The NFL is considering a postseason bubble if coronavirus outbreaks continue.
A bubble for the entire NFL season may not be practical, but at least the league is looking at the possibility of a bubble for the 14 teams that make the playoffs.
According to ESPN’s Kevin Seifert, executive vice president of football operations Troy Vincent said the NFL will consider creating a postseason bubble in order to protect its players, coaches and team staffers.
New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton brought the idea up in a recent competition committee meeting, according to Vincent. Nothing is set in stone, and though the league is shying away from the term “bubble” in favor of a “secure environment,” it’s at least somewhat encouraging they’re taking the pandemic seriously for the postseason.
The NFL should try to incorporate a bubble environment come playoff time
With 32 teams and hundreds of players, coaches and team staff members on each team, creating a bubble for an entire NFL season spanning several months just wouldn’t be possible. The league is taking plenty of precautions, but as coronavirus continues to spread throughout the United States, the possibility of a COVID-19 outbreak among any one of these teams remains distinct.
It remains to be seen how the NFL will handle such a scenario when it arises, as MLB has struggled with this very issue after outbreaks among the St. Louis Cardinals and Miami Marlins.
The NBA, WNBA and NHL have fared much better by keeping their players and coaches in a confined bubble environment, but the number of people being contained in that safe space is far lower than the NFL would require, and none of their seasons/playoffs would stretch as long as the NFL campaign typically does.
As of Tuesday, only 10 players remained on the league’s reserve/COVID-19 list, which is a good sign. Whether that good fortune holds up long enough for these 14 teams to make it to such a playoff bubble remains to be seen.