Club dealing with another positive COVID-19 test
The Eagles announced on Thursday afternoon that a player has tested positive for COVID-19, automatically placing them back in the NFL’s intensive protocol, which will be made the standard for all teams for the rest of the season beginning Saturday.
“The Philadelphia Eagles received confirmation this morning that a player tested positive for COVID-19,” the team said in a statement. “The individual and close contacts who were identified through contact tracing are in self-isolation. We are following NFL-NFLPA intensive protocols and remain in communication with the league on this matter.”
Geoff Mosher of Inside The Birds reported that the player is wide receiver J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, and that he and fellow receivers John Hightower and Deontay Burnett would be placed on the reserve/ COVID-19 list because they had all been in close contact.
However, the Eagles on Thursday afternoon first listed all three players along with running back Corey Clement and defensive end Vinny Curry as not practicing due to an illness, then announced Arcega-Whiteside, Clement and Curry were placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list and Burnett on the
Practice Squad COVID-19 list. That could mean Hightower will be available on Sunday if he recovers.
The Eagles had been operating under the league’s intensive protocol the previous week as well, following the discovery of one of their staff members testing positive.
Although they didn’t get the results they wanted whenthey came out flat and undisciplined in a 27-17 loss to the NewYork Giants, at least they were able to get a head start on some other teams, including this Sunday’s opponent, the Cleveland Browns.
The intensive protocol requires teams to follow more restrictions than already were in place to help them cope with the coronavirus pandemic. Among them is the requirement that all personnel, including players, wear mask sat all times while on the premises, including the practice field. The plan also calls for meetings to be held virtually unless they can be held outdoors or indoors with apr e-a pproved plan; for all meals to be served graband-go style and various other restrictions.
It’s one of the reasons running back Miles Sanders came to his Zoom teleconference on Thursday with his mask on.
“I don’t want to get fined,” he said.
But Sanders was the only player or coach, last week or this week, to appear with a mask, the absence of which technically is a violation.
Still, several players addressed the challenges of having to work under the intensive protocol.
“It’s a little difficult, a little challenging, especially getting that hands-on teaching in person,” Sanders said. “But we’ve got to do what we’ve got to do to make this thing work. So we’re willing to do it and the whole league should be willing to do it and be ready for it.”
Added safety Jalen Mills: “I think it was helpful that we were in the intensive protocol before, because now we know what to look for, how meetings will be run, how practices will be run, walk-throughs, different things like that. So I don’t think there’s going to really be any difficulty as far as staying on the same page. You just have to lock in on those virtual meetings.”
Defensive tackle Fletcher Cox believes that’s not always so easy.
“Obviously there’s more questions to ask when you’re in a virtual meeting,” he said. “Youjust have to understand it andkindof get everything, the gameplan, kind of onthe fly.”
That didn’t work out so well for the Eagles last week. They can only hope this week will be different.