NFL sets Thursday opt-out deadline
NFL players who decide to opt out of the coming season must do so by Thursday afternoon, a person familiar with the agreement between the league and the players said.
There also are opt-out provisions for players who experience emergency or extenuating circumstances during the season due to the coronavirus, the person said, speaking to the AP on condition of anonymity Tuesday because the changes to the collective bargaining agreement have not been made public.
Those provisions would cover a player with a severe family situation related to COVID-19 or if he is diagnosed with a high-risk condition after Thursday’s deadline.
Any player who opts out and is in the high-risk category will receive a $350,000 stipend for 2020, with his contract paused. Players in the voluntary opt-out category will get $150,000 in the form of an advance on a contract.
Another person with direct knowledge of the agreement between the league and the players’ union said that relief in the 2020 salary cap is being provided to the 32 teams. If a player opts out, his contract is paused for a season. Any signing bonus that was being applied to the salary cap in 2020 now will be delayed a year.
So, if a player signed a four-year contract with a $16 million signing bonus, the bonus normally would be applied against the cap at $4 million per season for four years. But the $4 million for 2020 will not be applied for another year, even though the player has collected his full bonus.
Already, some four dozen players have opted out of playing due to the pandemic. By not applying any signing bonuses to 2020, several million dollars could be freed up for signing new players. That gives teams more flexibility should players contract the coronavirus and be unavailable.
Stafford’s test false positive: The Detroit Lions removed Matthew Stafford from the COVID-IR list, saying he received a false positive test result.
The list was created for players who either test positive for COVID-19 or have been in close contact with an infected person. Stafford was listed on it Saturday, but the team said Tuesday his testing sequence for the pre-entry period was: negative, negative, false positive – then the next three tests were all negative.
“To be clear, Matthew does NOT have COVID-19 and never has had COVID-19 and the test in question was a FalsePositive,” the team said in a statement. “Also, all of Matthew’s family have been tested and everyone is negative.”
Stafford’s placement on the reserve/ COVID-19 list was big news because of his stature in the game and because of the health issues his family recently has dealt with. His wife Kelly had surgery last year to remove a brain tumor.
Buccaneers sign McCoy: Six-time Pro Bowl running back LeSean McCoy has finalized a one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Bucs announced the signing, adding yet another offensive playmaker to help Tom Brady with his new team.
The 32-year-old McCoy agreed to terms last week and is entering his 12th NFL season. He has started 141 of 160 career games, rushing for 11,071 yards and 73 touchdowns.