NEED ANSWERS
NFL and players’ union look into Titans’ virus outbreak
The Tennessee Titans COVID-19 outbreak has now reportedly hit 20 members of the organization and the NFL wants to know what happened.
The NFL and the NFL Players Association are investigating if the Titans violated the league’s coronavirus protocols, resulting in a major outbreak and the postponement of Tennessee’s Week 4 game against the Steelers, according to multiple reports.
The Titans reportedly learned of two more positive tests on Sunday morning. That brings the total number to 20, including 10 players. It’s the sixth straight day in which at least one member of the Titans organization has returned a positive test.
“This isn’t a failure of the protocols; it is a failure to follow the protocols,” a source told ESPN.
The formal investigation began on Friday, CBS Sports reported. CBS reported that the league is requesting practice video to determine if the team was following the rules.
Both outlets are reporting that the league could look to punish the Titans if the probe reveals the team violated the NFL’s strict COVID-19 protocols.
Titans head coach Mike Vrabel said earlier in the week that “nobody’s to blame.”
“We’re in a pandemic,” Vrabel told reporters on Wednesday. “Unfortunately, things happen. (Titans general manager) Jon (Robinson) and I feel comfortable that since receiving the (COVID-19) protocols in August, we’ve followed those by the letter and that we were conscious of everything that we did.”
Other than the two new positive cases within the Titans organization, the NFL said no other positive tests were recorded on Sunday morning.
The Titans will need to produce back-to-back days without a positive test before they are allowed back into their facility, and the earliest that could now happen is on Wednesday. Tennessee is scheduled to face the Bills on Sunday, Oct. 11. The Titans’ game against the Steelers has been rescheduled for Sunday, Oct. 25.
With the league conducting an investigation into the Titans outbreak — along with the news that Patriots quarterback Cam Newton tested positive on Saturday — the NFL will gather all 32 teams this morning for a conference call to discuss COVID-19 “accountability, learnings and requirements,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter added.