The NFL announced this week that a fully virtual draft will be held this year, and naturally teams have plenty of concerns about what the process will look like. One of those concerns revolves around the Dallas Cowboys and the Jones family.
In an effort to maintain a level playing field and assure team personnel are following social distancing guidelines, the NFL has informed teams their scouts, executives, and other staffers must work remotely from their own homes during the NFL Draft. However, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Tuesday that some teams are bothered by the fact that Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones will likely be able to work from the same location since they are family.
"There are already teams worried about having their zoom teleconference hacked in by another team."@AdamSchefter on the NFL conducting a virtual draft. pic.twitter.com/NFPV6hDpj6
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) April 7, 2020
It’s unclear if the NFL plans to address that concern, but it seems like a gray area. Jerry is the general manager of the Cowboys and Stephen is the director of player personnel, among other titles. Both are involved in the process of deciding which players to draft, but can the NFL really tell a father and son they can’t be in the same household during the coronavirus pandemic?
Schefter also noted that teams are concerned about hacking, as talent evaluators will have to communicate with one another via zoom video conferences.
There could still be plenty of changes in the next few weeks, but the NFL is determined to not allow the coronavirus outbreak to impact its offseason schedule. Teams have essentially been told not to complain publicly about the decision to proceed with the draft, but there is plenty of frustration around the league.
