Cleveland Browns Twitter is a sad place of late.
There are a lot of disappointed fans about the NFL’s handling of this mushrooming COVID-19 issue among what are reportedly mainly, if not all, vaccinated Browns players.
A very prominent name jumped into the foray.
He is Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield who is among the fully vaccinated players who tested positive this week.
Mayfield is understandably frustrated with the NFL’s complete disinterest in moving the Browns vs. Raiders Saturday game because of the situation.
Case Keenum Is Now COVID Positive
It is really not much of an exaggeration to say it has hit almost every position and the starters and backups of each.
The latest shoe to fall was a painful one.
Case Keenum has tested positive.
Confirming #Browns quarterback Case Keenum has tested positive for COVID-19. Nick Mullens is next man up
— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) December 16, 2021
This result became known this afternoon after practice, and more positive results are forthcoming.
For the time being, Nick Mullens is the starting quarterback for the Browns on Saturday afternoon.
Mayfield’s Tweets
There were two.
The subject of his ire is the NFL, and he has some hard hitting words for the organization he works for.
In the first Tweet, he writes:
“@NFL Make up your damn mind on protocols. Showing up and making only 3 teams test?!? All so you can keep the game as scheduled to make money.”
@NFL Make up your damn mind on protocols. Showing up and making only 3 teams test?!? All so you can keep the game as scheduled to make money.
— Baker Mayfield (@bakermayfield) December 16, 2021
The second Tweet which was a reply to this first one says:
“Actually caring about player safety would mean delaying the game with this continuing at the rate it is….But to say you won’t test vaccinated players if they don’t have symptoms, then to pull this randomly. Doesn’t make any sense to me.”
Actually caring about player safety would mean delaying the game with this continuing at the rate it is….
But to say you won’t test vaccinated players if they don’t have symptoms, then to pull this randomly. Doesn’t make any sense to me.— Baker Mayfield (@bakermayfield) December 16, 2021
New NFL COVID-19 Protocols
The NFL announced new protocols on Thursday afternoon.
The protocols focus on fully vaccinated players who are asymptomatic.
The new protocols could have players return quicker, but it does introduce a new element to the testing called cycle threshold (CT).
Per ESPN, “the CT value can measure whether a player is still contagious, even if in some cases he would still test positive on a traditional test.”
Now there are three ways that fully vaccinated players can return to play.
They are:
- Two negative PCR tests or tests that have a CT value of 35 or higher.
- One negative PCR test or test that has a CT value of 35 or higher and one negative Mesa test.
- Two negative Mesa tests.
Mesa tests have a quick turnaround, usually in one hour or less.
Back To Baker
It is likely the three teams Baker is referring to are the Browns, the Los Angeles Rams, and the Washington Football Team who seem to be in the most dire COVID-19 circumstances as they prepare for their Week 15 games.
Introducing a new metric and protocols is a lot for a team to absorb especially with games two or three days away.
Conclusion
He is not wrong that the NFL is adamant on having games go on as scheduled but did make some adjustments last season when there was no vaccine.
There is less time and no bye weeks to work with, but where there is a will, there is a way.
Reportedly, there is a serious movement to delay all the NFL games this weekend.
Also, the NFLPA is currently pushing aggressively for a postponement of the Raiders-Browns game on Saturday. Some in the union believe the entire season should shut down for a week. The union is concerned about player safety and game integrity.
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) December 16, 2021
If the NFL really wants to make this right, a solution could be found that is fair and equitable for all parties involved.
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