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On Monday afternoon, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero, among a host of other media members, reported that NFLPA medical director Thom Mayer has made it clear that the current plan is to test NFL players for coronavirus “about three times a week” while isolating those that test positive.
In a call with agents today, NFLPA medical director Thom Mayer said the current plan is to test players for COVID-19 about 3 times a week, isolating those who test positive. Per Mayer, there’s a 90% chance reliable saliva testing is available before players return to facilities.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) June 15, 2020
This report comes on the back of earlier news that Ian Rapoport broke stating several players from both the Dallas Cowboys and the Houston Texans recently tested positive for the virus. One of the players who tested positive was star running back Ezekiel Elliott. Per his agent, Elliott is doing “just fine.”
In the grand scheme of things, this needs to be taken a seriously as ever. When Von Miller came down with the virus, he said the first four to five days were “very scary.” However, the plan was never going to include zero players testing positive. That’s been the expectation this whole time. The goal is to be prepared for when positives happen and to deal with it as quickly as possible.
A month ago, NFL chief medical officer Dr. Allen Sills said: "We fully expect that we will have positive cases that arise. … Our challenge is to identify them as quickly as possible and prevent spread to any other participants.” The teams appear to have done that. https://t.co/T18b96Nhtw
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) June 15, 2020
This is only the beginning of hearing these types of reports so it’s not something to get to flustered about. Should it continue, and continue, and continue, then maybe more drastic measures will need to be taken. Until then, let’s just keep taking it a day at a time.
Now for some links.
Rams News:
Stu Jackson thinks a lot can be learned from the Rams’ week two performance from last year (TheRams.com)
Stu Jackson takes an early look at the defensive line for the 2020 season (TheRams.com)
Cameron DaSilva ranks the best receivers the Rams will face in 2020 (The Rams Wire)
Larry Brake discusses the value in TE Tyler Higbee this year in fantasy football (Ramlbin’ Fan)
NFL News:
Cowboys and Texans players tested positive for the coronavirus (ESPN)
Gary Davenport believes giving Myles Garrett big money would be a mistake (Bleacher Report)
Cody Benjamin lists the eight teams most-likely to sign Colin Kaepernick (CBS Sports)
Oklahoma State RB Chuba Hubbard is boycotting the football team after an “unfortunate” photo of head coach Mike Gundy surfaces (Pro Football Talk)
Michael David Smith reports that the NFL could lose roughly $3 billion from lack of fans in the stadiums (Pro Football Talk)
Jeffri Chadiha discusses the best fits for QB Colin Kaepernick (NFL.com)