J.C. Tretter

Cleveland Browns center JC Tretter is calling for the NFL to use natural grass surfaces at every stadium to lower the injury risk for players.

Tretter, who is the president of the NFL Players Association, made his case on the union's official site:

"The data supports the anecdotes you'll hear from me and other players: artificial turf is significantly harder on the body than grass. Based on NFL injury data collected from 2012 to 2018, not only was the contact injury rate for lower extremities higher during practices and games held on artificial turf, NFL players consistently experienced a much higher rate of non-contact lower extremity injuries on turf compared to natural surfaces. Specifically, players have a 28 percent higher rate of non-contact lower extremity injuries when playing on artificial turf. Of those non-contact injuries, players have a 32 percent higher rate of non-contact knee injuries on turf and a staggering 69 percent higher rate of non-contact foot/ankle injuries on turf compared to grass."

Tretter argued that every franchise should theoretically be able to maintain a natural grass field. The Green Bay Packers, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers have natural grass in colder climates. Meanwhile, the Arizona Cardinals and Las Vegas Raiders have configured their stadiums so they can keep their playing surface in top condition despite having a retractable roof and dome, respectively.

Tretter's open letter comes after some members of the San Francisco 49ers raised concerns about the state of the MetLife Stadium FieldTurf.

The Niners had multiple players injured in their Week 2 victory over the New York Jets.

Injury Updates from Shanahan:

- Jimmy Garoppolo (high ankle sprain) Has a chance to play Sunday
- Raheem Mostert (MCL sprain) out this week
- Tevin Coleman (knee sprain)
- DJ Jones (ankle)
- Greenlaw (thigh contusion)
- Nick Bosa & Solomon Thomas (knee) waiting on MRI results

— Keiana Martin (@KeianaMartinTV) September 21, 2020

Head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters after the game that it was "as many knee injuries and ankle stuff and people getting caught on the turf that I've ever been a part of."

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport said MetLife Stadium had passed all of the necessary benchmarks in terms of its playing surface. Representatives from the NFL and NFLPA and an independent inspector evaluated the turf after the fact and again said it was up to code before the Niners had to play the New York Giants back at MetLife last Sunday.

Tretter addressed the evaluation process, writing that playing fields are subjected to the Clegg test to measure hardness. He contended the Clegg test is "extremely limited in its ability to tell us about the performance or safety of a field and is not nearly as comprehensive for what the modern game requires."

ESPN's Jake Trotter noted 13 NFL stadiums out of 32 use an artificial surface. 

Tense negotiations between the NFL and NFLPA regarding revisions to the collective bargaining agreement amid the COVID-19 pandemic eventually led to a verbal agreement between the two sides on July 24.

However, an official pact wasn't completed until Monday.

NFLPA President and Cleveland Browns offensive lineman JC Tretter spoke with Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio and gave the players' union's side about why that was the case.

"Especially this weekend but through the whole thing, the NFL wanted to kind of walk back a lot of the really good things we had gotten in the deal," Tretter said.

"And once they realized there were things they didn't like, they wanted to change that. And we weren't willing to move off the deal that we signed because we thought we had a really good deal. There were issues on the economics, there were issues on the safety protections that they wanted to make last-minute adjustments to that we just weren't going to allow to be changed."

Florio mentioned that the NFL wanted to revisit an agreement to disperse the financial losses the league will incur in 2020 as a result of losing preseason games and attendance revenue over a four-year stretch.

Tretter also said the NFLPA had to fight for the $350,000 stipend for players with high-risk medical decisions who decided to sit out the 2020 NFL season, and that included undrafted players who signed with a team but may not have made the final roster.

NFLPA assistant executive director of external affairs George Atallah confirmed Tretter's account to Florio and said the league tried to "relitigate issues." The NFL had not provided comment to Florio before the article was published Tuesday evening.

With agreements officially in place, NFL training camps are underway, although in a far different capacity than previous years.

For starters, there are no fans, and all camps are being held at team facilities.

Furthermore, teams are running through workouts and drills but can't have padded practices until Aug. 17. Preseason has been canceled, meaning the next time teams take the field for organized games will be Week 1 of the regular season, beginning Sept. 10.

