What the Titans said about fans in the stadium today.
In terms of entertainment, the status of football is the first and foremost thing on the minds of Tennessee Titans fans, just like the fans of the other 31 teams in the NFL.
Right after that though, fans are wondering just what exactly the 2020 NFL season will look like. How many players will be on rosters? What will training camp be like? What happens if a coach tests positive? The questions go on and on, but the one that seems to pop up the most is, “Will fans be allowed to attend games?”
Well on that note, let’s talk about what the Tennessee Titans sent out to their season ticket holders today.
For a full statement from the team, you can go check out this article on the Titans website, but the best way to summarize what happened is in this Jim Wyatt quote:
"Because of the coronavirus pandemic, it is becoming increasingly likely that NFL teams will play home games with a reduced capacity during the 2020 season.The exact number, or percentage, will be determined at a later date.Nissan Stadium seats approximately 69,143 fans.In recent weeks, the organization has examined ways to implement enhanced safety measures to ensure a safe return for fans.By reducing seating capacity, seats will be spread out within the sections to increase space between fans. The organization will also have increased sanitization measures that will help prepare the stadium for fans to return this fall."
So basically, the NFL and teams are operating under the assumption that the country won’t be in a place where fans can safely attend games at full capacity. Obviously that should be the expectation considering what has happened over the last few weeks, but this is the first time we have officially seen it admitted from the Titans.
Making it even worse is that Tennessee is actually scheduled to have most of their home games in the first half of the season, meaning that the longer questions surround attendance, the greater the chance that Titans fans are hurt the most.
Some good news
The good news for fans is that it doesn’t seem like the organization is in panic mode or anything close to that. It seems like the conservative plan right now is to spread fans out but to still allow some portion of fans to come to games.
I have said for a while that my expectation would be that stadiums all worry about their season ticket holders first and until those “seats” are filled, I wouldn’t expect any seats to be available for general admission. That is just an opinion based on what I think would make sense for the teams in the NFL.
While we wonder if that is the next announcement, all fans can do is monitor the pandemic and if nothing else, try to stay as safe as possible to ensure the best viewing experience for everyone.