The South Florida community is currently enduring one of the worst hot-spots of COVID-19 in the country — an issue that each of the NFL’s 32 franchises will have to be mindful of as the league looks to successfully put on their 2020 season this fall. Further complicating the issue of South Florida sports is the situation with the Miami Marlins of Major League Baseball — the team has been on lockdown in Philadelphia this week after an outbreak of the virus became known over the weekend.
One of the “luxuries” that the NFL boasts in today’s sport’s climate is going last with their return to play — and there are plenty of lessons to be learned from the Marlins situation. When Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores met with the South Florida media earlier this week, he was asked exactly that: what lessons can he take from the Marlins situation to ensure his Dolphins team does not suffer the same fate.
“Our message has been more along the lines of let’s try to do everything possible so that (the Marlins) situation doesn’t happen. Let’s wear the mask. Let’s distance. Let’s test – we are testing on a daily basis. That’s kind of where our thought process has been,” said Flores.
Yes, have we had those conversations about what it would take (to send everyone home) or what if a catastrophe happened? Yes, we’ve had those and there’s an action plan for that. I’m not going to get into that; but most of our energy has been towards doing the things necessary to prevent that situation. And that’s the message I’ve tried to give to the team and really everyone in the organization – players, coaches, equipment, training staff – and I think the leadership within the organization … they’re all sending that exact same message.”
The return to play of the NBA in their Orlando bubble, despite the COVID-19 climate in the state, has been promising. So, too, has the testing numbers for the rest of the Major League Baseball teams — the Marlins situation is currently the exception and not the rule. And, as Brian Flores points out, if the Dolphins do what they are supposed to do to protect themselves — as the rest of the MLB has done to this point — there’s a reasonable chance Miami’s schedule will not be impeded by the virus. But it will take everyone on every team to do the right things and avoid high-risk situations. And testing. Lots of testing. Fortunately for the NFL, the resources to test are available and each and every NFL player has a clear example of what fate awaits those who are irresponsible regarding protection.
Reports indicate “at least one” Marlins player went out on the town for a night in Atlanta ahead of the team’s trip to Philadelphia, where their outbreak would be realized. If the Dolphins and the rest of the NFL want to avoid catastrophe this season, that kind of conduct can’t be on the table. Which is what makes the messaging from Brian Flores and the Dolphins so important this early in the process.