NFL not ready to add Week 18 or a bubble, vows to remain flexible

“I think if there was one consistent theme to our season, it’s flexibility and adapting,’’ NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said after the second day of virtual owners meetings Tuesday.

SHARE NFL not ready to add Week 18 or a bubble, vows to remain flexible
“We will have flexibility to be able to complete our season for the Super Bowl. That’s the goal. We’re all focused on that. And to do it safely,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said.

“We will have flexibility to be able to complete our season for the Super Bowl. That’s the goal. We’re all focused on that. And to do it safely,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said.

Jeff Haynes/AP Images for Panini

The NFL isn’t ready to add an 18th week to the regular season in anticipation of makeup games caused by the coronavirus, nor is it ready to implement a bubble or move the Super Bowl back. But the league won’t rule any of that out, either.

‘‘I think if there was one consistent theme to our season, it’s flexibility and adapting,’’ commissioner Roger Goodell said after the second day of virtual owners meetings Tuesday. ‘‘Flexibility is going to be critical. . . . 

‘‘We will have flexibility to be able to complete our season for the Super Bowl. That’s the goal. We’re all focused on that. And to do it safely.’’

NFL executive vice president of football operations Troy Vincent said his focus is on playing the complete regular season in 17 weeks, but he knows an 18th week still might be an option.

Dr. Allen Sills, the NFL’s chief medical officer, said implementing a bubble for individual teams is not the ‘‘safest course of action for us.’’ He said the bubble would take a ‘‘human, emotional and behavioral health toll’’ on those who would be sequestered from their families for months.

They spoke hours before the Titans finally resumed play Tuesday against the Bills after having 23 positive tests since Sept. 24.

The Bears have one player who has tested positive: practice-squad offensive lineman Badara Traore.

From Aug. 1 to Saturday, the NFL gave more than 400,000 tests to players and personnel. Thirty-nine players tested positive, but eight came in the last six days of the report.

On Sunday, the NFL said it will implement day-of-game testing for players and coaches. They previously had been tested every day but game day. The NFL also said teams must wear masks during walk-throughs. Coaches must wear masks during games, even if they also have a face shield.

Perhaps most important, the league ruled players or coaches who have had close contact with someone who has tested positive will be considered ‘‘high-risk’’ and will have to stay away from the practice facility for five days. That could cause them to miss games, even if they test negative.

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