The NFL has made no formal announcement about how they plan to handle this week’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens have themselves a full-blown COVID-19 outbreak and it feels more and more like the game cannot happen on Sunday.
One option the NFL has is to force the Ravens to forfeit. This would give the Steelers a win and the Ravens a loss and the Steelers would get something resembling a bye week.
This sounds great except there’s also a cost. And by cost I mean players would not be paid in the event of a forfeit. This means something in the neighborhood of $13 million in lost wages between the two teams.
The biggest loser for the Steelers would be linebacker Bud Dupree whose per-game salary is $931,000. The next-highest Steeler is defensive lineman Stephon Tuitt at just over $529,000.
Should the teams pay their players if the game is forfeited? Or should the NFL be on the hook for it since it is their decision? Let us know in the comments.
