Report: NFL discussing playoff bubbles

The NFL is actively discussing creating local bubbles for the 14 or 16 teams that make the playoffs as COVID-19 cases rise around the United States, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero.

The league's plan reportedly would be to isolate all team personnel in hotels when not traveling for games and enforce strict rules on who would be permitted inside to interact with players and coaches.

No final decision has been made, Rapoport and Pelissero note.

The playoff bubbles are apparently seen as more feasible than creating one large, NBA-style bubble or 32 separate ones for the rest of the regular season.

COVID-19 has hit the NFL hard recently. The Baltimore Ravens-Pittsburgh Steelers Thanksgiving game was pushed from Thursday to Tuesday due to Baltimore's coronavirus outbreak. Pittsburgh has also begun experiencing its own virus issues in recent days. Meanwhile, the Denver Broncos are set to play the New Orleans Saints without all four of their quarterbacks due to COVID-19 protocols.

The NFL reportedly remains committed to playing all 256 regular-season games, with the potential contingency plan of adding a Week 18 to make up any postponed contests.

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