The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown the NFL season into chaos, with the Denver Broncos’ quarterbacks sidelined, the San Francisco 49ers left without a home or practice ground and much of the Baltimore Ravens team unavailable, per AP.
Driving the news: The Broncos confirmed in a statement Saturday night that quarterbacks Drew Lock, Brett Rypien and Blake Bortles were identified as “high-risk COVID-19 close contacts” and will follow the NFL’s mandatory five-day quarantine, making them ineligible for Sunday’s game against New Orleans.
In San Francisco, the Santa Clara County Public Health Department announced new measures to combat a surge in coronavirus cases in the area — including prohibiting from Monday contact sports from holding games and practices for three weeks.
- The 49ers said in a statement officials are aware of the emergency directive affecting the team. “We are working with the NFL and our partners on operational plans and will share details as they are confirmed,” the statement added.
In Baltimore, the Ravens added six more players to their COVID-19 list of players who have either tested positive for the coronavirus or deemed high-risk close contacts of an infected person.
- The Ravens-Pittsburgh Steelers game originally scheduled for Thanksgiving Day has been rescheduled for a second time, from Sunday to Tuesday, after three Baltimore players tested positive for the virus.
In Pittsburgh, the Steelers announced they had placed running back James Conner on the Reserve/COVID-19 List Saturday. Three other Pittsburgh players were added to the list Friday.
The big picture: The NFL has said it will prohibit all in-person team activities on Monday and Tuesday “in response to the continuous increase in positivity rates throughout the country” and because “a number of players and staff celebrated the Thanksgiving holiday with out-of-town guests.”
