NFLPA votes unanimously to cancel all preseason games

dplank · Sun Jul 05, 2020 11:16 am

If the owners have an intelligent thought in their body that isn't purely driven by money and greed, they will agree to this request. It would give a lot of good will back to the players who will be risking a whole lot to have a season at all. And the fans won't miss it very much. Although, let's be honest guys, we'll miss it A LITTLE. How else are we going to see Ryan Nall and Riley Ridley tear the league up? lol....

Anyhow, I think the owners should agree to this request by the players and focus on playing the actual season, on time, in as normal a fashion as they are able to do while minimizing safety risks as best possible.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/294 ... games-year

Atkins&Rebel · Mon Jul 06, 2020 8:18 am

This would allow the NFL to push Training camps back a week or 2 and still start the season on time. Teams could also set up a live scrimmage with 1 other team to get some live action ahead of game 1.

Moriarty · Mon Jul 06, 2020 8:47 am

I wonder who qualifies to vote at these meetings.

Fringe players who think they will make the roster surely don't want preseason games, but fringe players whose only chance is to open some eyes in preseason surely have to be wanting the opportunity.

Arkansasbear · Mon Jul 06, 2020 12:57 pm

If this does happen, is it pretty much a look that Trubisky starts week one unless he completely falls on his face in training camp???

Without "live" snaps to give a real analysis, I just don't see how Foles can leap frog him.

Otis Day · Mon Jul 06, 2020 2:40 pm

No problem with no preseason games. I think it benefits the players and coaching staffs not having to be around anyone else but team personnel. owners lose some coin, they can probably recoup that another way.

RichH55 · Tue Jul 07, 2020 10:11 am

If you are a Vet - this is the no brainer of no brainers

You avoid the whole pandemic thing for a bit - and less real challenge to your job

Tue Jul 07, 2020 11:01 am

I don't care about the preseason, but I do miss football real bad by the time it rolls around. So as a fan, I do like to watch. But I would totally understand if it was cancelled.

Tue Jul 07, 2020 1:28 pm

If this happens and we start the season poorly nobody can definitively say that it's due to Nagy not playing his starters in preseason. haha

AZ_Bearfan · Tue Jul 07, 2020 2:08 pm

In fact, Nagy may be one of the only coaches with experience going in to a season with zero preseason snaps.

Tue Jul 07, 2020 3:58 pm

I like that way of thinking, @AZ_Bearfan ! haha Nagy saw the writing on the wall and was playing the long game all this time. Some 4D chess right there.

Z Bear · Tue Jul 07, 2020 5:09 pm

Xee wrote: ↑Tue Jul 07, 2020 1:28 pm If this happens and we start the season poorly nobody can definitively say that it's due to Nagy not playing his starters in preseason. haha

I saw an interview with him on the Bears site a few weeks back that said they re-evaluated that decision and said the starters would play in future preseasons.

IE · Mon Jul 13, 2020 11:16 am

Whatever it takes for them to figure out how to pull it off - I'm in favor.

I personally believe the only way they'll pull it off is to use all that NFL money to establish a real bubble to quarantine the players for the entire season. DP I think your idea of "day before testing, plus a day of quarantine" each week is a really good one. But as we know - those other 5 days are the problem. So what do we do when the entire QB room (players/coaches), for example, tests positive for one or more teams? There's no way entire teams will wear masks, distance and be able to limit the exposure of the people they're around during the week. So it seems pretty clear to me that the season could start out fairly well without a quarantine... but it would be a matter of only a few weeks before the wheels come off.

I'm hoping this vote around the preseason is the players realizing that there needs to be a full quarantine, and just limiting its duration.

Z Bear · Mon Jul 13, 2020 2:04 pm

The soccer leagues in Europe have returned to play in empty stadiums without much transmission, why do you think the NFL can't do that too? I would be shocked to see fans in the stadium this year, but do not think the league year is in jeopardy unless the numbers really spike over the next month. The teams travel and stay by themselves already, so there already is not much interaction with the public for away teams. The key is keeping the players out of clubs during off nights, that seems to be where it is spreading the most.

IE · Mon Jul 13, 2020 2:49 pm

Soccer is very spread out, with mostly incidental contact. They're breathing heavily - but outside and with a ton of space. Football is full-on contact, literal piles of people, shouting and huffing/puffing in each other's faces. And many stadiums indoors. So it seems quite different? Even practice is a high transmission risk in football.

