Tag: team facilities

Cowboys near top of NFLPA’s team report cards for facilities, amenities

Players graded their teams in 8 categories from locker rooms to travel arrangements to treatment of families. The Cowboys were 5th overall. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Not every NFL team is created equal. And it’s no secret that, especially during free agency when veteran players have a large degree of say in where they suit up next, it’s often more than just a fat contract, a contending win-loss record, and a favorable depth chart that can be the deciding factor that attracts a player to a certain organization.

The Cowboys have long prided themselves on being a top-tier destination. Whether it’s the promise of extra primetime game exposure, the lack of state income tax in Texas, or simply the mystique of playing for America’s Team, Dallas always seems to be in the mix when players are seeking their next football home.

Turns out, the perception is grounded in a good bit of reality.

The NFL Players Association has released its first-ever “team report cards,” assigning letter grades to all 32 clubs in eight different categories ranging from weight room facilities to nutrition, the locker room, travel arrangements, and even treatment of players’ families.

According to union president JC Tretter, “providing players with information about each club would not only help them make important career decisions, but it would also help raise the standards across each club.”

Every NFL player on a 2022 team roster was asked to give their opinions regarding their team; over 1,300 players responded.

The Cowboys scored at or near the top in most categories and ended up in fifth place overall once all the grades were tallied into aggregate rankings. Here’s a breakdown of how they did in each category, and how they compare to some other clubs:

Chiefs now permitted to hold tryouts at club facilities

The NFL has lifted its moratorium on tryouts at team facilities. What does that mean for the Chiefs?

The NFL has lifted its moratorium on tryouts, enabling the Kansas City Chiefs to bring free agents to showcase their talents at team facilities. That means the Chiefs could see some movement at the bottom of the roster or with some remaining free agents they’ve been hoping to bring in for tryouts and physicals. This will help the team establish a good call list of players for the 2020 season as well.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero broke the news of the NFL’s decision, sharing the memo on tryouts sent to NFL teams. As the league continues to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, the resurgence of tryouts comes with certain stipulations. For instance, free agents must pass two COVID-19 tests before they’re allowed on the field at a team facility for a tryout or in the building for a physical examination.

Some of the additional stipulations for in-person tryouts at club facilities are as follows:

  • Teams aren’t allowed to have any player on the roster participate in the tryout or interact with the tryout player. This seems to mitigate any potential risk of exposing players to the virus. Other players aren’t even allowed to be present at the team facility when the tryout occurs.
  • Teams can only have a total of eight players in for tryouts on a given day.
  • Teams are allowed to have the same player in for a tryout up to four times during the 2020 NFL season. That number can reset for if a given player is signed and then terminated by another club or tests positive for COVID-19 during their initial visit.

At the end of the day, the NFL is doing what they can to keep things normal in terms of providing free agents opportunities to sign with teams and keep rosters across the league competitive. They’re also making sure that they eliminate any risk of contaminating the pseudo-bubbles they’ve created for each of the 32 NFL teams during the course of training camp.

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Multiple Cowboys and Texans tested positive for COVID-19

Ezekiel Elliott is among the many NFL players who recently tested positive for COVID-19, a discouraging development for the league.

Multiple players on both the Dallas Cowboys and the Houston Texans have tested positive for COVID-19, according to NFL Insider Ian Rapoport.

It does not sound like any of the players who tested positive were in their team facilities, or that either team was ignoring the proper health protocols.

Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott is among the players known to have tested positive, with his agent confirming his diagnosis to Rapoport.

Elliott was very unhappy his results were made public, citing HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) which prevents healthcare workers from making a patient’s information public.

The league is currently planning to start reopening some team facilities this month, allowing coaches and other front office personnel into the practice facilities.

Players are not expected to report until training camp begins, which for the Seahawks will be July 29.

If there are more reports of players getting COVID-19, it’s entirely possible the beginning of training camp gets delayed, which could even push back the start of the regular season in September.

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NFL and players union agree to reopening plan for team facilities

The NFL and NFL Players Association have agreed to guidelines for reopening team facilities to all players.

The NFL and the players union have agreed to a set of terms to provide for the safe reopening of team facilities during the coronavirus pandemic.

A four-part memo was sent to all 32 teams which detailed protocols for clubs, per the Associated Press. Screening, testing, infection prevention and COVID-19 treatment are all addressed at length. Guidance on accessing facilities, cleaning, hygiene and team travel are also discussed.

Team facilities were closed in late March at the outset of the pandemic.

“Clubs will be required to certify that they have made the arrangements necessary to meet their obligations under these protocols,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wrote in the memo. “And, in certain instances, to provide the details of those arrangements to be reviewed and confirmed by the jointly retained infectious disease experts at (Duke University).”

