Unvaccinated Buffalo Bills receiver Cole Beasley is forced to quarantine for five days after vaccinated staffer tested positive for COVID - weeks after star blasted NFL for lifting restrictions for players who have had shot
After publicly rejecting the NFL's efforts to persuade players to get vaccinated, Buffalo Bills receiver Cole Beasley must spend at least five days away from the team facility due to COVID-19 contact tracing.
A person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Beasley, fellow receiver Gabriel Davis, and defensive tackle Star Lotulelei will be forced to quarantine for five days after they were found to be in close contact with an infected member of the team’s training staff. The trio will miss the Bills' final preseason game on Saturday against the visiting Green Bay Packers.
A source spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity because the Bills did not immediately return a message seeking comment on the development first reported by the New York Daily News. Bills spokespeople did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com's request for confirmation.
After publicly rejecting the NFL's efforts to persuade players to get vaccinated, Bills receiver Cole Beasley must spend at least five days away from the team facility due to contact tracing
A person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Beasley, fellow receiver Gabriel Davis , and defensive tackle Star Lotulelei will be forced to quarantine for five days after they were found to be in close contact with an infected member of the team’s training staff. The trio will miss the Bills' final preseason game on Saturday against the visiting Green Bay Packers. Bills coach Sean McDermott has said the team has done everything it can to educate players
Both Beasley and Davis tested negative for COVID-19 but were required to leave the Bills facility and follow the NFL and NFLPA's five-day reentry protocols before they can rejoin the team, the person said.
Only unvaccinated players are subject to what's referred to as the five-day reentry cadence. Unvaccinated players are tested daily, while fully vaccinated players are required to be tested once every 14 days.
More than 90 percent of NFL players are now vaccinated, according to the league.
Beasley has been an outspoken critic against vaccinations and the league's COVID-19 policies. In June, he posted a statement on social media threatening to retire after the NFL and NFLPA announced new rules for vaccinated and unvaccinated players.
He opened training camp by reading from a statement in which he repeatedly referred to a lack of transparency and information on vaccinations. Beasley's comments contradicted those by Bills coach Sean McDermott, who has said the team has done everything it can to educate players.
'This is crazy,' Beasley tweeted in late June. 'Did we vote on this? I stay in the hotel. We still have meetings. We will all be together. Vaccinated players can go out the hotel and bring covid back in to where I am. So what does it matter if I stay in the hotel now? 100 percent immune with vaccination? No.'
The NFL and NFLPA detailed new protocols for vaccinated players in a recent memo
Beasley has been an outspoken critic against vaccinations and the league's COVID-19 policies. In June, he posted a statement on social media threatening to retire after the NFL and NFLPA announced new rules for vaccinated and unvaccinated players. He opened training camp by reading from a statement in which he repeatedly referred to a lack of transparency and information on vaccinations. Beasley's comments contradicted those by Bills coach Sean McDermott, who has said the team has done everything it can to educate players
Beasley released a statement in late June, doubling down on his anti-vaccination stance
Defensive tackle Star Lotulelei will also be away from the team for five days
Beasley did not simply take issue with the league, but rather, specifically called out the NFLPA.
'The players association is a joke,' he tweeted. 'Call it something different. It's not for the players. Everyone gives me the 98 percent of people who are vaccinated don't get covid again. The odds of me getting in the NFL and playing for 10 years are lower than that and I'm here.'
Inoculated players will also be allowed to use steam rooms or saunas going forward, and they can take advantage of sponsorship opportunities, which had been restricted under previous COVID-19 protocols.
'So what are we really talking about?' Beasley asked in another tweet. 'I understand completely why the NFL is doing this. It gives them back the freedom to make the most money as possible again if everyone is vaccinated. But will anyone fight for the players or nah?'
Beasley, who is unvaccinated, is unhappy about the continued restrictions he faces. Specifically, the 32-year-old took issue with a rule barring unvaccinated players from leaving the team hotel or interacting with people outside the club on road trips
Beasley previously responded on Twitter to a CNN story mask requirements being lifted across the country.
'I do that without being vaccinated,' he said. 'Is this illegal now?'
Beasley expanded on his position in a statement on Friday.
'Look, I'm going to live my one life like I want to regardless,' he began.
'Everyone - Hi, I'm Cole Beasley and I'm not vaccinated! I will be outside doing what I do. I'll be out in public. If your scared of me then steer clear, or get vaccinated. Point. Blank. Period.
'I may die of covid, but I'd rather die actually living.
'I'm not going to take meds for a leg that isn't broken. I'd rather take my chances with Covid and build up my immunity that way. Eat better. Drink water. Exercise and do what I think is necessary to be a healthy individual. That is MY CHOICE based on MY experiences and what I think is best.'
The vaccination dilemma has been felt across the NFL, with players such as Carolina Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold saying he will not be getting the injection. Even Beasley's own quarterback, Josh Allen, said as recently as April that he was not vaccinated.
