Prescott cleared to play in opener
FRISCO — All the systems are go for the Dallas Cowboys and quarterback Dak Prescott as they begin to turn their attention toward the Sept. 9 season opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The shoulder strain that sidelined him from practice and all preseason games since July 28 has healed enough for him to be fully cleared.
Prescott got in some team work on Wednesday for the first time in a month and aced the test.
He is no longer on a pitch count and has no more practice limitations.
“I thought he looked great (yesterday). We’re fired up,” offensive coordinator Kellen Moore said Thursday. “We’re not looking at anything from a limitation standpoint. We’re just playing ball at this point.
“We are at that point where we are ready to rock and roll. We’re getting ready for the regular season and Tampa Bay.”
League: 93% are vaccinated
The NFL says 93 percent of players are vaccinated for COVID-19 and the league wanted mandatory vaccination but the NFLPA wouldn’t agreed to it.
The league also has asked the players’ union to adjust protocols so vaccinated players would be tested weekly instead of every 14 days. Unvaccinated players are tested daily.
Meanwhile, Tennessee general manager Jon Robinson made a plea Thursday for people to get the “life-saving” COVID-19 vaccination as the Titans’ virus outbreak grew to nine including quarterback Ryan Tannehill.
Robinson said Tannehill, tight end Geoff Swaim and linebacker Justin March-Lillard joined four other players on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Tannehill practiced Tuesday and talked to reporters afterward.
That makes three Titans starters out. Coach Mike Vrabel revealed Thursday afternoon on a Zoom session with reporters that special teams coordinator Craig Aukerman also has been affected, missing the past two days of work, and likely missing Saturday night’s preseason finale against Chicago (1-1).
Bills’ McKenzie faces discipline
Bills receiver Isaiah McKenzie revealed he faces NFL discipline for violating the league’s COVID-19 protocols for unvaccinated players by failing to wear a mask inside the team’s facility.
Under league rules, the first offense for violating the protocols will result in a fine of $14,650. Repeat violations could result in a player being suspended or fined a week’s salary.
Odds and ends
Broncos coach Vic Fangio decided former Texas A&M star Von Miller will play at least a handful of snaps against the Rams on Saturday, the linebacker’s first action since Dec. 29, 2019. Miller missed the 2020 season after dislodging a tendon in his left ankle at a practice on artificial grass. … The Ravens traded rookie cornerback Shaun Wade to the Patriots for a seventhround draft pick in 2022 and a fifth-round pick in 2023. Wade is the first Ravens rookie to be traded since 2006. … The Colts put two starting offensive linemen — All-Pro guard Quenton Nelson and Pro Bowl left tackle Eric Fisher — on the reserve/COVID-19 list. … The Panthers acquired placekicker-punter Ryan Santoso from the Giants for a conditional 2022 seventh-round pick.