I'm not the person you were replying to, but I also am an admitted SAIS student (for the Hopkins-Nanjing Center) who chose to defer for a year. They gave us all the option of deferring for 6 months, with the possibility of extending it another 6 months. A lot of people chose to defer and find work in the meantime. I'm not sure what their deferral policy will be like next year, but I imagine getting a job in a position relevant to your career should be a good enough reason for them to grant your deferral request, especially if covid is still affecting in-person classes in the Fall.
