It is currently Week 5 of the NFL, and things have not been too bad for the league. They test their players regularly, social distance when possible, and have several safety precautions in place. However, things can still slip through the cracks.

“I just hope that all players stay safe, no matter what team they are on,” junior Stephen Bassey said.

The Tennessee Titans were the first NFL team to have an outbreak of COVID-19, and they currently have 18 positive tests. The Titans said that they followed all protocols after their first surge of cases, but it was never clarified if they followed them before the tests came back. If they did not, the Titans could face serious consequences, including extreme fines. Their number of cases caused Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers postponed to sometime in Week 7.

As for the Minnesota Vikings, they have had a streak of luck as nobody on the team has currently caught COVID-19. There was a big scare after their game against the Titans, but all is well with the Vikings.

“I have always looked forward to football season, but COVID has got me worried about what is to come,” junior Charisse Yip said.

The second team to get a positive case soon became the New England Patriots with their quarterback Cam Newton falling ill with the virus. As of today, he is the only member of the team who has COVID-19 as they have increased their protocols. Their game against the Chiefs has been postponed to tonight due to positive tests on both teams.

“I feel like it is inevitable because they are putting themselves at risk by playing the game and there being so much contact,” junior Ainsley Barnett said. “And that there should be more done like mandatory sanitization of the ball and their uniforms in the locker rooms and out on the field between quarters.”

The third, last, and most recent team to have a player with COVID-19 was the Kansas City Chiefs. Their practice backup, Jordan Ta’amu, caught the virus which resulted in the NFL’s decision to postpone the game until tonight at 6:05.

“Despite players following guidelines outside of the game, unfortunately football is a contact sport, and this was an inevitable event,” junior Joshua Connors said.

Connors and Barnett were on-point with their quotes, as all that fans can do now is hope that their team stays safe and follows protocol to the best of their abilities. For fans of an infected team, all they do is hope even more for all players to have a smooth recovery and for the other members to stay safe.