N.F.L. Adds New Covid-19 Protocols to Keep Season on Track

The team reported no new positive tests on Monday, a sign that the outbreak may now be confined, and none of the Minnesota Vikings, who played the Titans on Sept. 27, tested positive.

Still, there are many other opportunities for players to be exposed to the virus when they are away from N.F.L.-regulated facilities. For now, the league’s approach appears to be to tighten its grip on the spaces it controls — continually reminding players, coaches and staff to adhere to health guidelines, watching them on video and threatening penalties if they don’t — to keep the season on track.

“That’s the right decision to make, before you have to do something more drastic,” said Steve Smith, a sports law attorney at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner who advises teams and leagues on media contracts, stadium operations, licensing and naming rights. “If you have double-digit attacks on six, eight teams, you might have to postpone the season and pick back up. That’s what you have to avoid.”

The unblinking focus on test results comes as a growing number of teams allow fans to attend games in limited capacities. On Sunday, the Carolina Panthers and Houston Texans joined about 10 other clubs in welcoming fans into their stadiums. Fans — as well as members of the news media and many others — are not allowed anywhere near the players while they’re working. But the return of paying customers to games is a way for the N.F.L. to reduce some of the billions of dollars in revenue losses this season, even if it means increasing the risk that fans will be exposed by attending large gatherings.

“No one wants to lose billions of dollars,” Smith said.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/05/sports/football/nfl-covid-19-patriots-monday-night.html