(Interview Below): America is going to need help in jumpstarting football and Dr. Anthony Fauci has a plan.
As one of the leading doctors on President Trump's COVID-19 task force, Fauci explained his game plan in an interview with NBC Sports' Peter King. "This is a respiratory virus, so it’s going to be spread by shedding virus," the Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases revealed. "The problem with virus shedding is that if I have it in my nasopharynx, and it sheds and I wipe my hand against my nose, now it's on my hand. You see, then I touch my chest or my thigh, then it’s on my chest or my thigh for at least a few hours."
Fauci went on to explain that sweat won't transmit coronavirus, but activity like football creates a difference case scenario. "But if people are in such close contact as football players are on every single play, then that’s the perfect set up for spreading," he continued. "I would think that if there is an infected football player on the field -- a middle linebacker, a tackle, whoever it is it -- as soon as they hit the next guy, the chances are that they will be shedding virus all over that person."
As for his plan to ensure the NFL gets back up and running, Fauci said that there needs to be testing made every single day. It's not a realistic idea, but some adaptation of it will impact the decrease of contagion. "If you really want to be in a situation where you want to be absolutely certain, you’d test all the players before the game. And you say, 'Those who are infected: sorry, you’re sidelined. Those who are free: get in there and play,'" he explained, adding, "If I test today, and I’m negative, you don’t know if I got exposed tomorrow ... there’s no guarantee that you’re going to get exposed and be positive the next day."
"To be 100% sure, you’ve got to test every day," he continued. "But, that’s not practical and that’s never going to happen. But, you can diminish dramatically by testing everybody Saturday night, Sunday morning, and say, 'Okay, only negative players play.'"
Asked if he envisions that the NFL will be able to presume with games in the fall, Fauci said, "The virus will make the decision for us."