Players blitz NFL with tweets about safe return

NFL players took to Twitter on Sunday in a coordinated effort to urge the NFL to listen to its experts' guidelines on safely opening training camps amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Many of the players used the hashtag #WeWantToPlay to accompany their tweets.

NFL Players Association president JC Tretter tweeted: "What you are seeing today is our guys standing up for each other and for the work their union leadership has done to keep everyone as safe as possible. The NFL needs to listen to our union and adopt the experts' recommendations #wewanttoplay."

NFL owners will be conducting a league meeting at 2 p.m. ET Monday as they try to finalize health and safety measures, financial arrangements, and reducing or eliminating preseason games, league sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The idea for the tweets came from Miami Dolphins cornerback Byron Jones, who made the suggestion on one of the players' internal planning calls Sunday, a source told ESPN's Dan Graziano. Jones' idea, the source said, was to get the message out to the public that the players want to play but want the teams to make sure it's as safe as possible and that it isn't about players just looking out for their money or not wanting to show up for camp.

The NFLPA told ESPN that players weren't instructed to tweet, but the union was "involved, to make sure [the tweets] were [on] factual grounds" regarding negotiations. The NFLPA said Tretter's tweet would serve as its statement.

Among the players who tweeted were Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, who wrote that he is concerned and pointed to his pregnant wife as the main reason.

"I am concerned. My wife is pregnant. @NFL Training camp is about to start. And there's still No Clear Plan on Player Health & Family Safety. We want to play football but we also want to protect our loved ones. #WeWantToPlay," he wrote.

The New Orleans Saints' Michael Thomas urged NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to follow the example of NBA commissioner Adam Silver in bringing football back safely.

"If Adam Silver can respect the voices and protect his NBA players why can't @nflcommish do the same? Listen to your players," Thomas tweeted.

The Cleveland Browns' Myles Garrett was among players to say that there might not be a season if the NFL doesn't take safety seriously.

"If the NFL doesn't do their part to keep players healthy there is no football in 2020. It's that simple. #WeWantToPlay," he said.