NFL doctor: There will be positive cases, challenge is preventing spread

Find out the latest on COVID-19's impact on the sports world and when sports are returning by subscribing to Breaking News push notifications in the Sports and COVID-19 section.

The NFL continues preparations for the 2020 season in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

The league's chief medical officer, Dr. Allen Sills, held a conference call Tuesday in which he admitted there will likely be positive cases during the season.

"We fully well expect we will have positive cases that arise," Sills said, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. "Our challenge is to identify them as quickly as possible and prevent them from spreads to any other participants."

While the league is still putting together its testing plan, Sills expects testing and treatment will evolve and improve before the football season begins.

"We will likely be in a very different place 30 days from now, 60 days from now, than we are now," Sills added, according to ESPN's Dan Graziano.

NFL facilities were allowed to begin reopening Tuesday, but the return of players to those facilities will be determined by testing, test availability, and reliability, Sills said. He wouldn't put a timeline on when that would take place or if training camps and minicamps will be held this summer.

"Obviously, football and physical distancing (are) not compatible," Sills said, per Pelissero.

New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton tested positive for the coronavirus in March, while Denver Broncos pass-rusher Von Miller tested positive in April.