Officially, the NFL plans to put out a schedule in the next few weeks that will start the week after Labor Day, run through 16 games over 17 weeks, and conclude with the Super Bowl on the first Sunday in February.
As a practical matter, the league knows the coronavirus pandemic could force some significant changes.
According to Sports Business Journal, the league has discussed several alternatives, including talking with Tampa officials about the possibility of playing the Super Bowl on February 28 instead of February 7.
If the league does push the Super Bowl back that far, it would be the result of a delayed start to the regular season. If the situation surrounding the pandemic has not improved sufficiently for the NFL to start as scheduled in September, the league might push back the Super Bowl and play it the week after the conference championship games, also eliminating the Pro Bowl in the process.
The NFL has also considered playing the regular season over 16 weeks instead of 17 weeks, and eliminating bye weeks.
At the moment, it’s simply too soon to say how much progress America will have made in fighting the coronavirus in the next four months. But if the NFL season can’t start on time, the league may still find a way to get in a full season of play, with some adjustments.