New England Patriots cornerback Jason McCourty, set to enter his 12th year in the NFL, expressed concern about whether the league will be able to complete a 2020 season amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The first group of Patriots players is scheduled to report to the team's facility Monday for coronavirus testing, and on the eve of his arrival, McCourty explained why he's not optimistic.
"I'm not going to lie, for me as a fellow player, I go on social media and it makes me very nervous to think there will be a season," he said Sunday night on his "Double Coverage" podcast with his brother, Patriots defensive back Devin McCourty.
"Because I've seen guys posting a video in a nightclub, and it's just like, 'Yo, we're attempting to play football. That's not going to be OK.' You see guys working out in one city on a Monday, working out in another city on a Tuesday, and another city the next week, and it's just like, 'Dang, if they're working out here, here and here, that means you have to be traveling and you come across however many people.' Or you see a guy posting pictures and there's hundreds of [people], whether it's anywhere. So for me, it is nerve-wracking."
McCourty, 32, shared on the podcast that it's not in his nature to be negative. His remarks came before news broke that the Miami Marlins' home opener against the Baltimore Orioles on Monday night has been postponed as coronavirus cases continue to pop up among the team.
Major League Baseball, like the NFL, is attempting to complete a season outside of a bubble environment.
"Those are the things that for me, make it nervous to say, 'Are we going to be able to have an entire season?' Because of small things like that that go a long way ... it only takes one person testing positive, you come into the building, and that thing will spread like wildfire," McCourty said.
McCourty entered the NFL as a sixth-round draft pick of the Tennessee Titans in 2009. He's played for the Titans (2009-2016), the Cleveland Browns (2017) and Patriots (2018-present).
He played football at Rutgers, which over the weekend stopped all in-person team activities and quarantined the entire football program after six additional positive tests for COVID-19 were announced Saturday.