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The ways COVID-19 is already affecting the Detroit Lions roster

By Payne Schanski

Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)
Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images) /
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Isaac Nauta, Detroit Lions
Isaac Nauta, Detroit Lions. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

The NFL COVID-19 Reserve List

What it means: While details still have a degree of vagueness as far as the general public is a concern, the general summary is that this is a new off-shoot of the injured reserve. The COVID-19 Reserve list was created for players who either test positive for coronavirus or have been in close contact with someone who contracted the virus.

Players on this list are deemed inactive until given medical clearance to return, though time away can vary. The league’s protocol for returning to work involves several variables (symptomatic vs asymptomatic, results of additional rounds of testing, and local regulations, to name a few).

The first Lions player to be re-activated to team activities after being placed on the COVID-19 list was backup tight end, Isaac Nauta. Nauta was cleared to come back on Monday, after spending just five days on the reserve.

What’s up with Stafford? Matthew Stafford is easily the highest-profile NFL player to be placed on the list so far, with speculation over whether he had the virus or was just in contact with someone who did.

Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated reported that Stafford indeed tested positive for the virus; however, this doesn’t necessarily mean that he’ll be out of commission for the year, or even an extended amount of time, as Nauta’s quick return demonstrates.

UPDATE: After the publishing of this story, it was determined that Matthew Stafford did not contract COVID-19, and the positive test result he received was a False-Positive. He has now been removed from the COVID-IR list.

Lions on the list so far:

  • Matthew Stafford- QB
  • Kenny Golladay-WR
  • T.J. Hockenson-TE
  • Justin Coleman-CB
  • Amani Oruwariye-CB
  • Arryn Sippos- P
  • Jalen Elliott-S
  • Isaac Nauta- TE (activated)

How does that compare to other teams? Here’s another one of those “can’t the Lions get any type of break?” situations, but as of now, Detroit has the most players out of any team to be placed on the COVID-19 list.

Minnesota and Jacksonville are next, as each has seven players on it. While there are still a handful of teams around the league who haven’t lost anyone to this policy so far, that is likely to change in the coming weeks barring a major shift in the trend.

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