The NFL has shared its
COVID-19 protocols
for the 2020 training camp and preseason. And it looks dramatically different from previous years.
“Training camp for reporters is such a valuable time — both for beat writers and national writers who ordinarily travel to different camps and get to speak with players and coaches from a variety of teams,” said
Bob Glauber
(pictured)
, NFL columnist for Newsday and president of the
Pro Football Writers of America
. “No one has lost a game, there’s optimism for just about every team, and this is where you get to establish relationships that will largely form the basis of your reporting in the days, weeks, months and yes, years ahead. There’s nothing quite like it, and not having that sense of normalcy presents major challenges.”
Before coronavirus, training camp practices were open to both fans and reporters. But now, the NFL has created various “
tiers of access
” to help mitigate the risk of virus transmission.
Training camp kicks off on July 28. The number of media personnel allowed access is limited, and live tweeting, blogging and texting during these practices will be prohibited. Fans will not be allowed to attend this year.
We reached out to Glauber to learn how journalists can cover the preseason amidst these new restrictions.
How will limited access to the training camps affect reporting this season?
Glauber
: I think it will have a tremendous impact on reporters, even if readers might not always be able to tell. Under normal circumstances, training camp can be the most productive time in an NFL season because you get to see the players practice on a daily basis, see how they interact on the field and get a sense of how the coaches are carrying out their vision of what they want their teams to look like.
Now, not only will there be potential limitations on how many reporters can watch practice, but the practices themselves will look very little like what we’re used to. I expect there to be very little full-scale, 11-on-11 drills, and with the players not having been on the field since the end of last season, there will be a long adjustment period to try and get them back into football shape.
The other issue for reporters is that our interviews with the players will all be virtual, so the chance for the casual one-on-one conversations that we ordinarily have will be mostly gone. I would expect teams to accommodate individual interview requests in addition to the group Zoom interviews, but these will not occur nearly as frequently as they would in a normal training camp setting. Readers will get their stories and will see plenty of quotes from coaches and players, but it will be more challenging for reporters to come up with ways to differentiate their stories, given the reduced capability of more organic conversations that occur in a regular setting.
What are alternate ways journalists can get training camp stories when in-person interviews are restricted?
Glauber
: I think this is where journalists can separate themselves, because coming up with different angles or stories will mean more in an environment where most reporters are participating in a lot of the same interviews. Even though interviews won’t happen in person, telephone or Zoom calls done on an individual basis will make news because the content will be different than what you see and read from the group sessions. That has always been the case, but I think it will be more so now because of the limitations we’re dealing with.
Talking to people outside the organizations is also a way to make news. I mean, Joe Namath interviews about the Jets are still noteworthy, even though it has been more than 50 years since he guaranteed the Jets would win Super Bowl III. Readers have a strong connection with players from the past — even the distant past — so that is an area that won’t change. Reporters who have been plugged in before the pandemic spread will be positioned to create plenty of content that will stand out.