Cleveland’s matchup against Las Vegas, Seattle’s matchup against the Rams and Washington’s matchup against Philadelphia have all been postponed due to massive coronavirus outbreaks on some of those teams.
MORE: NFL Week 15 postponements
This comes a day after the league announced new COVID protocols, which not everybody took kindly to and in the same week that the league experienced one of the most exponential rises in cases.
For those doing the math at home, that’s roughly 30 players a day over the last five days entering protocols and testing positive. With the season winding down but cases of the Omicron variant seemingly on the rise, it remains to be seen how the rest of the season will take shape and what effect, if any, the protocols will have on mitigating the number of players on the COVID reserve list.
Sporting News has the list of all the players who’ve entered protocols since the beginning of the week:
NFL players in league COVID protocols
Listed players reflect only official team rosters as of 5 p.m. ET on Dec. 22.
Arizona Cardinals (two players)
C Rodney Hudson P Andy Lee
Atlanta Falcons (one player)
OLB Emmanuel Ellerbee
Baltimore Ravens (nine players)
C Trystan Colon S Chuck Clark WR Sammy Watkins CB Chris Westry CB Jimmy Smith DT Justin Madubuike LB Chris Board LB Kristian Welch S Geno Stone
Buffalo Bills (four players)
LB Tyrel Dodson T Dion Dawkins OL Jon Feliciano WR Cole Beasley
Carolina Panthers (six players)
RB Christian McCaffrey QB Matt Barkley DT Derrick Brown DB Sam Franklin K Zane Gonzalez DE Azur Kamara
Chicago Bears (15 players)
OL Larry Borom DB Artie Burns WR Isaiah Coulter QB Andy Dalton DL Mario Edwards Jr. LB Joel Iyiegbuniwe DB Eddie Jackson TE Jesse James LB Sam Kamara RB Ryan Nall WR Allen Robinson II DB Duke Shelley CB Jaylon Johnson DB Tashaun Gipson Sr. TE Jesper Horsted
Cincinnati Bengals (two players)
LB Clay Johnston DB Chidobe Awuzie
Cleveland Browns (20 players, head coach)
HC Kevin Stefanski S Grant Delpit LB Tony Fields II G Drew Forbes P Jamie Gillan CB A. J. Green S Ronnie Harrison Jr. CB Troy Hill TE Austin Hooper RB Kareem Hunt S John Johnson III QB Case Keenum WR Jarvis Landry QB Baker Mayfield DT Malik McDowell DE Ifeadi Odenigbo LB Jacob Phillips T Jedrick Wills LB Mack Wilson RT James Hudson DB Greg Newsome
Dallas Cowboys (three player)
CB Nahshon Wright DT Trysten Hill DT Osa Odighizuwa
Detroit Lions (two players)
DB Jalen Elliott TE TJ Hockenson
Green Bay Packers (one player)
NT Kenny Clark
Houston Texans (14 players)
C Justin McCray LB Kamu Grugier-Hill LB Christian Kirksey DB A. J. Moore DE DeMarcus Walker DB Terrance Brooks DB Terrance Mitchell OL Lane Taylor DE Jonathan Greenard WR Brandin Cooks LB Tae Davis QB Jeff Driskel K Ka’imi Fairbairn LB Eric Wilson
Indianapolis Colts (three players)
LB Zaire Franklin DE Kemoko Turay DB Rock Ya-Sin
Kansas City Chiefs (two players)
DT Chris Jones T Mike Remmers
Las Vegas Raiders (one player)
DB Brandon Facyson
Los Angeles Chargers (three players)
LT Rashawn Slater G/C Scott Quessenberry RB Austin Ekeler WR Jalen Guyton
Los Angeles Rams (17 players)
CB Jalen Ramsey OT Rob Havenstein OT Joseph Noteboom CB Robert Rochell OL Jamil Demby DB Terrell Burgess DB JuJu Hughes NT Sebastian Joseph-Day S Jordan Fuller TE Johnny Mundt T Tremayne Anchrum Jr. DB Antoine Brooks Jr. DB Jake Gervase LB Von Miller LB Ogbonnia Okoronkwo DB Kareem Orr LB Christian Rozeboom
Miami Dolphins (four players)
RB Phillip Lindsay WR Jaylen Waddle RB Lynn Bowden G Robert Jones
Minnesota Vikings (seven players)
RB Alexander Mattison WR DeDe Westbrook WR Dan Chisena DE Danielle Hunter RB A. J. Rose Jr. OG Kyle Hinton WR Trishton Jackson
New England Patriots (three players)
OT Yasir Durant RB J. J. Taylor TE Dalton Keene
New Orleans Saints (one player, head coach)
HC Sean Payton TE Adam Trautman
New York Giants (eight players)
WR Kadarius Toney WR John Ross LB Cam Brown LB Oshane Ximines CB Aaron Robinson DB Adoree’ Jackson DB J. R. Reed DB Natrell Jamerson
New York Jets (18 players, head coach)
HC Robert Saleh DB Justin Hardee WR Elijah Moore LB Hamsah Nasirildeen WR Jeff Smith G Vera-Tucker DL Foley Fatukasi DE J. Franklin Meyers LB H. Nasirildeen S S. Neasman WR Jeff Smith LB Blake Cashman LB Noah Dawkins CB Lamar Jackson DL Tanzel Smart WR Vincent Smith DB Ashtyn Davis DT Jonathan Marshall TE Kenny Yeboah
Philadelphia Eagles (four players)
WR Quez Watkins RB Jason Huntley
Pittsburgh Steelers (four players)
DE Montravius Adams LB Marcus Allen T Zach Banner LB Devin Bush
Seattle Seahawks (nine players)
RB Alex Collins WR Tyler Lockett CB D. J. Reed RT Brandon Shell RB Travis Homer DE Kerry Hyder Jr. G Pier-Olivier Lestage CB Mike Jackson TE Will Dissly
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (one player)
WR Breshad Perriman
Tennessee Titans (three players)
WR Dez Fitzpatrick S Jamal Carter G Rodger Saffold
Washington Football Team (19 players)
