If the NFL Gets Rid of Voluntary OTAs, What Will We Talk About in May?

Let’s get it back to the NFL on a Tuesday morning:

End of OTAs? The NFL Players Association is working to finalize a proposal to overhaul the offseason starting as soon as 2025, eliminating voluntary on-field work in the spring in favor of a longer training camp ramp-up, with players reporting in mid-June to early July, per… pic.twitter.com/nQa9TmKCGO

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) May 28, 2024

Pelissero says “a formal proposal is expected this summer.” The NFLPA has been looking for player feedback with the goal of extending recovery time and reducing injuries. Essentially it would be a consolidation to create one single, longer break.

The way it’s done right now is you have your rookie minicamp a few weeks after the draft, then voluntary OTAs in May (where we’re currently at on the calendar), followed by mandatory minicamp, which this year for the Eagles runs from June 4th to June 6th.

If we do get rid of voluntary OTAs, however, how will we overanalyze who shows up and who doesn’t? How will we live without updates on Kenny Pickett and his small hands? –

Kenny Pickett with a nice pass down the middle to Albert O for about a 20ish yard gain

— Eliot Shorr-Parks (@EliotShorrParks) May 22, 2024

The kneejerk reaction to this report is that people seem to think more players will show up to training camp out of shape. That seems like a nothing burger. These guys take part in comprehensive offseason routines and it’s not like two weeks of voluntary OTAs and mandatory minicamp are the catalyst for fitness. The Eagles reported on July 25th last week, about six weeks between the mandatory minicamp and beginning of actual camp.

This would more or less eliminate the OTA and minicamp windows we have right now and wrap them into training camp, so a longer ramp up to the season instead of camp/break/camp.