What about the Players?

[Lil O]

Kareem Jackson the strong safety for the Denver Broncos said during an interview that it didn’t make sense to play games unless it was 100% safe for everyone. He also said that playing games without fans in the stadium would be like practice. That it didn’t make sense. And he said some other players that he spoke to felt the same way. So that brings me to my question.  With all of the talk about what the NFL is planning, and what the owners are saying, what about the players and the NFLPA?  There are numerous plans in place to make sure we have a season, but I am very curious how the players feel.  Will this turn into a season where players who can afford to miss a season, the top paid and smartest with their money, will be replaced with lesser paid backups?  I know the NFL is a business and money talks, but I’m not so sure if it puts a man’s family at risk.  I have no idea what is going to happen....thoughts?

[choon328]

25 minutes ago, Lil O said:

Kareem Jackson the strong safety for the Denver Broncos said during an interview that it didn’t make sense to play games unless it was 100% safe for everyone. He also said that playing games without fans in the stadium would be like practice. That it didn’t make sense. And he said some other players that he spoke to felt the same way. So that brings me to my question.  With all of the talk about what the NFL is planning, and what the owners are saying, what about the players and the NFLPA?  There are numerous plans in place to make sure we have a season, but I am very curious how the players feel.  Will this turn into a season where players who can afford to miss a season, the top paid and smartest with their money, will be replaced with lesser paid backups?  I know the NFL is a business and money talks, but I’m not so sure if it puts a man’s family at risk.  I have no idea what is going to happen....thoughts?

The NFLPA and the players are at the mercy of the NFL. They have no recourse. I would assume that they won't start the season till November.  By then the testing should be widely available and each player will get tested weekly to keep everybody safe. The players need to be careful,  if they try to push the issue the owners will likely take money out of the players pockets if the season is shortened or canceled altogether. 

[Lil O]

7 minutes ago, choon328 said:

The NFLPA and the players are at the mercy of the NFL. They have no recourse. I would assume that they won't start the season till November.  By then the testing should be widely available and each player will get tested weekly to keep everybody safe. The players need to be careful,  if they try to push the issue the owners will likely take money out of the players pockets if the season is shortened or canceled altogether. 

Yeah but I don’t think ALL the players are at the mercy of the NFL.  BRADY doesn’t need any more money from the NFL, neither do Brees, Rodgers, Goff, etc.  Let’s  say only a small fraction of players complain, but those players all happen to be A list players.  If they decide to sit out maybe others will follow.  I am sure that many can’t afford to miss a season, but I don’t think the NFL can make the seasoned veteran A list players do anything they don’t want to.  Again I really have no idea what to expect.

[Lot K Tailgaters]

September is four months away.  No one can predict what will happen between now and then.  Realistically the NFL will have to make adjustments but what those adjustments will be no one can predict.  

[SomebodytoAnybody47]

IMO football without fans seems pointless. I want a season more then anything but it just wouldn't be the same. 
 

 

[Jets0712]

Hey chalk up the Seattle game as a WIN now


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

[Copernicus]

Great topic Lil O. I have been thinking along the same lines. Are we really expecting players who are financially set to agree to make contact and tackle (most likely sweat) another player? I want to see football as much as anyone, i just don't see how this doesnt become a major issue. 

[GreenReaper]

Another factor...is the fans.  Even with social distancing.  Are fans willing to show up.  To give it a "game" feel to it?   A game without fans seems ridiculous to me. 

Hopefully therapeutics and/or a vaccine can prevail in time to give us back some normalcy to our lives.  And that means football along with it.

 

[82nd Airborne]

Most players will consent as well. 

[DJF71]

If they aren't playing then they shouldn't be paid like so many Americans aren't either.

[Wonderboy]

They will space out the fans. Most stadiums can hold 60K plus.  They'd probably cut that in half to 30K.  No way should they jam 60K into a stadium.  If people get sick just going to a game, it would not look good for the NFL.  They have to be really careful about this.

[choon328]

They will not do any of this unless there is widespread testing available for the players.  If every player/ coach on every team is being tested twice a week they should have no fear of contracting the virus from other players.  Give them a test on Tuesday and Saturday. 

The fans on the other hand will be really limited.  Probably something more along the lines of 5-10K per game.

[Gangrene]

6 hours ago, Wonderboy said:

They will space out the fans. Most stadiums can hold 60K plus.  They'd probably cut that in half to 30K.  No way should they jam 60K into a stadium.  If people get sick just going to a game, it would not look good for the NFL.  They have to be really careful about this.

.

The Dolphins are talking about 15K fans in their stadium, we can joke about that being a typical Dolphin game but in reality to do 6ft distancing, 15K fans in a typical NFL stadium sounds about right.

