There’s no telling how the country will look come September when it comes to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but the NFL is beginning to take extra precautions.
The preseason reportedly will be shortened to two games from four, and now ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that training camps will feature fewer than 90 players per team “in an effort to combat the spread of coronavirus.”
A source told Schefter teams “likely” will go into camps with 80-man rosters, while another said he “heard lots of discussions” about 75-man rosters.
With a shortened preseason, there isn’t as much of a need for 90 players.
The NFL reportedly is considering a change to practice squads, as well, “expanding … to 16-20 players in the event of a coronavirus outbreak; if there were one, teams would have a deeper stash of players to activate to play games,” Schefter wrote.
Things likely will look different across sports as coronavirus cases continue to climb in parts of the United States. And without a vaccine yet, it’s unclear just how much more the NFL and other sports leagues will further be impacted.
