Four Buffalo Bills players were sent home from team facilities on Tuesday after being deemed a close contact to a team trainer who has tested positive for COVID-19, as general manager Brandon Beane has confirmed.
The four players that were sent home included wide receivers Cole Beasley and Gabriel Davis, as well as defensive tackles Star Lotulelei and Vernon Butler. All four players have tested negative for COVID-19, but they still must serve a five-day re-entry process to the facility in Orchard Park.
As a result, all four of these players have been placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.
If all four Bills players were vaccinated against COVID-19, they would not have to go through the five-day waiting period to return to action. However, according to the league’s COVID-19 protocols, unvaccinated players must undergo the five-day period if they are deemed close contacts of someone who has tested positive for the virus.
It was originally reported by Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News that linebackers A.J. Klein and Matt Milano were also among the players that were sent home and also placed in the five-day re-entry process. However, Klein and Milano were sent home as more of a precaution, but they were never deemed a close contact. They will be able to return to team facilities on Wednesday.
Beasley has been quite outspoken about the COVID-19 vaccine, taking to social media on multiple occasions to voice his opinions. At the start of training camp, he released a statement on the matter, saying "I'm not anti- or pro-vax, I'm pro-choice."
As for Lotulelei, he opted out of the 2020 NFL season due to COVID-19 concerns.
Given the timeline of their re-entry period, all four players will be unavailable for Saturday's preseason finale against the Green Bay Packers at Highmark Stadium.