TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Playing a contact sport in the middle of a pandemic seemed unthinkable to everyone except the NFL when the novel coronavirus shut down the country in March. The improbable became achievable thanks to collaboration and sacrifice. Super Bowl 55 takes place Sunday right on schedule. That was the plan all along. The league played 256 games in the regular season without any cancellations and made it through the playoffs to get here. The NFL spent more than $75 million on testing alone, played games on all seven days of the week, shuffled the schedule numerous times and constantly revised health and safety protocols. It paid off.
