With two more reported positive COVID-19 cases among Tennessee Titans players and personnel, the NFL has indefinitely postponed Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The two new reported cases brings the total to 11.
The original plan was to push back the game from Sunday to Monday or Tuesday. However, given the new positive results, the decision was made to postpone the game indefinitely.
According to an NFL press release, the decision to postpone the game was made to ensure the health and safety of players, coaches and game day personnel. The Titans facility will remain closed and the team will continue to have no in-person activities until further notice.
The Titans’ opponent last week, the Minnesota Vikings, reported no positives in follow-up testing. As a result, the team is returning to practice today and expects to play in the scheduled Sunday game against the Houston Texans. However, given that COVID-19 can take several days to manifest, the team is keeping a careful watch on the situation. From the Star Tribune:
Team infection control officer Eric Sugarman said the Vikings will have “enhanced protocols” in place Thursday, adding no one will be admitted inside the team headquarters without a negative PCR test in the last 24 hours and negative point-of-care test when they arrive.
Players, coaches and team personnel will continue to wear contact tracing devices that help NFL teams quickly determine who might have been exposed to a person who tests positive.
The Vikings had no positive COVID-19 cases through Tuesday’s tests, though it could be several days before the team can rule out the possibility anyone contracted coronavirus from the Titans game on Sunday.
This is the first COVID-19 challenge for the NFL this season. The NBA and NHL successfully ended their 2019-2020 seasons while playing in bubbles, and MLB managed to eke through an abbreviated 2020 season and the beginning of playoffs despite some issues early in the schedule.