They CAN do it. But I can't see it lasting without a comprehensive full-time quarantine for the players, coaches, and anyone else they'll be around.

dplank · Mon Jul 13, 2020 4:15 pm

Not really man. On corner kicks (of which there are dozens per game), nearly every player is in tight quarters...grabbing, kicking, pulling, etc as they jockey for position. Those fools often bite other players lmao. But there's PLENTY of contact for transmission. Football would be even worse, but really I don't think so much so that it changes anything.

The key will be testing....constant testing, and automatic quarantine/no play until they test clean again. That's really all they can do. Those new helmets might help a little, but really it's like pissing in the ocean.

IE · Tue Jul 14, 2020 8:56 am

Yeah forgot about some of that soccer situational stuff. Not a huge fan - but it will grow on me if that's all we got!

Fingers crossed on the NFL... my approach on this is to assume the worst and then anything beyond that is a pleasant surprise.

Johnny Bollocks · Tue Jul 14, 2020 1:35 pm

dplank wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 4:15 pm Not really man. On corner kicks (of which there are dozens per game), nearly every player is in tight quarters...grabbing, kicking, pulling, etc as they jockey for position. Those fools often bite other players lmao. But there's PLENTY of contact for transmission. Football would be even worse, but really I don't think so much so that it changes anything.

The key will be testing....constant testing, and automatic quarantine/no play until they test clean again. That's really all they can do. Those new helmets might help a little, but really it's like pissing in the ocean.

Point of information, it's actually an average of just over 10 corners per game...which is the closest you'll get in soccer to a 'line of scrimmage'. There will also be a couple of free kicks into the box each game which will in effect be similar to a corner in terms of close contact. So overall there will be far, far less close contact than in a game of football. Viral load will count for much here.

Even so, I think you're right. The key for both sports is going to be frequent testing of all players and staff and quarantining anyone found with the virus immediately.

dplank · Tue Jul 14, 2020 3:32 pm

Johnny Bollocks wrote: ↑Tue Jul 14, 2020 1:35 pm
dplank wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 4:15 pm Not really man. On corner kicks (of which there are dozens per game), nearly every player is in tight quarters...grabbing, kicking, pulling, etc as they jockey for position. Those fools often bite other players lmao. But there's PLENTY of contact for transmission. Football would be even worse, but really I don't think so much so that it changes anything.

The key will be testing....constant testing, and automatic quarantine/no play until they test clean again. That's really all they can do. Those new helmets might help a little, but really it's like pissing in the ocean.
Point of information, it's actually an average of just over 10 corners per game...which is the closest you'll get in soccer to a 'line of scrimmage'. There will also be a couple of free kicks into the box each game which will in effect be similar to a corner in terms of close contact. So overall there will be far, far less close contact than in a game of football. Viral load will count for much here.

Even so, I think you're right. The key for both sports is going to be frequent testing of all players and staff and quarantining anyone found with the virus immediately.

You limey bastard. 10 corners per game ain't squat for MLS soccer here in the US of A buddy. Arsenal...pffffffft! We have the Chicago Fire!

Johnny Bollocks · Wed Jul 15, 2020 6:57 am

dplank wrote: ↑Tue Jul 14, 2020 3:32 pm
Johnny Bollocks wrote: ↑Tue Jul 14, 2020 1:35 pm

Point of information, it's actually an average of just over 10 corners per game...which is the closest you'll get in soccer to a 'line of scrimmage'. There will also be a couple of free kicks into the box each game which will in effect be similar to a corner in terms of close contact. So overall there will be far, far less close contact than in a game of football. Viral load will count for much here.

Even so, I think you're right. The key for both sports is going to be frequent testing of all players and staff and quarantining anyone found with the virus immediately.
You limey bastard. 10 corners per game ain't squat for MLS soccer here in the US of A buddy. Arsenal...pffffffft! We have the Chicago Fire!

Genuinely spat my tea out reading that, lol.

The data is from last season in the Premier League; other leagues may have different stats depending on styles of play.

I did try to support the Chicago Fire for a while. But they were really, really shit so I stopped. Besides, with their links to Manchester City I'm closer affiliated to New York City FC (although I understand that they too are shit). At least their shirts are the right colour.