The NFL Would Rather a Team Forfeit Than Delay Due To A COVID Outbreak
By Ben Heisler
The NFL is seeing history repeat itself down the stretch of the 2021-22 season. Whether they do something about it remains a question mark.
Heading into Week 15, multiple teams have substantial COVID-19 outbreaks that could prevent them from fielding a full team on game day. The Cleveland Browns now have 20-plus players in their COVID protocols, but are reportedly set to face the Las Vegas Raiders at home on Sunday.
This has already impacted bettors and sportsbooks all over the country, with the line at WynnBET Sportsbook moving from Browns -6 all the way to Raiders +1.
Meanwhile, the Washington Football Team has 21 players and counting on the reserve/COVID-19 list according to ESPN's Jamison Hensley.
WFT now has 21 players on the reserve/COVID list.
— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) December 16, 2021
Last year, the Ravens placed a total of 23 players on the reserve/COVID-19 list during a two-week period, which was then considered the biggest outbreak in sports. https://t.co/OQhemANetK
The Eagles have also become one of the largest favorites of the week, moving at WynnBET from -4.5 at home, to nearly a double-digit favorite at -9.5.
The league is in a crisis, as more and more teams continue to see their COVID cases pile up in the final quarter of the regular season. But despite more and more players testing positive, the league seems to have made its stance firm. Games will not be cancelled by the league.
NFL Players are Upset That the League is Doing Nothing
One of the players currently on the sidelines with a positive test is Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield. With almost two dozen of his teammates potentially unavailable for this Sunday, Mayfield took to social media to express his displeasure with the league.
Actually caring about player safety would mean delaying the game with this continuing at the rate it is….
— Baker Mayfield (@bakermayfield) December 16, 2021
But to say you won’t test vaccinated players if they don’t have symptoms, then to pull this randomly. Doesn’t make any sense to me.
Mayfield may have a point when it comes to whether or not the league genuinely cares about the players' safety, but according to NFL insider Warren Sharp, the NFL's stance at the beginning of the season was fairly clear. They're not going to penalize teams (like the Raiders, for example) that aren't having outbreaks through no fault of their own.
delaying games screws the teams that aren't having outbreaks
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) December 16, 2021
NFL & NFLPA agreed to that earlier
you'll forfeit this game before they delay it based on what they instituted this offseason https://t.co/5cxtzacksh
To Sharp's point, this was collectively bargained by both the league and the Players' Association, so while opinions may be different in the moment, especially with the Browns still competing for a spot in the postseason, they may not have a leg to stand on.
Furthermore, the NFL released a statement earlier this afternoon on what their new COVID-19 protocols will look like, essentially expediting the process for vaccinated and boosted players.
NFL statement on new COVID-19 protocols…. pic.twitter.com/QZLyNm0RMi
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 16, 2021
With so many lines changing throughout the week, we'll continue to keep you updated on the latest NFL line movement here at BetSided. You can always find the latest odds over at WynnBET as well.