Coronavirus: Miami Dolphins and Atlanta Falcons enter NFL's intensive protocol after positive tests
Miami Dolphins enter NFL's intensive protocol after an assistant coach tests positive for COVID-19; Falcons cancel practice and work virtually on Friday after a member of football staff tests positive; Chicago Bears and Houston Texans return to practice after one-day shutdowns
Friday 6 November 2020 22:19, UK
The Miami Dolphins have entered the NFL's intensive protocol after an assistant coach tested positive for COVID-19 and was quarantined, the team said in a statement on Friday.
The identity of the coach was not revealed.
As per the league's procedure, contact tracing has begun within the organisation. The protocol mandates additional precaution - shutting down facility, deep cleaning, moving to exclusively remote work - while also identifying potential high-risk close contacts in an attempt to stop the spread of the virus.
It was the first coronavirus case involving the Dolphins since August 19, but their regular-season schedule was changed because of outbreaks involving other teams.
Miami are scheduled to play Sunday at Arizona.
The Atlanta Falcons cancelled practice and worked virtually on Friday after a member of their football staff tested positive for COVID-19.
The Falcons said the move was out of an "abundance of caution" while contact tracing is used to determine if anyone else might have been exposed.
The team expects to play Sunday's game against the Denver Broncos.
"The whole reason were doing it is to get guys to the game," coach Raheem Morris said. "We want to make sure we go through all the precautionary measures to play the game. Everybody wants to play the game."
Two Cincinnati Bengals players tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday.
The Bengals, who are on a bye week, released a statement confirming the results Friday.
"The Bengals this morning were made aware that two of the team's players have tested positive for COVID-19," the statement read. "We are following applicable protocols and continue to prioritize the health and safety of our team. Players have not been in the facility since Wednesday. Under NFL bye week protocols players will test daily, but will not be back in the facility until next week."
The next game for Cincinnati is on November 15 at the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Green Bay Packers placed linebacker Krys Barnes and reserve quarterback Jordan Love on the reserve/COVID-19 list.
The list is for a player who has tested positive or has been in close contact with an infected person.
Barnes played in the Packers 34-17 victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night. The Packers announced in the first half he had left with a calf injury.
Bears, Texans get all-clear after one-day shutdown
After closing their facility earlier in the day when another player tested positive, the Chicago Bears can return to football activities, the team announced on Thursday night.
The team spent Thursday working remotely after another player, identified as center Cody Whitehair by the NFL Network, tested positive for COVID-19.
On Wednesday, backup offensive lineman Jason Spriggs and starting guard Germain Ifedi were put on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Spriggs tested positive while Ifedi was declared a high-risk close contact. It will be back to business as usual on Friday.
"We have been cleared to resume football activities at Halas Hall," the team announced on Twitter.
The Bears are scheduled to travel to Nashville to play the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.
The Houston Texans returned to their facility on Friday, a day after it was closed following a positive COVID-19 test by a player.
Interim coach Romeo Crennel said the team had no more positive tests and it would resume practice on Friday ahead of Sunday's game at Jacksonville.
Linebacker Jacob Martin's positive test on Wednesday night forced the closure of the facility on Thursday. Linebackers Whitney Mercilus and Dylan Cole will also miss Sunday's game after the NFL determined they had been in close contact with Martin.