A rough guess, every other horizontal row has to be be completely empty and in the the rows that are occupied, maybe one fan in every third seat. Cousins thought it would be refreshing to have no fans. I think the players who are really fired up at practice, they will still be fired up for games with little or no fans. I think there is too much television money not to try the game with 15 K fans or no fans at all.

NFL fans like us will be so desperate for sports, we would rather have televised football with a scattering of fans in the stadium than no football at all. 

 

Footballers have a limited shelf life, I expect a we-are-all-in-this-together and pride to come into this to this.  The hard part might be whether footballers would consider quarantining themselves with their team to what might be a shortened season total of say four months from preseason to superbowl.That's a big ask but it is a lot of money.

[Aaron Hernandez]

Half the NFLPA is living paycheck to paycheck, which sounds insane. It's true though. They will be as desperate as the owners soon enough. The same reason they'll cave on every CBA

[Joe Jets fan]

Most of NFL money is from tv.  They could not give two sh*ts about fans. 
 

as for the players not wanting to play without fans too bad. 
 

Now virus is different  testing is a must to play. 

[Lil O]

3 hours ago, Aaron Hernandez said:

Half the NFLPA is living paycheck to paycheck, which sounds insane. It's true though. They will be as desperate as the owners soon enough. The same reason they'll cave on every CBA

I agree that half are living paycheck to paycheck, but WHICH half.  Not the TOP half necessarily.  I don’t have the NFL players’ financials, so I can only assume, but I don’t think any of the Veteran starting QBs are broke, for example.  Or the top pass rusher, DB, etc.  Some might be broke, but the NFL stars like Brady, Brees, Rivers, Mahommes, Kalil Mack, JJ Watts, Sherman, the Bosas, most likely are not.  They will decide what is best for them and their families, which in some cases might mean playing and not playing in others.  Does that mean we have a season with backups starting in key positions?  Someone mentioned the players’ “pride” might get them to play....All for one and one for all....I could see pride being a factor.

[kevinc855]

I have been making this point for months. I have an early feeling the players are going to come out against a season. We still have time to see how it all plays out but even if we do play and one players gets sick this whole experiment is shot 

[FidelioJet]

Players aren’t going to so easily want to give up a full seasons pay.  Yes, they make a lot but they have a VERY short window in which to do it.  They need to earn as much money as they can in that small time frame.  One year of employment is like 10 for the rest of us.  Would you give up 10 years salary?

I certainly wouldn’t, especially for something that has an infitecimal chance of inflicting permanent harm on me.  Young, healthy people simply aren’t dying of this in any meaningful numbers. 

Sure, some will sit out, some older coaches will have to - but the vast majority of players and coaches will roll the dice.

[Aaron Hernandez]

20 minutes ago, Lil O said:

I agree that half are living paycheck to paycheck, but WHICH half.  Not the TOP half necessarily.  I don’t have the NFL players’ financials, so I can only assume, but I don’t think any of the Veteran starting QBs are broke, for example.  Or the top pass rusher, DB, etc.  Some might be broke, but the NFL stars like Brady, Brees, Rivers, Mahommes, Kalil Mack, JJ Watts, Sherman, the Bosas, most likely are not.  They will decide what is best for them and their families, which in some cases might mean playing and not playing in others.  Does that mean we have a season with backups starting in key positions?  Someone mentioned the players’ “pride” might get them to play....All for one and one for all....I could see pride being a factor.

It's a union. The guys you named will get the same vote as the bottom 30 players on the roster including special team guys. I would encourage them to sit out and forfeit their money if they're so inclined. I'm just telling you most of these guys won't based of money and money alone. You'd be surprised how many stars are going to play given the option. I'd bet a million bucks Brady who has the least reason out of anyone will play under any scenario

[Lil O]

6 minutes ago, Aaron Hernandez said:

It's a union. The guys you named will get the same vote as the bottom 30 players on the roster including special team guys. I would encourage them to sit out and forfeit their money if they're so inclined. I'm just telling you most of these guys won't based of money and money alone. You'd be surprised how many stars are going to play given the option. I'd bet a million bucks Brady who has the least reason out of anyone will play under any scenario

Brady will play because he wants to prove he can win on a new team without Big Bill.  He is creating a new trademark...he is definitely playing.  However If the players vote to play, I bet a million dollars there are some individuals who don’t, and will forfeit the money.  But I agree that many will play, whether they truly feel safe or feel pressure from their peers.

[OCCH23]

So these guys are willing to play a game that can paralyze them in an instant and give them brain damage over the long haul, but they draw the line at a virus that might make them sick for 2 games?  Elite human specimens are going to take their stand over an illness that preys on the elderly/unhealthy?

I'd add this to the list of things that make NO sense in this world, but I'm running out of room . . .

