Matthew Stafford’s appearance on the transaction wire shook up the Lions den. Stafford is now on the NFL’s reserve/COVID-19 list.
Stafford joins Kenny Golladay, T.J. Hockenson and five other Lions players on the reserve list just in the first five days of the players arriving in Allen Park for the start of training camp. Being placed on the list does not necessarily indicate a positive test result for COVID-19, though that is one of the ways a player can make it onto the reserve list. Players who test negative but have been in close personal contact with an infected person also get placed on the list without differentiation by the team or league.
What’s next for Stafford, Golladay and the other Lions on the list? How do they get back on the field?
Per the NFL’s information on the newly created reserve/COVID-19 list, there are three different scenarios. They depend on if the player tested positive or negative and if he is symptomatic or asymptomatic.
For positive tests…
Asymptomatic players cannot return until:
- 10 days after the initial positive test OR
- 5 days have passed since the initial positive test and two consecutive negative tests are completed separated by 24 hours within a five-day period
- Return must be approved by the team’s physician and the league’s Infection Control Specialist, or ICS
Symptomatic players can’t return until:
- 10 days have passed since the first COVID-19 symptoms appeared
- At least 72 hours have passed since the symptoms last occurred
- Return is approved by the team’s physician after consulting with ICS and NFL’s chief medical officer
- Local regulations and requirements are satisfied
For players who test negative and are asymptomatic but have been in close contact with an infected person, the rules change.
- Second negative test within 24 hours of initial negative test
- Increased symptom monitoring
- Eight days of daily virus testing
- Regular testing schedule thereafter
Players have until Monday, August 3rd to opt-out for the season. So far, defensive tackle John Atkins is the only Lions player to exercise his right to opt-out.
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