QB Kyle Allen DB Troy Apke DT Matt Ioannidis LB Milo Eifler S Darrick Forrest OT Cornelius Lucas TE Sammis Reyes LB David Mayo DE William Bradley-King TE Temarrick Hemingway DB Kendall Fuller DT Tim Settle RB Wendell Smallwood DB Kamren Curl C Keith Ismael C Tyler Larsen QB Taylor Heinicke OG Brandon Scherff LB Cole Holcomb
MORE: NFL power rankings: 49ers, Chiefs, Cowboys climb; Bills, Ravens, Steelers slide for Week 15
NFL COVID vaccine rules
Here is the COVID protocol for vaccinated players, according to the NFL :
Vaccinated individuals who test positive and are asymptomatic will be isolated and contact tracing will promptly occur. The positive individual will be permitted to return to duty after two negative tests at least 24-hours apart. After that, they will be tested every week or as directed by the medical staff. Vaccinated individuals will not be subject to quarantine as a result of close contact with an infected person.
The main difference between vaccinated and unvaccinated players is that vaccinated players don’t have to worry about being a “high-risk” close contact at any point. They also have more freedom to participate in activities than their unvaccinated counterparts. Vaccinated players can go out on the road and more easily spend time with teammates outside the facility, among other perks.
What is NFL’s COVID protocol for unvaccinated players?
The NFL’s COVID protocols are stricter than those for vaccinated players. They are as follows, per the NFL :
If an unvaccinated person tests positive, the protocols from 2020 will remain in effect. The person will be isolated for a period of 10 days and will then be permitted to return to duty if asymptomatic. Unvaccinated individuals will continue to be subject to a five-day quarantine period if they have close contact with an infected individual.
Unvaccinated players also have more procedures they must follow to avoid falling into COVID protocol. They include the following:
Unvaccinated individuals must be tested for COVID every day at the team facility. If a player misses even one day of testing, they will be required to test negative for COVID for five straight days before re-entering the facility. That’s what happened to Cam Newton before the final week of the Patriots’ preseason. Unvaccinated free agents must also test negative for five consecutive days before being allowed to enter a team facility. Unvaccinated players must wear masks at all times in the facility. They cannot gather in groups larger than three players and on the road “are prohibited from congregating, visiting or mingling with individuals outside of the traveling party once they have arrived in the game city. " Unvaccinated individuals are subject to fines if they break COVID protocols. This can include anything from failing to wear a mask in the facility or going to an indoor concert or house party with more than 15 people.
When is a player considered fully vaccinated?
The NFL considers a player fully vaccinated if they fall into one of the two following categories. They either are 14 days removed from their final dose of Pfizer, Moderna or the Johnson & Johnson vaccine or they previously contracted COVID and are 14 days removed from a single dose of any vaccine.
Will the NFL postpone games because of COVID?
The NFL has left the door open for potential postponements. That said, the league has said that “postponements will only occur if required by government authorities, medical experts, or at the Commissioner’s discretion.”
Of course, the NFL has also said that it’s hoping to play its full, 272-game schedule “in a safe and responsible way,” so it seems likely that the league will consider postponements where appropriate.
However, the NFL has noted that the burden of postponements or cancellations will fall upon teams featuring COVID spikes among unvaccinated players. If outbreaks occur among vaccinated players, the league will seek to “minimize the burden” of that club.
What does that mean? If a team has an outbreak that impacts unvaccinated players, they’re less likely to get a favorable ruling from the NFL. So, they may be forced to play significantly shorthanded or at a less convenient time.
The NFL also has stated that if a game cannot be rescheduled within its 18-week season due to a COVID outbreak amid non-vaccinated players, the team with the outbreak will be forced to forfeit.
Additionally, the league said that “games will not be postponed or rescheduled simply to avoid roster issues caused by injury or illness affecting multiple players, even within a position group.” That principle was in action last year, and the Broncos were the best example of it in action. They had to play with practice squad receiver Kendall Hinton as their quarterback after their quarterback room was exposed to the virus.
Will the NFL add an extra week because of COVID postponements?
No, it’s not planning to. The NFL confirmed that they are hoping not to extend the regular season past 18 weeks (17 games and one bye).
Perhaps the NFL will change its tune if COVID becomes a bigger issue than the league anticipates, but for now, don’t expect the league to add another week to the season.