Rosters will also look different, with a host of players deciding to sit out the season for various reasons (e.g., self, family) because of COVID-19. Per NFL.com, the list has risen to 53 players as of Tuesday evening.

Cleveland Browns center JC Tretter, who also serves as the president of the NFL Players Association, believes everyone in the league will have to be on the same page in order to play the 2020 season. 

Speaking to reporters via conference call Friday, Tretter said the NFL must adjust itself to play amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

"So the idea that this is going to go away with the snap of a finger and you don't have to change, that's not going to fly," he added. "Everything needs to be revamped and refitted to fit coronavirus. We can't refit coronavirus around football." 

Tretter's comments come as the union continues to negotiate with the league about health and safety protocols before teams report to training camps. 

The Athletic's Kevin Fishbain provided details of the NFL's plan for contact tracing, as well as how travel could be handled:

Here’s how the NFL plans to conduct contact tracing pic.twitter.com/MC8nVF9xmH

— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) July 17, 2020

The NFL provided a statement Friday about where things stand after a meeting between all 32 teams:

We just wrapped up a productive call with the 32 clubs pic.twitter.com/sRn5Bnl33O

— Brian McCarthy (@NFLprguy) July 17, 2020

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported the league and the union must have an agreement for safety protocols in place by Monday, when rookies for the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans are scheduled to report to training camp. The players will be required to show up "or face discipline, setting the stage for a potential grievance."

That led to a response from several players on Twitter, including Patrick Mahomes and J.J. Watt:

Stuff is crazy man. All this time we had and now we are down to this.... https://t.co/oC4RVWfKp9

— Patrick Mahomes II (@PatrickMahomes) July 17, 2020

In the interest of having everyone on the same page in terms of what we know and don’t know at this time, here are a few things I’ve learned being on four NFLPA calls in the last two weeks with hundreds of other players.

Keep in mind our rookies are scheduled to report in 48 hrs pic.twitter.com/wAH1XyQenf

— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) July 16, 2020

Tretter has been critical of the NFL's approach to the pandemic throughout the offseason. He wrote an article for the NFLPA website on July 7, stating the league "is unwilling to prioritize player safety and believes that the virus will bend to football."

All 32 teams are still scheduled to begin training camp with rookies and veterans by July 28.

There has been no official announcement about the length of the preseason, though Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio reported it will "very likely" consist of one game between teams in close proximity to each other to limit the number of clubs traveling by airplane. 

The 2020 regular season is scheduled to begin Sept. 10, with the Texans playing the reigning Super Bowl champion Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium.    

 

NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith and President J.C. Tretter announced Friday that the NFLPA is taking steps to protect its players during the coronavirus pandemic. 

According to ESPN's Dan Graziano, Smith and Tretter said during a media conference call that they consulted with team doctors for clubs that are located in COVID-19 "hot spot" areas.

Smith and Tretter noted that players are concerned about flying to Miami, Houston and other areas that have been heavily impacted by COVID-19 in recent weeks, per The Athletic's Lindsay Jones.

NFLPA general counsel Tom DePaso conducted a Zoom call with NFL agents Wednesday and noted that the NFLPA is "very concerned" for players who have to partake in training camp in "hot spots" such as California, Arizona, Texas, Florida, Louisiana, Tennessee and Georgia, per NJ.com's Zack Rosenblatt.

Players are still currently scheduled to report to training camps at the end of July, but it is possible that delays could occur if the NFLPA isn't satisfied with the safety of players who play in cities with spikes in coronavirus cases.

DePaso also made it clear that the NFLPA wants to cancel all preseason games, and he explained the rationale behind that desire:

"No clear reasoning for having them. A dry run for a regular season game is really not good enough for putting a player at greater risk. The players understand they are at higher risk and they want to mitigate it as much as they can. They understand they can't eliminate it but they feel it's not worth it for those [preseason games] ... the most important part of the season are the regular-season games and playoff games."

Teams are already well behind where they would normally be at this point in the offseason in terms of preparation since in-person OTAs were canceled.

