San Antonio Express-News (Sunday)
Virus could throw wrench in summer start
With so much uncertainty in the NFL because of the coronavirus pandemic and so many issues to be decided between the league and the NFL Players Association, commissioner Roger Goodell needs to step up and delay the start of training camp.
Time is running out, and it’s preposterous to think there will be no interruptions caused by players, coaches and other personnel testing positive for COVID-19 and being forced to quarantine. Positive tests could create chaos if teams report to camp when they’re supposed to.
The Texans and Kansas City Chiefs are scheduled to report in less than two weeks. That’s ridiculous considering everything that still has to be ironed out — testing procedures, preseason games, roster sizes, opt-out clauses, practice schedules and salary cap implications, just to name a few.
The prudent thing for Goodell and the owners to do is to take a deep breath and delay the start of camp. They did the right thing by cutting the preseason schedule in half. Now what’s the rush with starting camp on time? These are extraordinary times that require extraordinary measures from leaders who have to lead.
I haven’t spoken to anyone in the NFL who isn’t worried about COVID-19, and all believe the start of camp should be delayed.
Push back the start of camp a few weeks and continue to listen to the NFL’s health experts — not the politicians — and continue negotiations with the NFLPA until both sides are satisfied teams will report with the most up-to-date information on COVID-19 and how to avoid a profusion of positive tests.
At this point, nobody has a clue about how many will test positive.
But the league can do everything possible to be as knowledgeable as possible. It’s time for Goodell to exert his power.
Every day, we read and hear more players expressing concerns about their safety and the safety of their families. And they should be concerned at a time like this.
Look at all the nitwits who continue to flaunt the recommendations made by health experts about wearing masks and social distancing. No one is immune to COVID-19, including ignoramuses who continue to make fools of themselves on the internet. Even if it’s just for two or three weeks, Goodell has to delay the start of camp. Give the owners and players more time to agree on safety protocols and how they’ll be implemented. Players can’t report to work every day worried about being exposed to COVID-19 and taking it home to their families and exposing them.
Testing methods and getting back the results in timely fashion are imperative before players should report. The issues have to be worked out. With so much time to watch the other major sports, it’s absurd the NFL still has so many unanswered questions this close to camp.
If Goodell makes the wise decision to push back training camp, how will it affect the start of regular season on Sept. 10 when the Texans play at the Super Bowl-champion Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium?
Goodell and many of the owners are determined to start the season on time, even if it means no fans or a very limited capacity of no more than 15,000, as some teams are proposing.
The NFL has contingencies, including delaying the start of regular season, moving back the Super Bowl and, at worst, playing fewer games, which is a last resort. It could be done, though.
In 1982, the NFL had a nine-game season because of a players’ strike. In 1987, because of another players’ strike, the league played 15 games, including three with replacement players, which tainted every team’s record. Washington won Super Bowls after each of those strike-abbreviated seasons.
Depending on what happens in negotiations with the union, maybe preseason will be reduced again from two games to one, giving teams more practice time and exposing players to less risk before the start of regular season.
The NFL’s goal should be safety first and foremost. Of course, everyone wants to get paid — owners, players, coaches, stadium workers and office personnel.
Most players believe they’re invincible. If they get COVID-19, they plan to treat it like the flu — do what it takes to get well and return to work.
But what happens if one player — just one player — becomes ill, is hospitalized, his condition deteriorates and he dies? Will they shut down the sport, or will the games go on?
It’s time to delay the risk and, hopefully, reduce the risk, and the best way to do it in the NFL is for Goodell and the owners to be smart and don’t start training camp until teams can make a smoother transition to return to the field for the first time since last season.