 

[Lil O]

13 minutes ago, OCCH23 said:

So these guys are willing to play a game that can paralyze them in an instant and give them brain damage over the long haul, but they draw the line at a virus that might make them sick for 2 games?  Elite human specimens are going to take their stand over an illness that preys on the elderly/unhealthy?

I'd add this to the list of things that make NO sense in this world, but I'm running out of room . . .

 

I don’t think it is so much about them as their families.  I think most of them will want to play however those that are married and have children might not be able to make the decision on their own.  I am married and I respect my wife and we discuss most decisions together.  Example... I got season tickets in the old stadium for the last two years of Meadowlands. With the new stadium was built I started researching season tickets and was ready to pounce until my wife stopped me and said “ we haven’t talked about this yet”.  I said, “what is there to talk about, I put the money aside for this” (and I make 90 % of our money).  I realized that even though I’m the one who makes most of the money and I have the money for these tickets I can’t just drop $20,000 on PSL’s without checking in with my partner. Doesn’t matter who makes the money we are a team. That’s just the way we roll. And I assume there some NFL players that are the same. But I hear you about the irony of playing a game they can paralyze you versus catching a virus

[sackdance]

8 hours ago, Copernicus said:

Are we really expecting players who are financially set to agree to make contact and tackle (most likely sweat) another player? 

Yes. I think the game is called football.

[rangerous]

11 hours ago, Lil O said:

Kareem Jackson the strong safety for the Denver Broncos said during an interview that it didn’t make sense to play games unless it was 100% safe for everyone. He also said that playing games without fans in the stadium would be like practice. That it didn’t make sense. And he said some other players that he spoke to felt the same way. So that brings me to my question.  With all of the talk about what the NFL is planning, and what the owners are saying, what about the players and the NFLPA?  There are numerous plans in place to make sure we have a season, but I am very curious how the players feel.  Will this turn into a season where players who can afford to miss a season, the top paid and smartest with their money, will be replaced with lesser paid backups?  I know the NFL is a business and money talks, but I’m not so sure if it puts a man’s family at risk.  I have no idea what is going to happen....thoughts?

what is this guy, a soccer mom?  i don't see how any players would be exposed more than they would normally be if they tested each player and team member before the game to make sure they don't have something.  the fans are another thing but since most teams don't really need the stadium gate to field their teams it shouldn't matter too much to limit the number of attendees.  and this being the season the jets go to the superbowl.

[Skeptable]

5 hours ago, Gangrene said:

.

The Dolphins are talking about 15K fans in their stadium, we can joke about that being a typical Dolphin game but in reality to do 6ft distancing, 15K fans in a typical NFL stadium sounds about right.

A rough guess, every other horizontal row has to be be completely empty and in the the rows that are occupied, maybe one fan in every third seat. Cousins thought it would be refreshing to have no fans. I think the players who are really fired up at practice, they will still be fired up for games with little or no fans. I think there is too much television money not to try the game with 15 K fans or no fans at all.

NFL fans like us will be so desperate for sports, we would rather have televised football with a scattering of fans in the stadium than no football at all. 

 

Footballers have a limited shelf life, I expect a we-are-all-in-this-together and pride to come into this to this.  The hard part might be whether footballers would consider quarantining themselves with their team to what might be a shortened season total of say four months from preseason to superbowl.That's a big ask but it is a lot of money.

How are they going to increase their fan load to 15k? 

[Warfish]

12 hours ago, Lil O said:

Kareem Jackson the strong safety for the Denver Broncos said during an interview that it didn’t make sense to play games unless it was 100% safe for everyone. He also said that playing games without fans in the stadium would be like practice. That it didn’t make sense. And he said some other players that he spoke to felt the same way. So that brings me to my question.  With all of the talk about what the NFL is planning, and what the owners are saying, what about the players and the NFLPA?  There are numerous plans in place to make sure we have a season, but I am very curious how the players feel.  Will this turn into a season where players who can afford to miss a season, the top paid and smartest with their money, will be replaced with lesser paid backups?  I know the NFL is a business and money talks, but I’m not so sure if it puts a man’s family at risk.  I have no idea what is going to happen....thoughts?

Professional Athletes are going to have to get over playing in empty stadiums.  Because it's going to happen, at least briefly, IMO.

[chirorob]

You can go to work and play in less than optimal situations, or you can not get paid.

Some of the older players, this may be their last shot.  Many players are just like the rest of us, they can't go a year with no income, and to be honest, I'm not sure how many of the owners can fork out 200 million in salary with 0 money coming in.

[Copernicus]

6 hours ago, sackdance said:

Yes. I think the game is called football.

Maybe my point is unclear. I dont think players will agree to play so easily with so much to lose (health wise). Players making a million dollars a year are going to willingly agree to tackle a player from NY who may be a carrier of the virus? Then comfortably go home to to hug  wife, small child, elderly parent? Losing the paycheck speaks volume but  Im still not so sure if most will be on board.

