Select employees for the Buccaneers and Lions reported to their facilities Wednesday after months of working from home. Several teams have reopened their doors over the last week, as the league announced coaches were permitted to return in June.
The staffs for Tampa Bay and Detroit are not yet back in their offices during this preliminary stage, however.
Moreover, there is not an established timetable for when Bucs players will report to AdventHealth Training Center.
"Our plan has been modeled after what has been found to be successful in the health care industry," Buccaneers director of athlete performance Gregory Skaggs said, per the team website. "Measures such as screening, physical distancing, mask wearing, increased hygiene, and a supportive culture. We worked with local medical infectious disease experts to devise a comprehensive plan focused on maintaining the health and safety of our employees and their families."
Similarly, the Lions opened their practice facility in Allen Park on Wednesday to limited staff.
"This is a soft opening, for sure," Detroit chief of staff Kevin Anderson told reporters. "The purpose of this first group, which internally we refer to as Group A, is really designed for people who can't work from home physically. If you can work from home successfully like we have been as a team, we're recommending that.
"Our equipment team and our field crew, their workflow simply requires them to be present in the building. Our equipment staff has been itching to get back in the building. They have pallets upon pallets backed up on the loading docks of equipment and Nike gear that is going to take them several weeks just to organize and unpack and disinfect and label to get lockers ready. That crew is a great example, plus our field crew, of two groups that physically can't work from home, and that's the true purpose for this first group returning to the training facility."
