With the NBA season over and a champion crowned, sports fans now shift their eyes towards football. The NBA finished their season in Orlando and they had 0 cases of COVID-19. The NFL, on the other hand, is getting cases left and right and may have to stop all games and practice facilities if they don’t do anything about it.
Notable NFL stars that had contacted the virus were Cam Newton of the New England Patriots, Ezekiel Elliot of the Dallas Cowboys, and Von Miller of the Denver Broncos. All of these stars had to follow COVID-19 guidelines and were clear to play after. Not only are the players getting the virus but team personals and team coaches are getting it as well.
The NFL needs to crack down on players and coaches in order to not get any more cases. With the NBA, there were about 17 players on a team and the rest of their trainers and coaches. With the NFL, there are 53 players on a team and the rest of their coaches and trainers and there are 32 teams in the NFL.
The only way the NFL can have a successful season is if players and coaches are being cautious and each team must do mandatory COVID-19 tests. The NFL can make this happen because, the fans want to see an NFL season happen and with the NFL season already underway, fans will be left disappointed if they had to stop watching their favorite team play football. The players and coaches have to be smart about their decisions and must follow the CDC guidelines if they want to have a successful NFL season.
The difference between the NFL and the NBA handling the virus is that the NBA players were kept in a bubble. With the NFL, players travel across the country to attend each game. The NBA players were kept in one place and weren’t allowed to go out of the ‘bubble’.
Some players like 76ers rookie, Matisse Thybulle, would film, edit, and upload his life in the bubble on YouTube. Lakers center JaValle McGee would also film his experience in the bubble by talking about the bubble food situation and what the daily scrimmages would look like.
According to the LA Times, Lakers Center, JaVale McGee, described the bubble as, “being in college and being in a dorm and going to eat food they prepare for you.”
Roger Goodell can come up with a good idea for the NFL. If Adam Silver can come up with the idea of the players playing in the bubble, then the NFL commissioner can come up with something for his league. Because if he doesn’t, fans will be very disappointed and this season will go straight down the drain.
It’s going to be a very different process when it comes time for NFL playoffs, but if the NBA was able to make their season work, the NFL can too.