(RADIO.COM Sports) With COVID-19 cases on the rise and seemingly a new team impacted by the virus each week, the NFL has approved a contingency plan for the playoffs if the regular season can't be completed.
The owners unanimously voted Tuesday to expand the playoff field from 14 to 16 teams if rescheduled games from the regular season can't be made up in a Week 18, per multiple reports.
Eight teams in each conference would make the playoffs, and the owners also decided not to reseed teams once they qualify for the postseason.
The contingency plan is essentially a backup to the backup plan. Right now, the season is on pace to be played as scheduled through Week 17, but if COVID-19 forces postponements late in the season, a Week 18 will be implemented to finish those games.
If all the needed games, for whatever reason, can't be made up in Week 18, then the 16-team playoff will take effect. The NFL had originally expanded the playoffs from 12 to 14 teams prior to this season, adding a third wild-card team in each conference.
Several teams and games have been impacted by COVID-19 already this season, but the NFL has managed to make adjustments on the fly and reconfigure the schedule when necessary. They've done so with the flexibility and benefit of bye weeks, which are coming to an end soon. With many teams having already had their byes, the ability to be flexible becomes more challenging over the course of the final two months of the regular season.
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