[ad_1]
EAGAN, Minn. – Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins has vowed to follow NFL COVID-19 protocols to avoid contracting the virus or being considered close contact before returning to training Thursday after having been activated off the reserve / COVID-19 list.
Cousins and quarterback Nate Stanley were put through the league’s COVID-19 protocols on Saturday after rookie Kellen Mond tested positive for the virus. Cousins and Stanley were considered high-risk close contacts and had to self-isolate for five days before being eligible to resume practice.
According to NFL-NFL Players Association protocols, high-risk close contact means a player is also not vaccinated.
Cousins, 32, said he had had six negative tests since his last stint with Mond on July 30 and had no symptoms of COVID-19. The veteran quarterback said the size of the Minnesota quarterback’s boardroom inside the TCO Performance Center was the root of the problem.
“I have learned since I have been home that the tracers we wear have in fact shown that I am not a ‘close contact’ as I understand to be a close contact, which is a number of feet away. “said Cousins. . “The challenge was that the meeting room we met in was considered too small for us to have been in a room together – even though we were very far from each other. So we’ve since moved to another meeting room, and if I understand correctly, if we had met in a bigger room, I wouldn’t have missed practice. Because I wasn’t a close contact as I judged by actually being in touch. So it was disappointing to miss training. In all my college and pro career, I have not missed four training sessions. So missing four workouts in a week and not having COVID was frustrating, disappointing.
A league source confirmed to ESPN that the Minnesota quarterback’s room size took into account that Cousins was seen as close contact. The quarterback said his group of positions are moving to a larger boardroom to avoid this issue going forward.
“Like I said to the coach [Mike] Zimmer last night I said, “We can meet inside, we can meet outside,” Cousins said. And I said, ‘If that means meeting away under a goal post in January, if that’s what it takes playoffs and make playoff games and win playoff games, then this is where we will meet. We will avoid this close contact with anything we can do. I had no idea the size of the meeting room was an issue. Otherwise I would have spoken up and said, ‘We obviously can’t meet here.’ “
Cousins called his vaccination decision a “very private health matter” and declined to reveal whether the situation he found himself in this week would persuade him to receive the vaccine to prevent this problem from occurring during the season. . The quarterback has repeatedly referred to the need to follow NFL-NFLPA protocols as the best measure of protection against contracting the virus or being seen as close contact.
“I think as the leader of the team it’s very important to follow the protocols to avoid this close contact because that’s what it’s going to come down to,” Cousins said. “Did you have close contact? So I’m going to be careful to avoid close contact. I even thought, should I just literally put plexiglass around where I’m sitting, so that it can’t anymore. ever happen again? I ‘I thought about it, because I’m going to do whatever it takes. We’re going to avoid that close contact, and I can’t wait to make sure I play for every game this year. “
Cousins said he and Zimmer had a “great conversation” Wednesday before he returned to training. Zimmer, who has openly expressed his frustrations with his unvaccinated players, told KFAN-100.3 FM that he had previously spoken with Cousins about league protocols, to which Zimmer told the quarterback ” do not believe”.
Cousins tried to set the record straight on Thursday: “I believe in protocols a lot.”
The quarterback said he would be “very vigilant” with COVID-19 protocols to ensure he is not in the same position down the line and forced to miss a game as a result.
“Protocols are what you need to follow,” Cousins said. “The NFL has these protocols in place. I want to follow the protocols so I can play on Sunday, and that’s where I focus. As long as I can’t test positive and have close contact, I’ll be there. for every game. “
The Washington Post reported that the Vikings have the lowest vaccination rate in the league with 64.5% of players fully vaccinated. Cousins said he was not aware of his team’s current percentages and did not directly comment on whether he believes the Vikings are at a disadvantage compared to the competition.
“I think it’s a fluid situation,” he said. “I think it changes every day.”
[ad_2]
Source link