It may be quite a long time before we get any more official announcements on NFL trades and free agency deals due to the coronavirus pandemic.
On Monday, Dr. Anthony Casolaro, the co-head physician of the Washington Redskins and the President of the NFL Physicians Society, sent a letter to the NFL and NFLPA discontinuing NFL-related physicals “until the health crisis has passed.”
Ian Rapoport of NFL Media shared the contents of this letter, which emphasizes the dire need that all “medical resources should focus on those who are ill or in need of care.”
Teams cannot officially announce trades or contracts until physicals are done. This news will likely significantly impact the NFL draft, especially for players like Tua Tagovailoa, whose medical history could have teams wary of selecting him early without being able to give him a full physical.
This development comes on the heels of the deadliest day in America since the COVID-19 outbreak began, as more than 100 people in the United States died of coronavirus-related complications on Monday. According to Johns Hopkins University, there are now 43,667 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the nation, and 557 deaths.