© Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports
Last week, members of the Denver Broncos announced they would be opting out of voluntary workouts. While they were the first group of players to announce this, many have followed suit, announcing either their entire team or a large group of players would opt out of voluntary team workouts this offseason due to concerns over COVID-19.
The 49ers became the 16th team to issue such a statement, and the New Orleans Saints have since become the 17th. These individual team measures were encouraged by the NFLPA; the NFL is able to mandate the schedule for these voluntary workouts, so by issuing group statements, players are protecting each other from consequences by opting out.
However, the statement from the 49ers players intimates that there are some who will be attending workouts, saying, ““many in our locker room have chosen not to attend some or all phases of the voluntary in-person workouts.”
Given that some players have workout bonuses etched into their contracts, this is to be expected. Below is the statement:
A statement from the San Francisco 49ers players: pic.twitter.com/Z68yByOgdc
— NFLPA (@NFLPA) April 17, 2021