Only one NFL player produced a confirmed positive coronavirus test during the league’s most recent testing period, another encouraging report as the league prepares this week to open its 2020 regular season.
According to data released Tuesday, the league tested 2,641 players and 5,708 other personnel between Aug. 30 and Sept. 5. In addition to the one player, seven other staff members also produced a positive result. Since the true start of training camp Aug. 12, a total of 24 people have produced confirmed positive tests.
The NFL’s last “normal” moment was the annual scouting combine, held from Feb. 23 to March 2 in Indianapolis.
Amid the routine of that week, league executives focused on finalizing a new collective bargaining agreement with players. Teams locked in on scouting college players and setting plans for the start of free agency. The global spread of COVID-19 had just started to seep into the national consciousness, but few had conceived a future in which the virus could impact a regular season that was six months away.
And yet here we are. The NFL is set to open Thursday night amid a set of coronavirus pandemic protocols that have transformed its operations at every level. You know about the major changes: a virtual offseason program, no preseason games and a softened training camp that centered on preventing soft-tissue injuries after months of football inactivity.
What follows are 15 of the smaller changes, from the slightly weird to the completely wacky, that you might never have imagined would be necessary to safely play football. All of these protocols are subject to change but will be in effect at least for Week 1.
Electronic whistles are in
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Jadeveon Clowney agreed to a one-year contract with the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.
Terms were not disclosed, but a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter that the deal is worth up to $15 million.
The New Orleans Saints, the other main suitor, made a very strong push for the defensive end, but their offer was lower by roughly $2 million, sources told ESPN’s Dianna Russini.
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Clowney is reuniting with Titans coach Mike Vrabel, who was his position coach and defensive coordinator when the two were with the Houston Texans.
The seventh-year veteran had his best season in 2017 when he played in Vrabel’s scheme for the Texans. Clowney posted career highs in sacks (9.5), tackles for loss (21) and QB hits (21) that season.
Clowney made an impact following his trade before the 2019 season from the Texans to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for Jacob Martin, Barkevious Mingo and a 2020 third-round pick.
While he had only three sacks in 13 regular-season games, Clowney ranked fifth in ESPN’s pass-rush win rate (24.8%), scored two defensive touchdowns and was consistently Seattle’s most disruptive defensive lineman. PRWR measures how frequently a defender beats his blocker in 2.5 seconds or less.
Clowney, 27, suffered a core muscle injury in Week 10 last season and elected to postpone surgery until the offseason. That left him playing in pain for most of the second half of the season. The injury sidelined him for two games; he missed a third game with the flu.
Clowney was named to three consecutive Pro Bowls from 2016 to 2018 with the Texans. Overall, he has 236 tackles, 32 sacks, 9 forced fumbles, 7 recoveries, 51 tackles for loss, an interception and 4 defensive touchdowns since being selected with the first overall pick in the 2014 draft.
ESPN’s Turron Davenport and Brady Henderson contributed to this report.
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Shaquem Griffin proved to be more than just a feel-good story on draft day as he made the Seahawks’ roster out of training camp in 2018 and 2019 and was among their leading special-teams contributors in both seasons. Griffin also showed flashes late last season when the Seahawks started using him as an edge rusher in sub packages, allowing him to reprise a role he excelled at during his college career at Central Florida.
One of Griffin’s best plays in that role was a pressure of Jared Goff that led to a Quandre Diggs pick-six in a December loss to the Los Angeles Rams. He also had a sack in Seattle’s loss to the Green Bay Packers in last season’s divisional round. Griffin was credited with 16 tackles and three QB hits in 32 regular-season games over the last two years, which included a start in his NFL debut.
Griffin’s spot on the Seahawks’ roster in 2020 was uncertain given their strong depth at linebacker behind starters Bobby Wagner, K.J. Wright and Bruce Irvin. That includes this year’s first-round pick, Jordyn Brooks, who is projected to play behind Wright on the weak side. Seattle also has Cody Barton and Ben Burr-Kirven, third- and fifth-round picks last year, respectively.
Griffin is a candidate for Seattle’s practice squad.
Shaquill Griffin, who made the Pro Bowl as an alternate last year, is entering the final season of his rookie contract.