As the coronavirus pandemic continues to cause uncertainty throughout the sports world, the NFL keeps pushing ahead.
ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported on Thursday that the league still plans to release its full 2020 season schedule by May 9. According to his sources, adjustments will be made as necessary and discussions over contingency plans remain ongoing.
The news comes amid discussions between President Donald Trump and other public officials over the resumption of professional sports in the U.S. Trump has been pushing for leagues to return by this summer, most likely without fans in attendance.
NFL preseason games typically begin in early August, with the regular season getting underway in September. As recently as last week, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has said that the league is still preparing to start the season on schedule.
"The NFL is planning to play," Goodell said in a call with Ankur Jain, CEO of the venture capital company Kairos. "That's our hope, and that's our planning to date."
All team facilities have been closed since March 25, when Goodell issued a memo to teams preventing any unnecessary activity due to the pandemic. Despite the closures, the free agency window went ahead as planned and the NFL Draft will take place on the originally scheduled dates of April 23-25, albeit remotely.
On Wednesday, Los Angeles Rams center Brian Allen became the first active NFL player to publicly reveal he tested positive. Just one day later, Denver Broncos star Von Miller announced he had also tested positive. Allen has recovered from the illness after being diagnosed several weeks ago, while Miller only received his test results on Thursday.