One NFL GM raises concerns about potential injury risk for NFL players in Olympic flag football

The NFL is expected to green-light its players having the opportunity to play flag football when the sport makes its debut in the 2028 Summer Olympics. Commissioner Roger Goodell has made it clear the players want to compete, and the NFL believes this could expand the global reach of the league as well. 

There are still plenty of semantics to sort through, including how many players from each NFL team will be able to participate and stipulations for field surfaces, but then there is the issue of injuries. Some are surprised that team owners and the league at large are on board with their players taking part in a non-NFL sporting event, but not everyone is sold on the idea. Take Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst, for example, who cited “the risk” of injury to ESPN as the thing that gave him pause. 

“I think overall, [flag football in the Olympics is] a great thing,” Gutekunst said. “I’d love it if we kept the NFL players out of it.”

How to handle potential flag-football injuries is something the NFL is already talking about, as ESPN reports part of the resolution being voted on includes clarity on insurance should a player be injured while playing in the Olympics.

As ESPN notes, teams are not required to pay salary to players who suffer “non-football injuries,” which are injuries suffered away from official team functions. When it comes to this flag football possibility, the resolution being considered includes injury protection for players and salary-cap relief as well. Even if this resolution is passed, there’s still work to be done. The league will then begin negotiating with the NFLPA, Olympic officials and national governing bodies on specifics.