COVID-19 News & Rumors

In an effort to get players on board with the 2020 season, the NFL has proposed a plan that will allow players to opt out of the 2020 season for any COVID-19-related health concerns. The details of the proposal, as outlined by Mike Florio of PFT, seem to fall short of the NFLPA’s demands.

Players would be able to opt out of the 2020 season by providing written notice before August 1 at 5pm ET/4pm CT. Once the letter is in, the decision is final – players cannot reverse course before the (expected) start of the season in September. Those players will also be barred from negotiating with their teams, which safeguards against players using the special provision as a way to hold out for a better deal. Meanwhile, teams would be allowed to trade opt-out players.

Players who opt out would receive a $150K stipend for the year, minus any money already received this year. Effectively, any player who has received a substantial signing bonus or up-front payout would get nothing. The balance would also be subtracted from the player’s 2021 salary, so it would be more of a cash advance than a stipend. It’s not immediately clear whether players who are not under contract for 2021 would be eligible.

Unsurprisingly, opt out players would have their contract toll for a full year. In other words, those players would not earn an accredited year towards free agency. The NFLPA might not be happy about that, but it would have been a shock to see the league cave on that front.

One loophole that remains: The ability for players to use the provision as leverage between now and August 1. In order to keep that avenue open, the NFLPA would have to agree to terms sooner rather than later.

Training camp for all 32 NFL teams will begin on July 28, according to a memo issued by the league office on Saturday. They cut it awfully close, but this is ultimately a good sign for the regular season to go ahead as planned.

Before 7/28, the league’s rookies will report on July 21. Meanwhile, quarterbacks and injured players will be able to report starting on July 23. The Chiefs and Texans stand as exceptions – KC rookies and quarterbacks will show up for work on Monday. Ditto for Houston’s rookies.

Meanwhile, there are still a host of issues to be resolved between the NFL and the NFLPA. The latest comments from union leads DeMaurice Smith and J.C. Tretter expressed disappointment and frustration with the status of talks thus far.

“Players are taking all of the risk by returning to work,” the NFLPA said in a statement on Friday. “We also know there will be a shortfall in revenues next year, but players cannot be asked to bear the full brunt of both the health and safety risk and the financial one. We are bargaining for fair and reasonable ways to soften the short-term economic losses in our business.”

The union had no legal grounds to delay the start of training camp. Instead, Smith says the NFLPA will work to ensure the safest environment possible with the help of team physicians.

The NFL’s latest proposal would allow players to opt out of the 2020 season, with formal notice delivered by Aug. 1. Under that proposal, teams would be permitted to trade those players, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter).

However, players would not be allowed to engage with their teams in that scenario. That’s a key provision – otherwise, players could theoretically parlay their opt-out into a holdout. Still, it’s not clear whether players would earn a portion of their salaries per the NFL’s pitch. Given the typical nature of negotiations between Roger Goodell and the NFLPA, it’s unlikely that concession has been made.

Earlier this month, the NFL floated the idea of placing 35% of player salaries in escrow, as a safeguard against lowered revenue. When the union rebuffed that monumental ask, the league effectively moved backwards in negotiations. Their latest pitch calls for a $40MM drop in the 2020 salary cap. Obviously, that’s a non-starter for the union at this time.

On Friday, NFL owners met to discuss the best path forward as they look ahead to the 2020 season. Afterwards, the NFLPA issued a statement indicating that little has been resolved between the league office and its players:

“Our union commissioned the best people to come up with the most comprehensive set of recommendations for return-to-work protocols. The health and safety checklist was put together according to an agreement we signed in March with the NFL. That agreement, along with our CBA, is in place to hold the NFL accountable to keeping players as safe as possible and reduce risk.

Our job is to stand firm and push management to agree to these expert recommendations and hold them accountable to implementing the full health and safety checklist.

We know that players are taking all of the risk by returning to work. We also know there will be a shortfall in revenues next year, but players cannot be asked to bear the full brunt of both the health and safety risk and the financial one. We are bargaining for fair and reasonable ways to soften the short-term economic losses in our business.”

In a conference call with reporters, NFLPA president J.C. Tretter said the union has gotten little in the way of answers after consulting with team doctors in hotspot areas. Meanwhile, Smith said that he is not aware of any players who have opted out for the upcoming season, but that could change as Week 1 draws closer.

