In their first week of training camp, the Detroit Lions went through three rounds of coronavirus tests and, if those were negative, physical exams. By the end, the team had put its eighth player and biggest name on its reserve/COVID-19 list: quarterback Matthew Stafford. The roster move means either that Stafford tested positive Friday for the coronavirus or has been in contact with someone who has,
USA Today reports. The NFL's agreement with the players association prohibits releasing medical information about players. Once placed on the list, players can't be removed until they've been medically cleared, per ESPN. In early spring, Stafford had worked out with two other Lions who were placed on the list Thursday.
On June 26, Stafford's wife, Kelly, gave birth to a daughter—their fourth. Stafford said in May that they were taking care to avoid the virus. He was trying to break the habit of licking his fingers before gripping the football, for example. "I think it's in everybody's best interest to be as safe as you can possibly be whether you've got a pregnant wife at home with kids or not," he said, adding, "Make sure we are at home doing everything that the experts are telling us to do, as much as we possibly can, and we're trying to stay sane and still have a little bit of fun here and there." Stafford is the league's biggest star to be placed on the list so far, per the Free Press, and the news sent waves of fear and concern about its fall season through the league Saturday. (More Matthew Stafford stories.)
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