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On Wednesday, the NFL’s chief medical officer Dr. Allen Sills stated that the idea of a “bubble” for the NFL season would not be as practical of an option as most think. The idea stems from what the NBA is doing to resume their play, which is constructing their own biosphere down in Orlando with all the teams invited being split into three different hotels on top of numerous other guidelines and restrictions.
Instead, Sills said the league will “rely on robust contact tracing, education, and testing.”
Protocols are still being developed, and Sills said it’s very likely the testing strategy will look different from start to end of season as science evolves. Plan is to also test everyone who will be exposed to players and coaches — e..g. officials — just prior to game day.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) June 17, 2020
As of right now, it looks like the situation will be extremely fluid from the start. As Pelissero mentions in the tweet above, the testing structure could look quite different from the beginning of the season compared to the end.
However, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, believes the NFL should look into building a bubble for their league. If they don’, he believes the NFL should consider not playing in 2020.
“Unless players are essentially in a bubble — insulated from the community and they are tested nearly every day — it would be very hard to see how football is able to be played this fall,” Fauci said. “If there is a second wave, which is certainly a possibility and which would be complicated by the predictable flu season, football may not happen this year.”
All options are still on the table at this point, so only time will tell what the best solution is for a return to play. If the NFL and NBA use different methods throughout their respective seasons, then the world will get a first-hand look at which one is more successful than the other and that could bode well for the future in case this pandemic lasts much longer than originally anticipated.
Now for the links.
Rams News:
Stu Jackson takes a look at the Rams’ outside linebacker group (TheRams.com)
Cameron DaSilva talks Aaron Donald’s new youtube channel (The Rams Wire)
Cameron DaSilva reports on OLB Terrell Lewis being named the Rams’ biggest steal of the 2020 draft (The Rams Wire)
Bret Stuter discusses WR Cooper Kupp’s clutch gene on third downs (Ramblin’ Fan)
NFL News:
Tyler Conway reports on QB Kyler Murray’s decision to kneel in 2020 (Bleacher Report)
Jason La Canfora predicts when the top rookie QBs will start in 2020 (CBS Sports)
Jared Dubin ranks the top-10 wide receivers in the NFL (CBS Sports)
Mike Florio reports that NFL teams may take less than 90 players in training camp this year (Pro Football Talk)
Josh Alper highlights TE Darren Waller and his belief that the Raiders can be a top offense in 2020 (Pro Football Talk)
NFL Nation picks an All-Decade team for the AFC North (ESPN)