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NFL to Officially Reschedule Sunday’s Steelers-Titans Game Following COVID-19 Breakout

The NFL has decided to officially reschedule Sunday afternoon’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Tennessee Titans after a mini-outbreak of COVID-19 hit the Titans organization.

“​The Steelers-Titans game, originally scheduled for Sunday at 1 p.m. ET, will be rescheduled to allow additional time for further daily COVID-19 testing and to ensure the health and safety of players, coaches, and game day personnel,” the NFL said in a statement this morning. “Details on the new game date and time on either Monday or Tuesday will be announced as soon as possible.”

While the Steelers are going about business as usual with practice, the Titans are not able to enter their facility until Saturday at the earliest. In fact, any meeting or preparation the Titans will be doing this week will happen virtually until the weekend.

Yesterday afternoon Tennessee sent three players on the reserve/COVID-19 list. As of today, six other players are quarantining after testing positive for the virus.

NFL Must Remain “Diligent and Careful”

“We were told during training camp that this could happen if you’re not diligent and careful,” Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said this morning before the postponement became official.

“I know in Pittsburgh, and I’m sure in Tennessee too, guys are being diligent about not being reckless and being careful. We’re home-schooling our kids. We’re not having guests over the house. You have to do those things if you want to play the games on Sunday.”

President of the players union and Cleveland Browns center JC Tretter said that this situation must serve as a reminder to players to remain careful despite the low test numbers throughout the NFL.

“It’s easy to fall into a sense of ease or relax on some of the protocols,” he said Wednesday. “But the protocols are what’s keeping us going, making sure that we’re making the right decisions.”

Titans linebacker coach Shane Bowen tested positive on Saturday and did not travel to Minnesota for their game. Other players started to receive positive tests upon their return.

Titans head coach, Mike Vrabel, announced today that some of his players “are indeed experiencing flu-like symptoms. Nothing I think out of the ordinary. We anticipate they will feel better shortly. Nothing of overly concern. But my concern is always with the health and safety of our players, our staff, and their families.”

[H/T Post Gazette ]

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