While teams met regularly on Zoom calls and through other virtual platforms, they weren't able to get onto the field collectively and get a feel for the playbook or their new teammates.

Many teams saw players organize workouts in an effort to create some level of synergy, but it wasn't the same as OTAs since it was informal and coaches weren't involved.

Any delay in the start of training camp could put the start of the 2020 regular season in jeopardy, especially if there are no preseason games to aid in preparation.

As things currently stand, the regular season is scheduled to begin Sept. 10 with the Kansas City Chiefs hosting the Houston Texans, while the first Sunday slate of the season will occur Sept. 13.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is "hopeful" that there will be a 2020 NFL season amid the COVID-19 pandemic (h/t Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk).

"I think top of mind is are we gonna have a season?" Rodgers said at the American Century Championship golf tournament, which he participated in this weekend.

"I think there's a lot of things yet to be figured out. We're hopeful, we're hopeful that it's with fans and we can get all the testing procedures down the way they want it for the utmost amount of safety. But I think we're kind waiting for the league and the [NFL Players Association] to figure some things out."

The NFL regular season is supposed to start on Thursday, Sept. 10, when the Houston Texans visit the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. Rookies are supposed to report to NFL training camps on July 21.

As Florio noted, there are still issues for the NFL and NFLPA to figure out, including "testing procedures and frequency, roster sizes, the use of face shields, preseason games, opt-out rights, and economic issues."

NFLPA President and Cleveland Browns offensive lineman JC Tretter penned a letter on the NFLPA's website discussing two points of contention in particular: the NFLPA's concern about the NFL's insistence on holding two preseason games and the league's reticence to have a 48-day training camp schedule.

"The NFL was unwilling to follow the Joint Committee's recommendation of a 48-day training camp schedule," Tretter wrote. "Despite these experts' assessment that teams face a serious risk of player-injury spikes this year (based on past NFL data and recent findings from sports leagues that have already returned to play this year), the NFL is unwilling to prioritize player safety and believes that the virus will bend to football."

On the preseason:

"When we asked for a medical reason to play games that don't count in the standings during an ongoing pandemic, the NFL failed to provide one. The league did provide a football reason, though—to evaluate rosters. The NFL also stated that it was important to stage preseason games to check how our game protocols will work."

Ultimately, the biggest issue may be the continued spread of COVID-19. The United States had 66,281 new and confirmed COVID-19 cases reported Sunday, per the World Health Organization, which is the country's single-highest one-day total yet.

The NFL has made numerous changes for health and safety amid the pandemic, including mandating that all training camps occur at team facilities, retrofitting facilities to allow for six feet of social distancing and hiring a third-party firm to conduct a contact-tracing procedure when a player tests positive, per ESPN's Kevin Seifert.

San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman says the NFL has a number of "huge outstanding issues" to resolve with teams expected to report to training camp later this month. 

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Friday the league and players union have agreed to "almost everything ... except for [the] number of preseason games and testing protocols," as well as teams potentially having "up to two fan events at stadiums this preseason" if health protocols allow.

Sherman offered his response to the report:

That’s knowledge to us. Huge outstanding issues are still unresolved. We havent agreed to anything in their proposal and literally just sent them a response. But all will be revealed https://t.co/HcVWtA8OgX

— Richard Sherman (@RSherman_25) July 10, 2020

ESPN's Kevin Seifert reported on July 1 that the NFL will shorten the preseason to two games, with the first games to be held between Aug. 20-24 and the second week of games taking place between Aug. 27-31. 

Sherman is one of many players who have expressed confusion at some of the NFL's reported health-and-safety protocols that could be implemented for the 2020 season. 

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported teams "will be forbidden from postgame interactions within six feet of each other and jersey exchanges between players will be prohibited," prompting a number of similar reactions:

This is a perfect example of NFL thinking in a nutshell. Players can go engage in a full contact game and do it safely. However, it is deemed unsafe for them to exchange jerseys after said game. 😂🤣😂 https://t.co/fWefsUSVDc

— Richard Sherman (@RSherman_25) July 9, 2020

thats DAMN SILLY bro.. 🤦🏾‍♂️ https://t.co/QDOwn2G3bc

— Deshaun Watson (@deshaunwatson) July 9, 2020

https://t.co/JHZWTfcVmi pic.twitter.com/3SAPS4y3Vh

— George Kittle (@gkittle46) July 9, 2020

In an article on the NFL Players Association website, Cleveland Browns offensive lineman JC Tretter wrote the league is "still far from back to 'normal'" with training camp on the horizon and said the NFL "is unwilling to prioritize player safety and believes that the virus will bend to football."

