Free agency: Virus will delay the signing process as Lions add 2 more former Patriots
Tom Brady preparing to trade the red, white and blue threads of this century’s most successful franchise for one of the NFL’s bottom feeders served as the highlight of a topsy-turvy start to the league’s new year Wednesday.
Brady, 42, will take his six rings from his unparalleled 20-year reign in New England to Tampa, where the Buccaneers have sat out the playoffs every season since 2007.
During that time, Brady has won 18 playoff games and half of his record-tying six Super Bowls.
Like the rest of everyday life that’s been upended by the new coronavirus pandemic, the start of free agency was anything but normal, with Brady’s deal and most every other one in semilimbo.
Free agent contracts and trades agreed upon in recent days or weeks won’t become official until players can undergo physicals and sign their new deals — meaning they aren’t being paid under their new deals. The NFL has barred travel to team facilities by free
agents and also has banned team personnel from traveling to meet with players as a safeguard against the new coronavirus.
Several people familiar with a memo the league sent to the 32 teams on Tuesday night tell The Associated Press that while teams can announce reaching agreements with free agents or concluding trades, nothing is official. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because the information has not been made public by the NFL or the teams.
Although information on dozens of contract agreements and a slew of trades has been leaked, teams were not allowed to complete the deals until the 4 p.m. EDT Wednesday start of the 2020 NFL business year. However, all of those transactions now come with the caveat that the signings and physicals need to occur.
Of course, if a club drafts a contract and sends it digitally to a player, he can sign it remotely and send it back to the team. Then teams must submit it to the league and that would constitute official signing. But few, if any, teams would be willing to do that without conducting a physical.
Players can undergo physicals locally, but many teams have expressed being uncomfortable with such an arrangement.
The new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms such as fever and cough in most cases, with severe illness more likely in the elderly and those with existing health problems.
A.J. Bouye, whom Denver acquired from Jacksonville two weeks ago and who took his physical in Denver before the coronavirus pandemic brought daily life across the globe to a near standstill, said he’s working out on his own and will reach out to his new teammates remotely.
Among the players moving in free agency in one of the busiest years of action are such stars as Brady, Philip Rivers and Jason Witten.
While they certainly can afford to wait for everything to become official, it’s a strange dynamic in what, of course, is a strange time.
The NFL has delayed the offseason schedule of practices amid the uncertainty — meetings and organized team activities (OTAs) would have begun in April. Becoming familiar with new surroundings, teammates and coaching staffs for the likes of veterans Brady, Rivers and Witten — who collectively spent 52 years with their original teams — and the dozens of other players changing addressed must wait.
• LIONS: Add a couple more names to the parade of ex-Patriots joining the Detroit Lions.
The Lions agreed to a two-year, $8 million deal with defensive tackle Danny Shelton. Agent Drew Rosenhaus confirmed that deal Wednesday. Shelton started 14 games last season for New England.
The Patriots also agreed to trade safety Duron Harmon to the Lions. Both teams announced the deal, but did not announce additional terms. The trade is pending a physical.
The Lions have reportedly agreed to deals with offensive tackle Halapoulivaati Vaitai, linebacker Jamie Collins, defensive tackle Nick Williams and backup quarterback Chase Daniel. Collins played last season with the Patriots and was also with New England from 2013-16.