Yahoo News Doug Marrone on 12 Jaguars players landing on COVID-19 list: ‘I don’t think anyone’s being negligent’
The Jacksonville Jaguars placed 12 players, including quarterback Gardner Minshew, on the COVID-19 reserve list as of Monday morning — the most among any team in the league.
While that can be concerning, Jaguars coach Doug Marrone says there isn’t a particular reason why so many of his players landed on the list.
“I don’t think anyone’s being negligent. I really don’t believe that,” Marrone said Monday, via ESPN. “Everyone understands what’s at stake, a roster spot or what’s going on or missing time … You’ve just got to be aware of your surroundings and where you are, and there’s a lot of different ways that you can come in contact with the virus.
“I feel good, I really do, about how we’re trying to educate our players, and I feel good about how they’re responding. Sometimes it’s just bad luck.”
Being placed on the COVID-19 reserve list doesn’t mean that a player has tested positive for the coronavirus. It can also be used for players who have come in contact with someone who has tested positive.
Marrone: This ‘can happen to any of us’
There were more than 4.6 million confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the United States as of Monday afternoon, according to The New York Times, and more than 155,500 deaths attributed to it. Florida had more than 491,000 confirmed cases — the second most in the country behind California — and more than 63,000 new cases over the past week, the most among any state in the country. Duval County, where Jacksonville is, had more than 21,000 cases.
[ Coronavirus: How the sports world is responding to the pandemic ]
The Jaguars are the only team in the league with more than 10 players on the COVID-19 reserve list, and have double the amount of the Miami Dolphins and more than double of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“Some of the things that occur can happen to any of us,” Marrone said, via ESPN. “I mean, [if director of public relations Tad Dickman] tests positive tomorrow, I’m out for the day tomorrow [because] I’ve been in contact with Tad.
“Those things can occur, and I think these lessons that we’re learning now is something that’s going to actually be more beneficial for us when the season comes.”
Marrone still isn’t worried about the fate of the season this fall. Doing so now, he said, isn’t worth his time.
“I don’t try to look so far ahead because I don’t know what this virus can do or pick up or however it may go,” he said, via ESPN. “What I look at is what we’re doing right now safety-wise … If I didn’t feel good, I wouldn’t be here if I thought there was a high risk. I think that’s what a lot of us are going through.”
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