The Cardinals, in an effort of prevention and working within the trend of the community, are closing the Dignity Health Arizona Cardinals Training Center Friday beginning at noon save for certain limited personnel.
As of now, the plan is for the majority of the staff to work from home for the remainder of the month.
The team has also suspended all non-essential travel, including coaches and scouts.
As the NFL tries to work in this fluid and ever-changing situation, the league still has kept the immediate calendar intact, which would include the opening of free-agent negotiating period starting Monday at 9 a.m. Arizona time and then the new league year -- when free agents can officially begin signing with new teams -- starting Wednesday at 1 p.m. Arizona time. That can change, however, as both the league -- and the world -- navigate dealing with COVID-19.
The team released the following statement:
"As the Coronavirus situation continues to develop, we continue to adjust our business practices accordingly based on the most current information and recommendations from experts in the medical community.
"In recent weeks we have asked all staff to participate in a variety of proactive measures to reduce the risk of the virus' transmission and spread. We are incredibly appreciative for that cooperation.
"Today we took the additional step of closing our offices at noon. Starting Monday – with very limited exceptions for operationally critical personnel – all staff have been asked to work from home for the remainder of the month, at which point the situation will be re-evaluated.
"To be clear, we have no knowledge of a single positive test for the Coronavirus within the organization. These latest measures are taken purely as a matter of precaution and have been recommended to slow the spread of the virus within our community. As always, the health and well-being of all employees and their families is our top priority.
"As has been stated many times, this is a very fluid situation and updates will be shared as they are available. Once again, our commitment to the health and safety of our employees, their families and the community remains paramount and we will continue to make thoughtful decisions with that in mind."
The NFL has already canceled the annual owners' meeting in Florida at the end of the month. Discussions are ongoing how the NFL Draft in Las Vegas could be impacted, although as of now there have been no changes.
