- NFL players, reporters, and fans roasted a new rule from the league that would ban post-game jersey swaps between players.
- The rule is intended to ensure that social distancing measures are maintained whenever possible.
- Given that players will have just finished a three-hour slog of bodies against bodies, the rule seems incongruous with the realities of the coming season.
- Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson called the rule “DAMN SILLY,” while San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman said it was “a perfect example of NFL thinking.”
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The NFL released some new protocols for the upcoming season on Thursday, and one, in particular, caught the eye of fans and players alike.
As NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero wrote on Twitter, post-game interactions that would bring players within six feet of each other, such as jersey swaps, would be banned for the 2020 campaign.
While the rule gets at an important reality of the upcoming season – acknowledging the COVID-19 pandemic that has held much of the country in quarantine since March – it seems to dismiss the fact that the players will be competing in a sport that makes social distancing all but impossible for roughly three hours on the field.
The rule was immediately roasted by players, fans, and reporters covering the league. Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson and San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman both made their feelings known on Twitter.
thats DAMN SILLY bro.. 🤦🏾♂️ https://t.co/QDOwn2G3bc
— Deshaun Watson (@deshaunwatson) July 9, 2020
This is a perfect example of NFL thinking in a nutshell. Players can go engage in a full contact game and do it safely. However, it is deemed unsafe for them to exchange jerseys after said game. 😂🤣😂 https://t.co/fWefsUSVDc
— Richard Sherman (@RSherman_25) July 9, 2020
Others on Twitter were similarly critical of the rule.
allowing a 60-minute full contact football game but saying you’re taking precautions because you ban handshakes and jersey swaps is like eating 34 wings and then eating 2 pieces of celery and saying it was a healthy meal because you ate vegetables https://t.co/yOIlBKY4iu
— Rodger Sherman (@rodger) July 9, 2020
So Von Miller can spend four quarters trying like crazy to sack Patrick Mahomes, but can't exchange jerseys with him after the game. Got it. https://t.co/KXMrSky1zv
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) July 9, 2020
https://twitter.com/BenHoffmanNYT/status/1281263612640866304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfwhttps://twitter.com/jbillinson/status/1281263552339357696?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
No postgame interactions after sweating and spitting on each other for three hours. 👌 https://t.co/dVllVof4RD
— Andrew Brandt (@AndrewBrandt) July 9, 2020
It's not the first time that the NFL has caught criticism for its incongruous rules regarding playing through the pandemic.
In June, Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said it would be "impossible" for teams to follow all of the new rules and restrictions that had been put in place by the league.
"I've seen all the memos on that, and to be quite honest with you, it's impossible what they're asking us to do. Humanly impossible," Harbaugh said in an interview with 105.7 The Fan, as ESPN transcribed. "So, we're going to do everything we can do. We're going to space, we're going to have masks. But, you know, it's a communication sport. We have to be able to communicate with each other in person. We have to practice."
NFL training camps are set to start by the end of July, with the regular season still scheduled to begin on time with a Thursday night showdown between the Texans and Chiefs on September 10.
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