Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians might be considered more pessimistic than others in NFL circles.
The Buccaneers leader on the sideline posited a sense of concern with respect to the coronavirus pandemic, adding he feels players are naturally going to get sick. But, as Arians stated, it is a matter of how sick, via Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times.
“Tom is probably the healthiest one of all of us,” Arians said. “We’ve got to be careful. The players, they’re going to all get sick, that’s for sure. It’s just a matter of how sick they get.”
Of course, the obvious objective would be to limit potential exposure to illness, and especially COVID-19. But football is played in close proximity, and Arians sees to hint the incessant physical contact will inevitably result in players getting sick.
The Buccaneers coach himself is a cancer survivor, and as an at-risk person noted he has to be especially cautious in day-to-day operations.
Indeed, Arians told Stroud he plans to install a set of protocols for health and safety, including using a microphone during team meetings and potentially using technology to relay messages to players and staff during practice.
Buccaneers fans will hope the team can stay mostly healthy. Tampa Bay is a favorite in the NFC after signing Tom Brady in the offseason.
The Buccaneers also made a concerted effort to re-sign Jason Pierre-Paul and Ndamukong Suh while using the franchise tag on Shaquil Barrett, keeping intact a dominant front line that terrorized opposing quarterbacks last year.
Positive cases of COVID-19 have been few and far between for NFL players, though most have remained in isolation. Things could change once training camps begin later this month. Arians certainly thinks teams are in for a rude awakening.
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