Redskins, Bucs, Giants Suspend Coaches, Scouts' Travel Amid Coronavirus Concerns

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Washington Redskins have reportedly suspended travel for their coaches and scouts ahead of the 2020 NFL draft because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Albert Breer of The MMQB reported the update Thursday. Mike Garafolo of NFL Network added "a whole lot of pre-draft workouts are being canceled" as federal and local governments attempt to slow the spread of the disease.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network noted the New York Giants have also followed the Bucs and Redskins' decision to pull coaches and scouts from the road.

A number of other teams have decided to keep their coaches and scouts from traveling. 

Per CBS Sports' Jonathan Jones, the Kansas City Chiefs suspended travel for coaches and scouts. 

The Atlanta Falcons announced they are discontinuing business travel for their coaches and scouting personnel:   

The Buffalo Bills, Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Rams are also pulling their coaches and scouts off the road:    

The NFL released a statement March 3 about the situation.

"We are closely monitoring developments and have been in contact with The World Health Organization, CDC and the NFL-NFLPA medical experts at the Duke Infection Control Outreach Network (DICON) Program for Infection Prevention," the statement read. "We will continue those discussions throughout our offseason."

NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy said Tuesday the league's plans for the draft, which is scheduled to begin April 23 in Las Vegas, are unchanged.

"Our plans remain in place," McCarthy said in a statement. "We will continue to monitor and share guidance as the situation warrants and as our experts recommend."

The changes in policy come during what is typically scouts' busiest time of the year, with the recently completed NFL Scouting Combine followed by pro-day workouts, while teams also visit with prospects individually.

In addition, the new NFL league year is set to start March 18 with the opening of free agency, which also often requires players to travel to different cities for visits.