Any thought the NFL was considering a bubble format during the playoffs was popped on Tuesday with news the league won’t follow that path.
A memo was sent to all teams saying there would be no bubble.
“This decision is based upon an analysis of the frequency of positive cases in the league compared to the risk of significant spread among players and staff gathered for an extensive period of time at one hotel,” the memo reads.
Here’s the full memo. One interesting note: if a player or coach decides to stay in a hotel, team can pay for it. But that player or coach then has to wear his contact tracing device at ALL times, other than when he’s in the hotel room. https://t.co/8iT4mAHI8N pic.twitter.com/yzpiejWn5M
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) December 15, 2020
Also stated in the memo:
• Daily testing continue for seven days after the completion of a team’s season.
• Clarified that players who are cleared on game day from isolation protocols will be eligible to participate.
• Changed return-to-play protocols for asymptomatic individuals, who will no longer be allowed to return after two consecutive negative tests and instead must wait a full 10 days after the positive specimen was passed while also getting clearance from a physician.