The 2020 NFL preseason has reportedly been completely canceled.
The NFL initially cut the 2020 preseason from four games to two, then offered the NFLPA a proposal with one game and then finally on Monday reportedly offered a proposal with no preseason games.
That’s the one that stuck as the league prepares for a season amid the coronavirus pandemic.
So the first game the Eagles play will (hopefully) be the season opener in Washington on Sept. 13.
Here are some more details of the NFLPA’s call with players on Tuesday evening:
Updates from NFLPA call with players tonight:
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) July 21, 2020
- No preseason games in 2020
- Union still pushing for longer ramp-up period in camp
- Roster sizes expected to be 80 to start camp
- General agreement on voluntary and high-risk opt-out
- General agreement on stipend if games lost
The other very notable thing in there is the potential roster reduction to 80 players. The roster limit right now is 90. But it seems like the Eagles were already operating with the understanding that roster limits would be reduced.
In the past two days, the Eagles have cut ties with three players: WR Khalil Tate, C Keegan Render and CB Trevor Williams. Their roster is at 87 players right now, so they’ll need to find seven more cuts to adhere to the potential rule.
The ramp-up period is an important part of these negotiations. Earlier on Tuesday, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport laid out a timeline under the NFL’s most recent proposal.
What would training camp be like under the NFL’s latest ramp-up proposal?
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 21, 2020
— Testing & physicals for 5-6 days
— Strength & conditioning plus walk-throughs thru Day 12.
— Off Day 13
— Ramp up with helmets through Day 18
— Off Day 19
— On the 20th day, the pads go on.
So, different.
But this timeline would give players a shorter ramp-up period than the 21 days they’re hoping to get. That seems like a pretty important piece of this for players.
Eagles rookies technically reported for training camp today but all they did was get tested for coronavirus. That process will take a few days and eventually the rest of the team will go through it as well.
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