A tiered approach to return must be followed and presented to the league for approval at least seven days before the reporting date for training camps later this summer.

“No set of protocols can eliminate the risk of contracting COVID-19, nor ensure that the disease itself will be mild,” Goodell stated. “And we should expect that these protocols will change as medical and scientific knowledge of the disease continues to grow. But we believe, along with the NFLPA, that these protocols offer a sound basis for bringing players back into the facilities and moving forward with our planning for the 2020 season.”

This story is continuing to develop.

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NFL coaches can begin to return to team facilities as soon as June 5

A memo sent to all 32 NFL clubs provides that coaches can begin to return to team facilities, if local authorities allow, as soon as June 5.

The 2020 NFL season is inching closer and closer to fruition. A memo sent to all 32 clubs Thursday morning provides that coaching staff can begin to return to team facilities as soon as June 5.

“This will advise that, beginning tomorrow, June 5, coaching staffs may be among the employees returning to your facilities,” the memo reads, per NFL’s Ian Rapoport. “As has been emphasized in previous advice for reopening facilities, this may occur only if your club has otherwise received necessary permission from state and local governments to reopen its facility.”

As of this date, King County – where the Seahawks’ Virginia Mason Athletic Center is located – remains in Phase One of the state’s reopening plan. An application for the county to enter a modified Phase 1.5, which could lift some restrictions, is now pending.

The memo does provide a cautionary warning to those who could be more vulnerable to the virus.

“Coaches and other football staff, particularly those who may be in a higher risk category or who have concerns about their own health conditions, are expected to speak with the club medical staff or personal physician about any special precautions or other accommodations that may be appropriate for their particular circumstances,” the memo notes. “In addition, we will work with club medical staffs to implement a program of COVID-19 testing for the coaching staff and other football personnel prior to players returning to club facilities.”

This story is continuing to develop.

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NFL to mandate teams stay at home facilities for training camps

In light of the coronavirus pandemic, the NFL is expected to mandate teams to stay at home facilities for training camps this summer.

The NFL is doing everything in its power to ensure there will be football this fall in spite of the coronavirus pandemic that is still strapping the nation.

The league has revealed its 2020 regular-season schedule as well provided protocols clubs must follow in order to slowly begin opening up their facilities.

The next step the NFL appears to be taking is to mandate that all team training camps be held at their home facilities this summer.

“A source tells 7 Sports that the NFL will soon make an announcement telling teams they must remain at their own facilities this summer for preseason camps that begin in late July,” writes Pete Yanity of wspa.com.

“The NFL is expected to make the announcement official Tuesday afternoon,” Yanity reports.

The Seahawks, who now exclusively hold their training camps at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center, won’t be impacted by the news, but five teams around the league regularly travel for the summer event and will now be relegated to their home facilities.

This story is continuing to develop.

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Which NFL teams are beginning to reopen facilities this week

The Cardinals, Colts, Falcons and Steelers are beginning to open their NFL facilities despite the coronavirus pandemic sweeping the nation.

Professional football in the fall in getting closer to becoming a reality despite the coronavirus pandemic that is still impacting the nation. This week, several NFL teams will slowly begin to reopen their facilities.

Per the league, clubs are allowed to reopen only if they follow “governing state and local regulations, are in compliance with additional public health requirements in their jurisdiction, and have implemented the protocols” set out by the NFL to ensure the safety of all employees.

The Cardinals, Colts, Falcons and Steelers are beginning their reopening process on Tuesday per Around the NFL writer Kevin Patra. Coaches are not allowed at team facilities at this phase and most returning employees are part of the clubs’ operational departments.

The number of people allowed in the buildings will be strictly managed to allow for proper social distancing. Other measures such as temperature-taking and mask-wearing will also be enforced in the name of safety.

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Report: NFL to close team facilities due to coronavirus pandemic

The NFL is planning to close all team facilities due to the coronavirus pandemic Wednesday at 6 p.m. local time.

The NFL will close all facilities to virtially all personnel in response to the coronavirus pandemic, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday.

The paper learned of the decision through a memo Commissioner Roger Goodell sent to clubs Tuesday outlining rules put in place to ensure the league “continues to conduct itself in a responsible way,” and that teams “operate on a level playing field.

Sam Farmer of the Times reported Goodell’s memo states the guidelines will be implemented at 6 p.m. local time Wednesday and the league will assess the situation in two weeks.

  • The only exceptions to the closure are employees (such as athletic trainers) or physicans) who are providing ongoing medical treatment to players.
  • The director of facilities or security personnel needed to maintain the physical security of the facility and its contents.
  • Technology personnel necessary to maintain the security and operational capabilities of the IT network of each team to enable remote work.

This makes the second major piece of news Farmer and the Times have broken in less than a week. Earlier, he reported the league planned to operate its April 23-25 draft from a studio setting.