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The NFL issued a
memo Tuesday night informing teams they will not be allowed to
force players and personnel to stay in a localized bubble during
the upcoming postseason.
The decision keeps in place the league's current COVID-19
protocols, which were recently reinforced to much improved
numbers. Testing for the period from Dec. 6-12 found 14 players
tested positive, along with 31 from other team personnel. Last
week, there were 18 positive tests among players and 27 among
other personnel -- a drop from about 75 each of the previous two
weeks.
Teams may still provide hotel rooms for players if they
voluntarily choose to stay in one, but players will not be
required to do so other than the night before a game. If a
player or staff member does opt to stay at the team-provided
hotel, they will be required to wear an electronic tracking
device at all times until they return to their room for the
night, the memo states.
"This decision is based upon an analysis of the frequency of
positive cases in the league compared to the risk of significant
spread among players and staff gathered for an extensive period
of time at one hotel," the memo reads. The league also
considered the mental health impact of keeping players isolated
for an extended period of time.
Further discussion regarding health and safety protocols is
expected at the league's virtual owners meeting Wednesday. In
addition to the postseason bubble determination, Tuesday's memo
mandated daily testing for players and staff for seven days upon
completion of each team's season and changed return-to-play
protocols for asymptomatic individuals so that they may no
longer return after two negative tests. The new rules will call
for 10 days to pass since the positive test, in addition to
clearance from a club physician.
--Field Level Media
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