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Finally, the NFL season is here! Even during regular years, finally reaching the beginning of the new NFL season after a long six months with no football is a great feeling. This year, however, it’s even more exciting since there were so many doubts surrounding whether or not the NFL season would actually be able to happen due to the COVID-19 pandemic. And even though we do have a season, many fans are left with a lot of questions about what this season will look like since it’s not exactly your typical time. One of the biggest questions that NFL fans have right now is whether or not they will actually be able to attend their favorite team’s games this season. There’s no simple answer to this question, but we are going to break it all down for you!
It Depends on the Team
The easiest answer to this popular question is that it depends on the team. Some teams have decided to not allow any fans to attend games throughout the entire season. Other teams are not allowing fans at the moment but will consider having them in the future depending on the spread of the virus. Finally, we have a few teams that are already allowing fans to attend games in limited numbers. At the same time, it’s important to remember that these things are always changing so what might be a team’s policy right now might not necessarily be true next week or even next month.
Teams That Are Already Allowing Fans
Even though these teams are definitely in the minority when looking at all 32 NFL teams, there are still some teams that are already allowing fans to attend games in their stadiums. The following teams are allowing fans at limited capacities:
- Cleveland Browns at 10% capacity (approximately 6,800)
- Dallas Cowboys at unspecified limited capacity
- Indianapolis Colts at no more than 3.7% capacity (approximately 2,500)
- Jacksonville Jaguars at 25% capacity (approximately 16,750)
- Kansas City Chiefs at 22% capacity (approximately 16,000)
- Miami Dolphins at 20% capacity (approximately 13,000) for the first game
Teams That Are Waiting It Out
We get it — that’s only six teams out of 32 that have committed to having fans this season at all. However, some optimism remains with a majority of the remaining teams that are consistently monitoring public health issues and regulations within their specific area before deciding whether or not to have fans at a future date. Specific team policies vary, but here are some of the most common policies that we are seeing right now:
- Teams not allowing fans for the first game (Carolina Panthers, Cincinnati Bengals, Denver Broncos, Houston Texans, New Orleans Saints, San Francisco 49ers, and Tennessee Titans)
- Teams not allowing fans for the first two games (Arizona Cardinals, Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
- Teams not allowing fans for the month of September (Atlanta Falcons)
- Teams not allowing fans for the first three games (Seattle Seahawks)
Teams That Are Not Allowing Fans
Finally, we have the teams that have all but ruled out having any fans attend home games this season:
- Baltimore Ravens
- Chicago Bears
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Los Angeles Chargers
- Los Angeles Rams
- New York Giants
- New York Jets
- Philadelphia Eagles
- Washington Football Team
As you can see, this is a pretty complicated and fluid situation. So while you might not be able to see your NFL picks play in-person this year, we are very thankful for the opportunity to watch safely in the comfort of our homes with big-screen TVs, surround sound, snacks, and drinks.
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