With rookie training camps set to begin tomorrow, quarterbacks and injured players due back on Thursday, and all other players scheduled to report next Monday, the NFL outlined details of its coronavirus-related protocols last Friday. But over the weekend, star players, including Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks Drew Brees, Russell Wilson and Patrick Mahomes, expressed concerns that many aspects of the league’s plans have still not been finalized.
“We need Football! We need sports! We need hope! The NFL’s unwillingness to follow the recommendations of their own medical experts will prevent that. If the NFL doesn’t do their part to keep players healthy there is no football in 2020,” Brees, the New Orleans Saints’ QB, wrote on Twitter.
NFL rules will require that players and staff wear masks when traveling or at team facilities, that each person will have his own hotel room on the road, and that no one can eat in public restaurants on away trips. All personnel will also be required to wear Kinexon devices to record proximity with others in order to help with contact tracing. However, players criticized the lack of details on testing protocols, infectious disease emergency response plans, protections for those who opt out, and whether preseason games will be played.
