Six Raiders join Chiefs players on COVID-19 list ahead of Sunday Night Football
As the Chiefs and Raiders prepare for Sunday Night Football, they’re facing an identical obstacle.
COVID-19.
The Chiefs remain without multiple players because of their place on the reserve/COVID-19 list, and the Raiders are adding names of their own — in large quantity.
Six Raiders players — all on the defensive side — are heading on the reserve/COVID-19 list because they have been deemed high-risk contacts, according to an NFL Network report. Their status for Sunday is unknown, though because they are close contacts rather than positive tests, if they test negative in the coming days, they still could be eligible to play.
The list consists of defensive backs Johnathan Abram and Isaiah Johnson and defensive linemen Maliek Collins, Johnathan Hankins, Arden Key and Kendal Vickers. Abram, Collins and Vickers have started at least eight games each. Collins attended Center High School in Kansas City.
“I’m not going to really get into what list anybody’s on,” Raiders coach Jon Gruden said in a teleconference with Kansas City media. “We practiced today. We’ll be ready for the game on Sunday.”
The news comes as the NFL sent its teams memorandums to enter “intensive protocol” restrictions.
Chiefs wide receiver Mecole Hardman landed on the COVID-19 list last week and has yet to return to the team. Offensive linemen Eric Fisher, Mitchell Schwartz and Martinas Rankins joined the list this week, and none were at practice Wednesday.
“I’m just going to take it day by day,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said.
It’s not the only game affected by positive test results or players who have been labeled close contacts.
The NFL notified its teams that “intensive protocol” measures will be implemented moving forward in an effort to “keep everyone as safe as possible.”
As COVID-19 cases increase across the country, the NFL has not been immune. According to a league spokesperson, 28 teams have already implemented the protocols at least once, and half of the league’s 32 teams have done so multiple times.
“These protocols have reduced close contacts by 50-plus percent,” said Brian McCarthy, NFL vice president of communications.
The protocols further reinforce the need for players and all team personnel to wear masks, including on the practice field. Anyone who enters the practice facility must have a negative test result from the previous day. Meetings must either be held virtually, outdoors or in a bubble with masks being worn and those participating social distanced.
And with the holidays approaching, the memo emphasizes a prohibition on player and team gatherings away from the facility.
“All players, coaches and staff must be reminded that contact with other club personnel (including among players) is prohibited,” the memo states. “And lapses that occur away from the facility will create vulnerability for ongoing COVID transmission within the team.”
This story was originally published November 18, 2020 at 4:17 PM.