Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians announced Tuesday that kicker Ryan Succop has tested positive for COVID-19.
Succop, who is vaccinated, went out to dinner indoors with some members of the Tennessee Titans when the team was in town for joint practices and a preseason game last week, Arians said.
While he is vaccinated, Succop is out this week due to a positive coronavirus test, Arians said.
The NFL informed teams in July that if a vaccinated person tests positive and is asymptomatic, he or she will be isolated and contact tracing will promptly occur, according to NFL.com. The positive individual will be permitted to return to duty after two negative tests at least 24-hours apart and will thereafter be tested every two weeks or as directed by the medical staff per league protocol.
NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported at the end of July that the NFL sent a memo to its clubs stating that if a game cannot be rescheduled during the 18-week schedule due to a COVID-19 outbreak among unvaccinated players, the team with the outbreak will forfeit and be credited with a loss, per sources informed of the situation.
Luckily for the Bucs, Succop is the only player on the team to have tested positive for the coronavirus, Arians said, and it's unlikely he'll miss any of the upcoming regular season, which begins in 16 days.
Coronavirus infections can still happen but only in a small proportion of people who are fully vaccinated according to the CDC. When these infections occur among vaccinated people, they tend to be mild according to the CDC.
Tampa Bay won't need to make a move this week to add a kicker on its roster as the team signed University of Miami product Jose Borregales in May as an undrafted free agent. For the Canes last year, Borregales successfully converted 20-of-22 field goal attempts, while making each of his 37 extra-point attempts.
In addition to Borregales, Bucs punter Bradley Pinion has been kicking field goals in practice as well, according to Arians. In last week's preseason game vs. the Titans, Pinion missed a 61-yard field goal.
Tampa Bay hits the road for its third and final preseason game of 2021 to take the Houston Texans Saturday night at 8 p.m.
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