Socially-distanced locker rooms, lots of PPE are among new safety measures for NFL camps
Coach Mike McCarthy and his coaching staff were allowed to report back at work last Friday but there is still no timeline for the Dallas Cowboys players to return to the team’s facilities.
The NFL has released some preliminary protocols for when the Cowboys and the rest of the teams will be able to welcome players back during the lingering coronavirus pandemic. The NFL Players Association would have to sign-off on any plan.
Commissioner Roger Goodell sent a memo to all teams on Sunday informing them of the standards that have been developed to date. The topics include sections on players, staff, and family education and facility preparation and maintenance, including disinfection and hygiene.
A nine-page document was attached to the memo, outlining team facility protocols for 2020. In addition to making sure that teams’ locker rooms can accomodate players staying socially-distant by at least six feet, the document required that all meetings be held virtually as much as possible.
As far as the Cowboys are concerned, they have ample room to accommodate the players in a socially-distanced manner given that they have 74 spaces in their main locker room at The Star in Frisco and nearly 30 in a back locker room that is reserved for rookies during the offseason. And then the Cowboys have another 100 spots inside Ford Center that are used by high school teams for games in the fall.
The NFL will restrict access to certain specific areas, including the locker room, practice fields, playing fields, training rooms, weight rooms, meal rooms, medical exam areas, and player lounges, while separating club employees into tiers.
Teams are limited to a maximum of 60 persons, in addition to the players on the roster, in restricted areas.
Tier 1 includes players, coaches, trainers, doctors, the strength/conditioning coach, and the head equipment manager.
Tier 2 includes other non-playing personnel, including the owners, general managers, football operations, scouts and other front-office employees.
They will be required to maintain physical distance from Tier 1 individuals or use Personal Protective Equipment. The protocol limits Tier 2 access to 20 persons in a given restricted area.
Tier 3 includes persons who perform essential facility, stadium, or event services, but who do not require close contact with Tier 1 individuals. They are permitted to access restricted areas only when Tier 1 individuals are not present.
At least seven days prior to the players’ first mandatory reporting date, each club must submit to the NFL a list of individuals who the club wishes to designate to have Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 access for training camp and preseason. Teams will need to repeat the process a week before the start of the regular season.
Other requirements include separate entrances for Tier 1 and Tier 2 personnel, automated or no-touch doorways, and daily screening for all players and club employees with access to restricted areas.
All players and staff must wear masks (surgical or cloth) at all times when inside the facility (unless a mask cannot be worn by players due to interference with performance of athletic activities).
Clubs are responsible for obtaining an adequate supply of surgical and cloth masks.
Gloves are required for staff in frequent contact with others and are mandatory for those who work with food or who refill supplies.
NFL teams must make hand sanitizer and other hygiene materials (soap, tissues) available in all areas of the facility. Where possible, clubs are encouraged to use no-touch dispensers.
According to the memo, teams must maintain a supply of the following PPE for use by the medical staff to treat players who become symptomatic: N95 masks; goggles, full face shields, FDA-approved gowns, and FDA-approved medical-grade gloves. Clubs must also have at least a two-week supply of all PPE and hygiene materials available at all times.
Teams must confirm that they have obtained these supplies before players can return to the club’s facility.
The NFL’s memo was sent to teams without the NFLPA’s approval.
“Some of you have been contacted by your clubs about coming back into the facility to workout, or rehab, citing a memo from the NFL,” the NFLPA said in a message to its members. “We write to inform you that we do NOT have an agreement to allow additional players to come back into the facilities at this point, and the League’s memo was sent to clubs without the approval of your union.”
