Football back soon? NFL takes big step in that direction, loosens work restrictions
After three long months, NFL coaches — including the Dolphins’ Brian Flores — can return to their respective offices on Friday.
That’s according to a memo distributed by the league Thursday notifying teams of the change in policy.
The memo, which NFL Network among others disseminated Thursday, states the following:
“Beginning tomorrow, June 5, coaching staffs may be among the employees returning to your facility. As emphasized in previous advice on reopening facilities, this may occur only if your club has otherwise received necessary permission from state and local government to reopen its facility.”
Sports teams in the state of Florida have already been granted that permission.
The important details:
▪ Organizations are still capped at 100 employees permitted inside team buildings.
▪ The league encourages coaches and staff, particularly those in a high-risk of serious complications from coronavirus, to speak with medical professionals about any necessary precautions or accommodations.
The league had banned coaches from entering team headquarters since March in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
In recent weeks, the league has begun loosening those restrictions — members of the personnel department were allowed back in as of a couple weeks ago — but, for now, the players not rehabbing injuries will have to remain away. They are likely not allowed back for meetings and practices before the start of training camp in late July.
Teams have held their offseason program remotely, and that is not expected to change.
“Our guys have done a great job,” Flores said. “ ... I think the Zoom meetings have been good. We’ve made the best of the situation. Like I try to tell them, we’re not going to try to make excuses or point fingers or say this is why something didn’t happen. We’re going to make the best of the situation and try to improve, try to get better, just try to improve. I don’t have different words to say that. We’ll just try and improve to get better and we’ll try to do that on a day-to-day basis and string good days together. A lot of the onus is on them individually to train and work out. You wish you had your hands on them, but that’s out of our hands as well.”
The NFL pledged to work with club medical staffs to develop a Covid-19 testing policy prior to the return of players to team headquarters.
Dolphins training camp is set to begin July 31, but CEO Tom Garfinkel would not say earlier this week if he anticipates fans being able to attend.
Either way, that might be the first time Dolphins coaches — and more importantly, doctors — will get a chance to work with rookie quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, the draft’s No. 5 pick who is still recovering from a significant hip injury he suffered in November.
“Quite honestly, it’s hard not to have your hands on [the rookies],” Flores said. [Tua is] working hard. He’s picking up the information. But you want to get your hands on him quite honestly. They all are doing a good job. I think they all have a long way to go. But again specific to the injury, I don’t know, I haven’t seen him. Our doctors haven’t seen him. To give you any information on that — or try to — I shouldn’t do that.”
This story was originally published June 4, 2020 at 12:00 PM.
