Packers News: 2020 preseason expected to be cut in half

The Packers will reportedly play only two preseason games in 2020.

The coronavirus pandemic has had a huge impact on the NFL offseason, and that now looks to continue into the preseason.

According to ESPN’s Kevin Seifert, the preseason will be shortened to two games. Weeks 1 and 4 of the preseason will be canceled. For the Green Bay Packers, they’d play one home game and one road game, their two preseason games originally scheduled for Weeks 2 and 3 in August.

This would mean the Packers would no longer host the Arizona Cardinals or visit the Kansas City Chiefs in the preseason.

How shortened preseason would impact Packers’ schedule

This would leave two games on the schedule, a matchup with the Cleveland Browns at Lambeau Field and a road game against the New York Giants.

Seifert added that the schedule could be re-shuffled to ensure each team plays one home game and one road game. The current schedule currently has the Packers playing a game at Lambeau and one on the road in Weeks 2 and 3.

It’s yet another change to an offseason full of them, from the virtual draft to no offseason program. We don’t yet know how the coronavirus pandemic will impact the regular season. Will the games be able to go ahead on time, or will there be a shortened season?

From a football perspective, fewer preseason games will mean fewer opportunities for players on the roster bubble. They’ll still have every chance to make an impact during training camp practices but they will need to make the most of their snaps in the preseason. This also means there will be less game time for first-round pick Jordan Love.

Another thing to consider for the coaching staff is how many snaps to give the starters.

Scrapping the preseason completely shouldn’t be ruled out, but for now, the plan is to reduce it to two games.