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The Kansas City Chiefs made several roster moves on Monday and Tuesday as they worked out of the COVID-19 outbreak that saw them handicapped against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.
Reserve/COVID-19 restorations and expectations
On Monday, the Chiefs activated offensive lineman Kyle Long to the 53-man roster from the Reserve/COVID-19 list, meaning he is expected to rejoin the team when practice resumes on Wednesday.
As a reminder, tight end linebacker Nick Bolton, tight end Travis Kelce and offensive lineman Lucas Niang were placed back on the 53-man roster on Saturday. Though they were unable to pass through COVID-19 protocols, the expectation is that they will also return to the field on Wednesday.
Wide receivers Gehrig Dieter and Daurice Fountain have returned to the practice squad after being on the squad’s Reserve/COVID-19 list.
Call-up returns
Defensive backs Dicaprio Bootle and Josh Jackson and tight end Nakia Griffin-Stewart — active for the Chiefs’ game against the Pittsburgh Steelers — have reverted to the practice squad. The Chiefs gave Bootle a practice squad protection on Tuesday, which makes sense. He led the Chiefs with eight tackles against the Steelers.
Goodbyes
On Tuesday, the Chiefs waived replacement kicker Elliot Fry and released replacement punter Johnny Townsend from his practice squad contract. The team also terminated the practice squad contracts of offensive lineman Paul Adams and wide receiver Dalton Schoen. On Monday, the team released punter Joseph Charlton.
Remaining on COVID-19 list
At the time of this writing, cornerback Rashad Fenton, safety Armani Watts, placekicker Harrison Butker and punter Tommy Townsend remain on the Chiefs’ Reserve/COVID-19 list — although the team saying goodbye to Fry (and the elder Townsend) indicate that the team’s regular placekicker and punter will be back this week.
NFL and NFLPA now have adopted the new CDC guidelines that reduce the quarantine time to 5 days from 10 days for all Covid positive players who are asymptomatic, including those who are unvaccinated, per sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 28, 2021
The NFL and players association’s new COVID-19 agreement suggests that Butker can return immediately — even though he is unvaccinated — so long as he meets specific criteria.
Note that return to play isn't contingent on being asymptomatic. You need:
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) December 28, 2021
- 5 days since initial positive swab
- At least 24 hours since last fever
- Other symptoms (e.g. cough) "resolved or improved"
- Cleared by team doctor in consultation with ICS and NFL
His placement on the Reserve/COVID-19 list occurred on December 20.
Two other Chiefs remain on the Reserve/COVID-19 list: practice squad linebacker Darius Harris and reserve offensive lineman Mike Remmers — who would otherwise be on the team’s Reserve/Injured list.
After all of these moves, the Chiefs now have 48 players on the active roster and 14 on the practice squad.
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