[JetPotato]

The death rate of people 20-35 years of age (the approximate age range of NFL players) from COVID is very low.

Those that suffer from the symptoms and survive are out of commission for about 2 weeks, which pales in comparison to many NFL injuries.

Most healthy people, especially in this age group, experience no symptoms at all.

These guys get paid millions. They're free to pass that up if they're more concerned about this than they are about major injuries, CTE or the repercussions they face for all the steroids they've loaded into their bodies. 

If fat, 40-ish me can go into work every day as I do, physically unable to maintain social distancing due to the nature of my work, these conditioned athletes can too.

[JetPotato]

11 minutes ago, Copernicus said:

Maybe my point is unclear. I dont think players will agree to play so eadily with so much to lose. Players making a million dollars a year are going to willingly agree to tackle a player from NY who may be a carrier of the virus? Then comfortably go home to to hug  wife, small child, elderly parent? Losing the paycheck speaks volume but  Im still not so sure if most will be on board.

NO ONE should be hugging their elderly parent right now, regardless of who they have or haven't tackled. Why is it worse for a player than the rest of us?

[jetstream23]

18 hours ago, Lil O said:

Kareem Jackson the strong safety for the Denver Broncos said during an interview that it didn’t make sense to play games unless it was 100% safe for everyone. He also said that playing games without fans in the stadium would be like practice. That it didn’t make sense. And he said some other players that he spoke to felt the same way.

Well, my boss said that despite no "audience" or office I still had to work from home (empty stadium) if I wanted to get paid.  So, I'm doing that.

 

Quote

So that brings me to my question.  With all of the talk about what the NFL is planning, and what the owners are saying, what about the players and the NFLPA?  There are numerous plans in place to make sure we have a season, but I am very curious how the players feel.  Will this turn into a season where players who can afford to miss a season, the top paid and smartest with their money, will be replaced with lesser paid backups?  I know the NFL is a business and money talks, but I’m not so sure if it puts a man’s family at risk.  I have no idea what is going to happen....thoughts?

My guess is that there will be widespread testing in place, and possibly required of players when they arrive at the stadium 3-4 hours before the game.  If you're testing people throughout the practice week, testing officials, coaches, etc. and everyone is following stay-at-home orders with other non-infected people then there shouldn't be a problem.

The risk of playing football with other tested and non-infected players is probably less than going back home to your house and having pizza delivered by a delivery guy.

[DJF71]

7 hours ago, Aaron Hernandez said:

Half the NFLPA is living paycheck to paycheck, which sounds insane. It's true though. They will be as desperate as the owners soon enough. The same reason they'll cave on every CBA

If that's true then that just shows the true ignorance of these athletes.

[varjet]

The odds of an nfl player getting corona and dying or suffering permanent damage are likely lower than getting in a car accident driving to practice  

To really make this work right, players with families should isolate for all or part of the season.   Think of it like a deployment.  Going home to a house with kids will raise the risks.  But statistically the biggest risk is to the player and the older coaches and staff, not to the wife and kids.  

[nycdan]

NFL players already play with the assumed risk of injury and long term disability.  This is not a risk-averse group of men when it comes to their personal health for the most part.  If they were, the CTE crisis would have ended football already.

Yes, a few will raise concerns, but I would be shocked if more than a handful went as far as to sit out.  

I assume that the NFLPA has no voice over how fans are handled.  Yes, they are impacted if revenues drop as a result, but I don't believe the owners have ceded any control over operations so all they can do is post their opinions individually on social media.  

I believe the owners will listen to concerns from players over safety - similar to how the NBA enacted the rule years back about open cuts must be treated before a player can resume playing after Magic Johnson brought the AIDS crisis to the forefront.

[nycdan]

On 5/6/2020 at 3:23 AM, Gangrene said:

.

The Dolphins are talking about 15K fans in their stadium, we can joke about that being a typical Dolphin game but in reality to do 6ft distancing, 15K fans in a typical NFL stadium sounds about right.

A rough guess, every other horizontal row has to be be completely empty and in the the rows that are occupied, maybe one fan in every third seat. Cousins thought it would be refreshing to have no fans. I think the players who are really fired up at practice, they will still be fired up for games with little or no fans. I think there is too much television money not to try the game with 15 K fans or no fans at all.

 

I don't think they have to separate every fan in a row.  Families should be able to sit together.  I think the challenge is that seats will all have to be pre-assigned by request from STHs.  I suspect walk-in sales won't happen at all and STHs will have to be part of some rotation.  If you have four seats and it's your week, the people to both sides of you either lose out or they will shuffle fans around to make them fit properly.  It's going to be complicated and some teams who don't hire math geeks are going to screw it up really badly.