A Not So Usual NFL Season

Aidan McLaughlin, Staff Writer

As everyone should know, 2020 has been a year of uncertainty in every aspect of life and for many this pandemic has put them under all different kinds of stress. But for any dark tunnel there is a light that people always seek, and for many, it was the 2020 NFL season.
The 2020 season has a different spin on it because of COVID-19 protocols, but some players and teams have found ways to rise above the circumstances and exceed expectations. On the other hand, multiple teams have fired head coaches and general managers. In one case, a club parted ways with a relatively successful lead skipper who led the franchise to multiple division titles. An entire division has struggled, and one team could host a playoff game with a sub-.500 record. The season certainly has been weird enough thanks to COVID-19. Games played in empty stadiums. Coaches wearing surgical masks on the sideline. Players removed from their teams at a moment’s notice, even when they aren’t experiencing any symptoms of the virus. Also, get ready to brace yourself.
The final 2½ months of the season are about to get a whole lot weirder.The pandemic is raging across the country, and is expected to get even worse because of the holidays. The NFL has miraculously played all 148 of its scheduled games so far without a cancellation, but commissioner Roger Goodell and his medical experts know that the league’s protocols have to be tightened up to finish the season on time in early February. These intensive protocols may have saved the season. They reduce time spent together at the team facilities as much as possible, which the NFL says has reduced the number of close contacts by 50 percent.