The NFL is currently caught up in a Corona wave, with more and more players finding themselves on the Covid list. According to reports, the NFL plans to test vaccinated players less frequently in the future. And recovered players will also enjoy a special privilege in the future.

Munich – The NFL is currently being hit by a Corona wave. This week alone, over 150 cases have been reported league-wide.

The Washington Football Team and the Los Angeles Rams are particularly affected. Some games have already been postponed. But for all the players and teams affected, there is also a silver lining.

As “ESPN” reports, the NFL and the players’ union are planning relief for vaccinated players. Instead of once a week, they could in future only be tested at irregular intervals if they show no symptoms. The new testing regulations could be decided as early as in the next few days.

An interesting figure was provided on Saturday by Anthony Casolaro, the Washington football team’s chief medical officer. He said 23 players tested positive for COVID-19, but only two of them had symptoms that would have led Casolaro to suspend them from practice.

21 players who tested positive could have trained

The other 21 were healthy enough to have been allowed to practice. However, NFL rules previously required the isolation of all players who tested positive.

Conversely, with the new rule, that means: In the future, many players could be positive, show no symptoms and therefore train and play – without knowing they have Corona.

“Medical information strongly suggests that this variant is significantly more contagious but may be less severe than previous variants, particularly for individuals who are fully vaccinated and have received booster vaccination,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wrote in a memo.

“Our experience with the Omicron variant is entirely consistent with this expectation – although more players and staff test positive, about two-thirds of these individuals are asymptomatic, and most of the remaining individuals have only mild symptoms. In many ways, Omicron appears to be a very different disease than the one we first faced in the spring of 2020. “

After Corona infection: players will not be tested for 90 days

One change has already been decided: The league has announced that players will not be tested for 90 days after they have been infected with Corona – their vaccination status is irrelevant.

Since the season ends in February at the latest, the infected players will no longer be tested for Corona in this season.

These players will therefore definitely be available to their teams until the end of the season, provided they are not otherwise injured, while other players would still have to be quarantined as soon as they test positive.