The Detroit Lions placed Pro Bowl wide receiver Kenny Golladay and tight end TJ Hockenson, last year’s first-round pick, on the COVID-19 / reserve list on Wednesday, a day after the team pulled out. be presented at training camp.
The two starters were among five Detroit players to land on the COVID reserve roster along with cornerback Amani Oruwariye, undrafted free defensive back Jalen Elliott and rookie Arryn Siposs, who is competing for the punting spot. open.
Being on the reserve list doesn’t mean players have tested positive for the coronavirus. This means that they have tested positive or have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive.
Golladay, who led the NFL with 11 touchdowns last season, is entering the final year of his contract. Hockenson was selected eighth in last year’s draft and finished last season on the injured reserve after injuring his right ankle in the fourth quarter against Chicago on Thanksgiving.
Detroit also asked a player to withdraw from the 2020 season on Wednesday as defensive tackle John Atkins, who started six games for the Lions last season and was due to compete for a reserve role this year, decided to s ‘absent.
Earlier Wednesday, Lions general manager Bob Quinn explained in a Zoom press conference the team’s protocol, including meetings with players and players’ families so they can answer questions. on COVID-19. Quinn also said that the team’s medics and coaches would be available to any staff member, player or family member of a staff member or player to answer questions about the virus and protocol.
All in the name of trying to keep his team as safe as possible.
“We’re not in a bubble. We have a bubble once you walk into the facility, but it comes down to education,” Quinn said. “That’s the huge thing. I feel comfortable walking into this facility every day because I know everyone around me is going to be tested all the time. What I don’t know is is what people do when they leave and return home.
“We have to have a lot of confidence, we have to have a lot of education and we have to have a lot of mature decisions when people leave the institution.”
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