Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper on Wednesday addressed some of the new realities for the NFL season. Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Panthers owner: No full stadiums for NFL games amid coronavirus pandemic

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 5/13/20

While Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper hopes fans can watch his team play in-person later this year amid the coronavirus pandemic, he also realizes the NFL season won't be business as usual.

As Kevin Stankiewicz of CNBC wrote, Tepper spoke about the situation during a Wednesday appearance on “Halftime Report.”

"You won’t be having full stadiums, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have some fans in the stadium either," Tepper said. "If you’re comfortable being in a closed airplane for a cross-country trip, 18 inches apart, maybe with two seats in between you and being 5 feet away from each other, you might be comfortable in an open-air stadium."

Tepper also said: "There should be some amount of fans in the stadiums, depending on what locale and where you are and what the local rules are. There could possibly be."

Earlier this month, Miami Dolphins CEO and president Tom Garfinkel told "Good Morning America" about plans for the club to welcome a small percentage of fans to Hard Rock Stadium for NFL games this fall:

With the NFL set to announce the 2020 schedule this week, here’s an exclusive look at how the @MiamiDolphins are safely preparing @HardRockStadium for the upcoming season amid the pandemic, including a major accreditation. Our report on @GMA pic.twitter.com/ogbCOE7UuB
— Victor Oquendo (@VictorOquendo) May 4, 2020

Neither the NFL nor NFL Players Association have announced any official proposals for a season that likely will be altered by the pandemic.

On Monday, NBC Sports’ Peter King reported the NFL may delay the start of the campaign by at least a month. Even then, there's no guarantee that large gatherings will be allowed at venues such as football stadiums by the middle of October.

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