The NFL is planning to start training camp for all 32 teams on July 28. The regular season is scheduled to begin on Sept. 10 with the Kansas City Chiefs hosting the Houston Texans at Arrowhead Stadium.  

The NFL and NFL Players Association reportedly reached an agreement on travel protocols for training camp and the preseason, an important first step in ensuring players report when camps open July 28.

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported the two sides came to an agreement on issues like "traveling by plane and bus, PPE use, disinfection of hotel rooms, airlines, buses, equipment, and luggage, rules for hotel employees and bus drivers, food service standards and physical distancing requirements."

The document "implies" there will be a preseason, but it does not specify how many games. The NFLPA has pushed for the league to eliminate the preseason over safety concerns. The NFL has already cut the first and last weeks of the four-week slate, along with the Hall of Fame Game, the traditional preseason opener.

Despite the two sides having four months to navigate the reality of the COVID-19 pandemic, it appears they have back themselves into a corner by hoping to play out the 2020 season under the status quo. The NFL has remained publicly confident it will be able to hold all 16 regular-season games with fans in the stands, though attendance—especially full attendance—seems highly unlikely with the pandemic still not under control.

Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reported the NFL and NFLPA have yet to have "meaningful dialogue" about the potential cancellation of games. The union has been intently focused on player safety, an issue it does not believe the league has taken seriously enough.

Union president JC Tretter posted on a blog Tuesday saying "the NFL is unwilling to prioritize player safety and believes that the virus will bend to football."

The NFLPA Board of Player Representatives voted unanimously against playing any preseason games. 

"We will continue to hold the NFL accountable and demand that the league use data, science and the recommendations of its own medical experts to make decisions," the Cleveland Browns center wrote. "It has been clear for months that we need to find a way to fit football inside the world of coronavirus. Making decisions outside that lens is both dangerous and irresponsible."

While getting protocols into place is an important step, it's clear the union and league are still far apart on a number of issues that could put the 2020 season in jeopardy. 

Cleveland Browns center JC Tretter, who is also president of the NFL Players Association, believes the league isn't listening to the advice of its medical experts about how to navigate during the coronavirus pandemic.

In an article on the NFLPA's website, Tretter wrote the NFL is "unwilling to prioritize player safety" and is operating as if "the virus will bend" to the whims of football and the upcoming season:

"As a preventative measure during the COVID-19 pandemic, the NFLPA and NFL formed a Joint Committee of doctors, trainers and strength coaches to develop protocols designed to bring players up to full speed in a healthy way when they return. The NFL initially accepted and implemented the Joint Committee's suggestions, including items like no joint practices and no fans at training camp. However, the NFL was unwilling to follow the Joint Committee's recommendation of a 48-day training camp schedule."

NFL general counsel Jeff Pash told reporters last week that teams have been advised training camps will open as planned on July 28. 

Last week, ESPN's Kevin Seifert reported the preseason will be reduced from four to two games. The NFL hasn't officially announced the decision, presumably as negotiations with the union continue. 

Per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, the NFLPA is "opposed" to preseason games and has talked about a revamped training camp schedule that takes place over 45 days leading into the regular season:   

With the NFLPA still opposed to preseason games, one possible camp schedule the union has discussed:

3 days: medical/equipment
21 days: strength & conditioning
10 days: unpadded practice
14 days: practice (10 max/8 padded)

Then it’d be straight into Week 1.

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) July 3, 2020

Tretter explained the NFL has provided "no medical reason" to hold preseason games, which prompted all 32 NFLPA board of player representatives to unanimously vote against having any on the schedule this year. 

"Every decision this year that prioritizes normalcy over innovation, custom over science or even football over health, significantly reduces our chances of completing the full season," Tretter wrote. 

