player will receive additional testing and symptom monitoring. These guidelines help ensure that a single case does not develop into a team-wide outbreak.
If a team has one or a few positive tests throughout the week, they are still required to play their regularly scheduled game without the infected players. However, if the team continues to receive positive tests in the days leading up to gameday, the entire game may be postponed.
This has already happened this season. In week four, the Titans had their game against the Steelers postponed due to positive tests, and in week five the Patriots had a similar situation with a handful of players and staff testing positive. However, considering that over a dozen games are played every single week and that there have been 11 weeks in the season so far, only having two games being postponed can be seen as a relative success for the NFL.
The league’s efforts with handling the pandemic have not only been generally successful but also substantially influenced the sportsworld by giving other sports’ leagues inspiration to proceed safely during the pandemic.