It’s that time of year again when the temperatures begin to cool down, leaves start to fall, and of course, football is back. However, this season will be very different from others as COVID-19 has swept through the world and impacted our lives in many ways. Many sports will return, including the NBA, NHL, and the MLB, all either starting their season or finishing one that was suspended earlier in the year. 

The NFL offseason was in order when COVID landed in America so they didn’t have to worry at the time, but as the virus grew bigger and bigger, many fans, coaches, and players started to worry about whether or not an NFL season would take place. Luckily for many fans like me, the NFL started their season on September 10th when the Chiefs and Texans faced off on Thursday night football to start the season. Then the following Sunday and Monday more games were played and Week 1 of the season was already over. So far so good for the NFL, but how did they get to this point, and will the season keep on going?

There are many precautions the NFL is taking to make sure COVID doesn’t make its way into the league. Unlike other leagues the NFL is not doing a bubble and teams are traveling state to state to play games instead of staying in one place. In an article by the NPR, they said that the NFL has COVID testing every day other than on gameday. Teams that play in a stadium with a dome are required to send in the balance of the HVAC system including air flow/static pressure of the stadium facility. Details on the amount of outside air being introduced into the stadium, the calculated number of air changes per hour, the amount of return air being exhausted to the atmosphere and returned to the mechanical room, and the level of MERV filtration in place. In an article by Sporting News, they say that when it comes to fans, it is the team’s option on whether or not to let them in. If they do decide to allow fans in there is strict protocol both on and off the field as well as in the stands. Teams including the Chiefs and Jaguars let fans into their games for Week 1 and both of them would go on to win their games. In the most recent COVID Testing data which was, August 30th to September 5th, The NFL stated that out of 8,349 people who were tested, only eight people tested positive for the virus.

Week 1 went pretty smoothly for the NFL with little to no positive tests and all the games would be played out and finished. The big question now is can the NFL continue to play out the season without any big outbreaks, and will we get our Super Bowl 54 champion.