As US sports leagues look for creative solutions to starting back up operations amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the NFL hopes they can resume business as usual in the coming months.
According to a report from Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, the league is planning to release a full 17-game schedule next week and league spokesman Brian McCarthy was quoted saying, "We plan to start on time."
The league is hoping to be able to launch the season at their planned Sept. 10 date. Should the coronavirus pandemic get worse over time, the league has contingency plans in place, the main one being delaying the start of the season until October.
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The league is still in constant talks over a rapidly evolving situation but at this point, neutral sites can be ruled out, as the league has maintained they are not interested in taking that route.
At this point, the league is still exploring the idea of virtual workouts and minicamps, as they also agreed with the NFLPA to not open up any team facilities until every state in which a team resides lifts its stay-at-home mandate. With the full 2020 schedule coming out with a Sept. 10 start, Super Bowl LV is still slated for Feb. 7.
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