Over the course of the past week or so, NFL players have made the difficult decision to opt-out of the 2020 season. Ultimately, the only person who can make that decision is each player in question — there are various concerns about a return to play that some may feel more comfortable avoiding taking on head on this season. For some, family matters were a heavy decision. Individual health risks was another variable that impacted more than one player’s decision to sit out.
But it won’t be long before all of these decisions must be made. The NFL’s deadline for player opt-outs has been revealed — and it is just two days. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported yesterday afternoon that the deadline for players to decide to sit out the coming season will be this Thursday at 4PM EST. The expected result is that you’ll see a final wave of opt-outs over the next two days.
For the Dolphins specifically, their next opt-out will be their first — the Dolphins have not endured any unexpected personnel losses for the 2020 season to date. There’s still time for that to change, but the dynamics of Miami’s roster indicate that the team is less likely to have heavy opt-outs than some of the other teams across the league. The Dolphins are currently the youngest team in football. The team is hungry and eager to prove themselves, too — so without any health risks to prompt players to think twice about the coming season, Miami way reach the deadline without losing a single player to opt-outs.
If Miami does incur losses, the team will take them in stride. The Dolphins are well versed in the “next man up” mentality on the gridiron after a trying season in 2019 that saw backups thrust into starting roles after trades and injuries took their toll throughout the heart of the season. The Dolphins have much more depth than a year ago, so if it comes down to backups becoming starters, Miami will take it in stride, mainly because they won’t have a choice.
But the players are running out of time to make the decision for themselves to sit out this season in the name of safety.