The NFL announced Thursday that any disruption in the schedule next season caused by a COVID outbreak among unvaccinated players could result in forfeits, with players on both teams losing out on their paychecks for the canceled or postponed games.
“While there is no question that health conditions have improved from last year, we cannot be complacent or simply assume that we will be able to play without interruption,” Commissioner Roger Goodell wrote in a memo to teams.
n a memo obtained by CNBC, the NFL informed team executives and head coaches that it doesn’t plan to reschedule games as it did during the 2020 football season due to COVID-19 outbreaks.
The league wrote, “postponements will only occur if required by government authorities, medical experts, or at the [NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s] discretion.”
According to ESPN, the NFL “will attempt to minimize the competitive and economic burden on both participating teams.” The league has encouraged but not mandated vaccinations for players, which would be a union issue.
If this rule isn’t enough of an incentive to get vaccinated, the memo also says unvaccinated players will be required to follow stricter protocols this season, including during training camp.
This will mean daily coronavirus testing and wearing a mask. There will also be stricter travel requirements. The memo made it clear that unvaccinated players could, in theory, be responsible for the losses of games and paychecks as well.
According to CNN, other sports leagues have taken a similar track to encourage unvaccinated players to get the vaccine. In college football, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey issued a warning on Monday that games will not be postponed due to coronavirus issues.
Many NFL teams are starting to report for training camp, and the NFL has seen an increase in Covid-19 vaccination rates around the league this week, with 14 of the 32 NFL teams having reached the above 85 percent threshold, the league told CNN.
The NFL also says that 78 percent of all players have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine, an increase of over 4 percent from last week.
