The Cardinals are down to one player remaining on the reserve/COVID-19 list and it appears having 10 high-risk contacts (HRC) in the last two-plus weeks has motivated more players to get vaccinated.
Second-year defensive tackle Leki Fotu was identified as a HRC last week and missed Friday night’s preseason opener against the Dallas Cowboys.
Prior to the start of training camp, the Cardinals were one of four teams with fewer than 50 percent of the roster vaccinated.
As of this past weekend, there were seven teams in the NFL with at least 97% of the team vaccinated and it was reported Monday the Atlanta Falcons were at 100%. On the flip side, there were five teams below 88% and one at 74%.
Fotu returned to practice Monday and was asked Tuesday if the HRC protocols has led to more players being vaccinated. HRCs don’t have to miss five days if they are vaccinated.
“Just want to speak for myself,” Fotu said, while revealing, “I've done my part in order to get fully vaccinated. I'm certain my other teammates with their situations, they do what is best for them to do.”
He acknowledged the difficulty of not being with the team, saying, “Being out for those five days, missing the game was definitely rough on me. To see the guys out there, just knowing that the work that I put in during the offseason to that point. But I tried everything in my power at home quarantined, to work out, stay on top of my stuff, to make sure I'm ready to come back this week.”
Quarterback Kyler Murray was asked if there is a level of frustration when teammates are sidelined because they have elected not to be vaccinated.
He said, “You can't really control what guys do off the field. I think if they're bought in, they will try their best to stay out of the way or not be close contact to people, but like I said, you can't really control it. I don't know the stat, but I think we're almost there as far as everybody being vaccinated.”
Head coach Kliff Kingsbury claimed he didn’t know what the team percentage is now, but he did say, “I know we're getting to a good place.”
All players, whether with the Cardinals or any team would be served well by living out Fotu’s words, “I’ve done my part.”
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