NFL Schedule Release
The NFL released its 2020 schedule last night, and as of now, the plan is for the season to start on Thursday, Sept. 10 with the Houston Texans traveling to Arrowhead Stadium to take on the Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs.
According to reports, there are plans in place should the season have to be delayed and games moved around
The NFC Champion San Francisco 49ers have five prime-time games, as do the Patriots, Cowboys, Packers, Chiefs, Rams and the glow-up Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The new-to-town Las Vegas Raiders will play host to four games in prime-time. Now, we just have to hope there’s actually a season.
In the meantime, the NFL has laid out a plan to slowly reopen facilities, starting with some staff and expanding to players in time. The first people allowed back would be no more than 50% of non-player staff. Players who were rehabbing injuries before facilities closed in.
Athletes Urge DOJ to Investigate Death of Ahmaud Arbery
Today, the Players Coalition wrote a letter asking Attorney General William Barr to investigate the death of 25 year-old Ahmaud Arbery, pointing to the lack of action by local authorities in Georgia.
The letter is signed by 64 athletes and coaches, including Tom Brady, Steve Kerr, Malcolm Jenkins, Julian Edelman and NFL EVP Troy Vincent.
Today should’ve been Ahmaud Arbery’s 26th birthday. Instead, our nation is mourning. Because of the local conflict of interest, @playercoalition, other athletes, and I are urging Attorney General Barr, to have the FBI and the DOJ investigate this tragic death. We need action. pic.twitter.com/2qG8lih6A4
— Anquan Boldin (@AnquanBoldin) May 8, 2020
On Feb. 23, Arbery, who was African-American, was shot and killed by two white men, Gregory and Travis McMichael, while he was jogging. Both men were arrested last night and charged with murder and aggravated assault. It took the release of the cell phone footage of the incident and 74 days for the arrests to be made.
NBA Opens Facilities
Today, the NBA has allowed teams to open practice facilities for voluntary workouts (social-distanced, of course), providing the facility is located in an area where local public health officials have given the OK.
The Portland Trail Blazers, Denver Nuggets Cleveland Cavaliers opened today. Several teams are expected to open next week.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski also reports that in cities where testing is readily available to those who need it most, teams will be able to test asymptomatic players and staff. The Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers all fall into this category.
Earlier this week, Dallas Mavericks’ owner Mark Cuban told The Athletic that he plans to keep the Mavs’ facility closed, saying, “Even though we can try to take all different kinds of precautions, it’s just not worth it, particularly when our guys are staying in shape and they’re going outside and shooting on outdoor hoops and working out in various ways. So I just don’t think the risk is worth the reward.”
Batter Up?
We may be that much closer to baseball.
In the next week, Major League Baseball is planning to send the Player’s Association a proposal to get the season up and running. The hope would be for Spring Training to start next month and for the season to start in July. As of now, the hope is that teams will be able to play in home stadiums.
Between logistics and health concerns, we have miles to go before they play on this, but it’s progress, maybe.
Quarterback Coach
Philip Rivers has moved from sunny California to not-as-sunny Indianapolis, at least in terms of who he’ll quarterbacking for. Rivers signed a one-year, $25 million contract with the Colts, but that hasn’t stopped him from looking beyond that.
When he retires from the NFL, Rivers will be the head coach at St. Michael Catholic High School in Fairhope, Alabama.
Calling Coach Taylor. You may have some competition for High School Football Coach of the Year.
If you don’t know who Coach Taylor, make sure to listen to our Fangirl Playbook podcast every Tuesday. We’ll tell you all about him.
In the meantime, the NFL has laid out a plan to slowly reopen facilities, starting with some staff and expanding to players in time. The first people allowed back would be no more than 50% of non-player staff. Players who were rehabbing injuries before facilities closed in March would be allowed to return.
