The NFL’s decision to dump all COVID-19 protocols omitted one particular item, perhaps on purpose.
It would be nothing more than a return to normal media access.
As relayed by Armando Selguero of OutKick, the NFL and the Players Union have reached an agreement to lift all COVID protocols, which have been in place since March 2020. Part of the decision at the time was to keep the media outside the locker room.
Now that could mean journalists have access to dressing rooms again, interviewing players in old-fashioned settings. Basically, this means players get dressed after games.
“Media protocols are not specifically addressed in this memo, but it sets the stage for the locker rooms to reopen to journalists in 2022,” Lindsey Jones of The Athletic wrote. “The league and the teams are preparing for that access to return.”
For the uninitiated, reporters who cover all sports yearn for a return to the locker room, insisting that such access gives them a better opportunity to connect with athletes for one-on-one conversations, and presumably, more “insider” information and balls.
Most mainstream media will tell you that “building relationships” with players, coaches and others in the locker room is an essential part of their job. Whether you’re interested in it or not, it’s something that can’t be accomplished with a group of your peers on a Zoom call.
The media? Still in the locker room? To sportswriters around the world, it sounds too good to be true. But for those who cover the NFL, it could soon become a reality.
