6 Panthers made contact with Falcons player on COVID-19 list. Team in intensive protocol
The Carolina Panthers have entered the NFL’s intensive protocol related to COVID-19 after at least six players made direct contact in Sunday’s game with Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Marlon Davidson.
Davidson was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list Tuesday. As of Wednesday morning, no Carolina player had tested positive for COVID-19. The Panthers are expecting to to be in the protocols for five days, through Saturday, meaning as long as the team has no positive tests or other new information, the Panthers will be out of the intensive protocols for this weekend’s game at home against the Chicago Bears.
Being added to the COVID-19 list doesn’t necessarily mean a player tested positive for COVID-19. Players are also placed on the list if they have direct contact with someone who has tested positive.
“I think it’s such a serious enough topic that I don’t think, we don’t really have time to get frustrated with it, we just have to deal with it and make the most out of it. And a lot of the things that we’re being asked to do, we were already doing,” head coach Matt Rhule said Wednesday. “It’s just to me, a matter of adapting. I think that everything that happens, there’s always something positive that can come out of it. We’re just trying to make the most of it and move forward.”
The Falcons entered similar protocols Wednesday as well.
Due to the recent Tennessee Titans outbreak, the NFL has implemented new protocols this month to limit the spread of COVID-19. Those new protocols include that anyone with “high-risk” close contact exposure to a COVID-19 positive individual must be isolated for at least five days, even if the person is negative and remains asymptomatic.
The league has advised the Panthers on protocols to take because of Davidson being placed on the reserve list. NFL chief medical officer Dr. Allen Sills, in consultation with the Panthers’ infection control officer, director of security Eddie Levins and medical staff, will determine when the team is relieved of the additional protocols.
The team may have in-person meetings, but they cannot be in a room smaller than the full-team room in the facility. The only other player activity allowed in the building this week is for rehab and medical reasons.
Davidson played 12 snaps against the Panthers on Sunday, all in the first half. Three snaps were on special teams, while the other nine were on defense. He made contact with at least six Panthers players, according to film analysis by The Observer, including right guard John Miller on five plays, left tackle Russell Okung on three plays, center Matt Paradis on two plays, left tackle Taylor Moton on two plays, left guard Chris Reed on one play and backup lineman Trent Scott on three special teams plays.
The Panthers can hold practice and walk-throughs on the team’s outdoor practice fields or inside the practice bubble, but all coaches and staff have to wear masks, and all players must wear an Oakley Faceshield or mask.
During Wednesday’s practice, players were seen wearing masks, but Rhule elected to switch the team’s padded practice to Thursday to lessen the adjustments in one day.
“I decided not to go in pads today just because I didn’t want guys having to wear a mask under a helmet. That seems really hard for me. Now they did have have a shield option, which I think as we move forward, but it just seemed like a lot in one day, right? Get them here, have them do all this new stuff and go out and be really physical, we practice really physically when we go in pads,” Rhule said. “We’ll probably go out there tomorrow in pads and get our physical work in. I wanted today to be about their safety, their getting used to the mask, them just handling this next step and this next step in the protocol.
“At the end of the day. I told the players, whether they love me or hate me, I want them to always know that their health comes first within our way of doing things.”
Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was wearing a helmet with a Faceshield Wednesday. He said he normally wear one of the Faceshields on his helmet during practice and takes it off for games.
“It’s just me just trying to get a feel for it. I really don’t like wearing these he’s little masks in practice,” Bridgewater said. “I’d rather just wear the helmet with the complete face shield just so I can talk better and breathe better. But if we have to wear (the face masks), then I’ll just wear it, especially if it’s for my own safety.”
Players must also wear masks while in locker rooms and only stay in the locker area for 15 minutes at a time or less.
Additional requirements include only allowing 10 players to work out in the weight room with a maximum of five staff members present, changing all meals to grab-and-go with no seating in meal area and all players must get their COVID-19 test results from the previous day before any can enter the facility.
Since Oct. 1, there have been 12 NFL games rescheduled due to players testing positive for COVID-19. The Bears, who the Panthers are currently scheduled to play at 1 p.m. Sunday, placed practice squad player offensive lineman Badara Traore on the COVID-19 list Saturday and adjusted their practice schedule earlier this week.
The Panthers have placed three players on the reserve/COVID-19 list so far this year, but have not had a player on the list for multiple weeks.
Jonathan Alexander contributed reporting for this story.
This story was originally published October 14, 2020 at 10:51 AM.
