The ongoing coronavius pandemic in the United States has taken its toll on several aspects of the 2020 NFL season, and has done so for the past several months. Most recently, stadiums are not filling up with fans yet, and now the Bills’ upcoming opponent, the Los Angeles Rams, have run into a new issue with their travel plans ahead of their trip to Orchard Park in Week 3.
Prior to the NFL’s schedule release each year, teams can make a request to have cross-country games on back-to-back weeks. In the case of the Rams, they requested that the league’s schedule-makers put the Eagles and Bills next to each other on their schedule. That happened, as the Rams beat the Eagles last week in Philadelphia and have Buffalo up next.
The idea gives teams the option to avoid long trips. Instead of going back to Los Angeles, the Rams hoped to just travel right to Buffalo.
But thanks to Covid-19, that’s not happening.
The NFL introduced numerous safety protocols to avoid the spread of the virus, and among those involve team travel. The Rams technically could still travel right to Buffalo, but the players and team staff, by rule, could only go to the practice field and their hotel rooms, according to Rams Wire.
And so the Rams called an audible on their travel. The Rams have since headed back to L.A. and will return to Buffalo later this week to face the Bills.
More miles, but, safety first.
Last week ahead of the Bills’ first trip away from Buffalo, defensive back Jordan Poyer described the safety protocols the team was going through via their trip to Miami to face the Dolphins. Poyer said once the team lands, you’re essentially in a “bubble” until you head home.
Plane lands. Players stay in a hotel. Go play the game. Straight to the airport to go directly home to avoid crossing paths with any outsiders.
Later on this season, the Bills themselves will have trips out west with games in Arizona, Denver, San Francisco, and their next road game, their first ever trip to Las Vegas. However, the Bills were actually the only team in the AFC East to not make this special request to schedulers earlier this offseason.
So it’ll still be as usual, or planned, for the Bills… or as much as it can be during the roller coaster that 2020 is.
[lawrence-related id=70293,70281,70267,70261]