Thus far, the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game and enshrinement ceremony are the only NFL events that have been impacted by the pandemic. The preseason opener between the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers, scheduled for Aug. 6, has been canceled, and the enshrinement ceremony was postponed until 2021. 

The 2020 NFL regular season is scheduled to begin Sept. 10 with the Houston Texans taking on the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium.

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Bleacher Report's David Gardner interviews athletes and other sports figures for the podcast How to Survive Without Sports.

Cleveland Browns center and NFL Players Association President JC Tretter foresees "a long list of hurdles" ahead of players and the league surrounding the viability of the 2020 season during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. 

"This is a contact disease, and we play a contact sport," Tretter told Browns reporters Tuesday. "You can't expect just to throw football back in and think that the virus is going to kneel down to almighty football. You have to look through different ways of making sure people stay healthy."

Tretter later added: 

"There's a level of risk of everything. You're facing a level of risk right now going to the grocery store. There's always going to be a level of exposure that people are going to face in this. So I don't think we'll ever get to a point where there's no risk of exposure.

"Coming in contact with other people is a risk of exposure. So that's never going to be down to zero. Our job [at the NFLPA] is to try to get that to as close to zero as possible, and that's why you kind of have to look at everything."

Tretter was elected the NFLPA president on March 10.

The 29-year-old was immediately responsible for navigating the aftermath of a new 10-year collective bargaining agreement ratified on March 15, but COVID-19 is uncharted territory for everybody in sports.

NFLPA Medical Director Thom Mayer disclosed on The Adam Schefter Podcast on Monday that league engineers have been working with Oakley on modified face masks for players and testing prototypes replicating N95 protective face masks:

"They've got some prototypes. They're doing really good work. Some of them, when you first look at them, you think, 'Gosh, no' 'cause you're not used to seeing it. You're just not used to seeing it. But they're looking at every issue you can imagine, including when it fogs up. What do we do with that? But these guys are used to dealing with this stuff."

Mayer also echoed Tretter's cautious tone: "For a player like that, getting the helmet off, putting a mask on right afterward, maintaining social distancing when not in the field as much as possible, using single-use hydration—whether water, Gatorade, whatever it might be—I mean, just every little detail."

The NFL extended its virtual offseason through May 29, but teams were permitted to start reopening facilities with strict protocols in place Tuesday.

The 2020 regular season is scheduled to kick off with the reigning champion Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans on Sept. 10 at Arrowhead Stadium.

Eric Reid is not backing down from his stance following a call for unity in a letter from NFLPA president JC Tretter. 

The free-agent safety called out Tretter Tuesday on Twitter:

I’m disappointed @JCTretter that your letter did not address that the CBA was altered after vote, harming disabled players. Being ‘unified’ in ignorance helps no one & @NFLPA silence is deafening. Have you forwarded letter I posted yesterday to all members so they know what’s up? https://t.co/9lXzyoaLKV

— Eric Reid (@E_Reid35) March 31, 2020

Reid posted a letter from his attorneys Monday on Twitter, which highlighted the differences between the collective bargaining agreement that was voted on and the one that was eventually posted. Reid said the changes could greatly impact benefits going to former NFL players.

"The change in CBA language after the vote, even if it were minor, is a big deal and grounds for invalidation," he tweeted.

The message from Tretter posted to the NFLPA website doesn't mention Reid's complaints, but calls for players to get behind the agreement:

"Regardless of where you stood on this deal, it is important that we as players come together. Unity does not mean that we are all in agreement on all issues. What it does mean is that, however the dust settles, we will be there standing shoulder to shoulder with our brothers to continue the fight."

The players voted to approve the deal by a margin of 1019-959 despite the NFLPA executive council voting 6-5 against recommending it, per Dan Graziano of ESPN.

In addition to Reid, notable players like Russell Wilson, Aaron Rodgers and J.J. Watt were against the proposed CBA.

Even Tretter acknowledged in his letter that "there is no such thing as a perfect deal" while noting "the addition of more games was a major concern."

Still, he is hoping the dissenters will fall in line around the ratified agreement.