Coronavirus: Will any starting quarterbacks opt out of NFL season by Thursday's deadline?
No starting quarterbacks have opted out of the 2020 NFL season yet. Could it happen by Thursday's deadline?
loading...
loading...
Thursday at 4 p.m. ET is a huge deadline for the NFL as players must inform the league if they want to opt out of this season by then. All opt outs are final. There are two ways a player will be allowed to opt out after Thursday, though: A new diagnosis reveals he has a high-risk health condition, or a family member dies or is hospitalized because of the coronavirus. High-risk players who opt out by Thursday get a $350,000 stipend and those not high risk get $150,000. Contracts for all players opting out will toll to the 2021 season.
Pretty much every team in the NFL has had at least one player opt out, and the New England Patriots have had a whopping eight of them. The three biggest names overall thus far are likely Chiefs running back Damien Williams, Jets linebacker CJ Mosley and Patriots linebacker Dont'a Hightower.
Is it possible a projected starting quarterback opts out by Thursday's deadline? That would be somewhat hard to fathom because there are only 32 of those highly-coveted jobs in the world and quarterbacks are the leaders on every team.
Barring some major high-risk condition or a family member in serious danger health-wise, a quarterback could lose the locker room for good by opting out. As of now, not even a backup QB has done it. Plus, NFL careers are so short that the chance to make huge money while they can could be too hard to pass up even with the risks involved.
There were rumors last week that Chicago Bears quarterback Nick Foles was considering opting out, but he quickly shot that down. Foles is battling Mitchell Trubisky for the starting job. Detroit's Matthew Stafford registered a false positive COVID-19 test recently and was the first NFL starting QB placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Stafford is off that now, but he could have strong family reasons for opting out considering his wife Kelly had brain surgery a year and a half ago to remove a brain tumor.
Outside of team facilities, NFL players are expected to behave in ways that limit their exposure and reduce the risk of contracting coronavirus per an agreement between the league an NFLPA. Failure to do so can results in fines of up to $50K. Players can be fined or suspended for going to clubs or bars, for example, but not for attending church.
The Jacksonville Jaguars as recently as Monday had a league-high 12 players on the reserve/COVID-19 list, but "I don't think anyone's being negligent. I really don't believe that," Coach Doug Marrone said Monday. QB Gardner Minshew was on it briefly but then came off Tuesday. He never tested positive. Players on that list don't have to have tested positive but been exposed to someone who has.
Three receivers opted out Wednesday (so far): the Niners' Travis Benjamin and Dolphins' Albert Wilson and Allen Hurns. Star Bills cornerback Tre'Davious White said he's considering it, and that would be a massive loss for Buffalo.
Via Sportsline NFL oddsmakers: Will any projected starting quarterback opt out of the season by Thursday's deadline?
WHICH 2020 FANTASY FOOTBALL SLEEPER SHOULD YOU SNATCH IN YOUR DRAFT? AND WHICH WR1 CANDIDATE CAN YOU WAIT ON UNTIL LATE? JOIN SPORTSLINE NOW TO GET 2020 FANTASY FOOTBALL CHEAT SHEETS FROM THE MODEL THAT WAS ALL OVER DERRICK HENRY'S HUGE SEASON, AND FIND OUT.