The NFL has backed off of its pitch to place 35% of player salaries in escrow. Instead, as Tom Pelissero of NFL.com hears, they’re now proposing a $40MM reduction of the 2020 salary cap and/or player benefits. Needless to say, that’s a non-starter for union leadership.

[RELATED: 72 NFL Players Test Positive For COVID-19]

“No thanks,” one anonymous player told Pelissero. “Not taking the COVID risk and (the) financial burden.”

The league, however, did make one key concession. Under their proposal, players would be permitted to opt out of the 2020 season by providing written notice by August 1. It’s not immediately clear whether those players would receive a portion of their salaries under that proposal, however. Ideally, the union would like those players to have full compensation – or something close to it – plus an accredited season towards free agency.

The clock is ticking for both sides, but we could see some movement today. League owners are expected to hold a virtual meeting this afternoon to huddle up on the training camp schedule, opt-outs, testing protocols, and other high-priority items. Reportedly, the NFL has agreed to a modification of the injured reserve rules that will allow players to be placed under a new “COVID-19” designation, should they test positive for the coronavirus.

After much discussion on the topic, the league and union have agreed to a modification of IR rules. According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, players who test positive for COVID-19 will be placed on a new COVID-19 list.

Once a player has been placed on the list, his roster spot may be taken by a player who has tested negative. Players on the COVID-19 list will be eligible to practice after three weeks, though he must be returned to the active roster within three weeks after that. If he is not able to return to the active roster, he will be placed on season-ending injured reserve or released with an injury settlement.

Critically, players who find themselves on the COVID-19 list will receive their normal salaries. That seems like an obvious point, but given the history of negotiations between the union and the league, one can never take anything for granted.

Team owners are expected to hold a virtual meeting tomorrow to discuss, among other things, whether training camp can start on time. Player opt-outs and testing protocols are also likely to be on the agenda, but it’s encouraging that this important step has already been taken.

According to the NFLPA’s website, 72 NFL players have tested positive for COVID-19 as of July 10. If all teams were currently maintaining a full roster of 90 players, that would represent about 2.5% of the league’s workforce. But not every club has a full roster, so the percentage is actually slightly higher.

It’s a given that a significant number of players will test positive, but it does underscore the need for the union and the league to quickly come to terms on establishing certain safety protocols that have not yet been agreed to, like the frequency of tests. And as testing is not yet mandatory, it stands to reason that the current number of positive cases is not necessarily indicative of the prevalence of the virus.

As Tony Pauline of Pro Football Network writes, the NFLPA and player agents had a conference call yesterday to discuss preparations and procedures, but another important conversation will take place tomorrow. Daniel Kaplan of The Athletic reports that team owners will have a virtual meeting on Friday, and one high-level source believes the question of whether training camp really can start on time will be raised. Indeed, per Mark Maske of the Washington Post, the union is wondering whether camps in areas that have been hit hardest by the virus should open — the NFLPA’s website includes a map showing the number of cases in cities that are home to NFL clubs — and players are also expressing more and more concern as the scheduled start of camp draws near.

In addition to the training camp issue, owners will presumably talk about player pay and protocols. The league is hoping the union will offer some sort of relief due to decreased revenues, but the owners’ proposal of holding 35% of player’s salaries in escrow was a non-starter. The two sides also remain divided on the issue of preseason games. The league wants to play two exhibition contests, but the union is holding firm on its stance that the preseason should be canceled entirely.

The preseason, in theory, is just weeks away. However, the NFL still has a major gap to bridge with its players. The league is still pushing for a two-game preseason while the NFLPA is countering with zero games (Twitter link via Tom Pelissero of NFL.com).

[RELATED: NFLPA Wants To Lower Training Camp Roster Max]

Of course, that’s just one piece of the complicated puzzle. Players have also expressed concern about testing frequency, protections for players who might contract the coronavirus during the year, and related issues. The clock is ticking, but there could be some progress by the end of the week – NFL owners are set to huddle up via conference call on Friday. Meanwhile, the CBA dictates that the league’s rookies can report to their teams as early as Tuesday.

“We still don’t have answers,” one union source told Pelissero.

The NFLPA also wants higher-risk players to have the ability to opt out of their deals and still receive their salaries. In addition, they’ve requested an extra accrued season towards free agency for players with at-risk family members. The league is unlikely to cave on either issue and, for the most part, the league believes that it has the legal right to make these decisions, without the permission of the NFLPA.