DENVER — The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has informed the Broncos their plan to make their UCHealth Training Center headquarters as safe as possible against coronavirus has been approved, a source told 9NEWS.
Approval from the state health department clears the way for the Broncos to welcome their rookie players to training camp Thursday. Veterans are to report July 28.
NFL owners held a conference call Friday in which it was agreed the league would move forward as scheduled despite a recent spike of the virus in some league markets.
With the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans opening the league’s regular season on Thursday, September 10, their respective rookie players will report to camp Monday.
The Broncos open their regular season a few days later -- Monday, September 13 against the Tennessee Titans at Empower Field at Mile High – which is why their rookies don’t report until Thursday.
Broncos vice president Brittany Bowlen compiled and submitted the team’s 30-plus-page “Infection, Disease Emergency Response’’ plan to the state health department and government officials. The plan listed safeguards including no fans in attendance during training camp, cleaning protocols, social distancing rules, personal protection equipment, testing procedures and how the team would control a possible COVID-19 outbreak.
The state’s health department informed the Broncos in a letter Thursday that their plan had been approved. In the letter, the health department praised the Broncos for how they promoted measures to reduce the health risks associated with COVID-19.
While training camp and the regular season so far is going on as scheduled, the league and players union still have to negotiate its preseason schedule. The current plan is to reduce the schedule from four games to two. If that schedule holds, the Broncos’ two preseason games on August 22 against the Bears at Empower Field and August 29 at the Los Angeles Rams will be televised on Channel 20.
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